Sunday, February 7, 2016

Examples Of Arab Placenames In Spain

Benidorm
Alicante
Benalmádena
Alhaurín 
Gibralgalía
Guadalajara
Almogía
Albarracín
Guadalaviar
Alcañiz


Arabic placenames are fairly common throughout most of Spain, the further south the more they predominate. This is not surprising since many parts of Spain were occupied for several hundred years by the Moors.

Many of these names begin with the letters 'Al', 'Ben,' 'Gibra, 'Cala'' or 'Guadal' Many river names begin with the element 'Guadal' too. Arabic is a Semitic language and so these names are not related to names in any other parts of Europe, apart from similar names in Portugal, Sicily, and Malta.. There are also a few placenames in Spain which are of Carthaginian origin, also a Semitic language, long extinct now though.

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