In the Spanish city of Granada, which was the last stronghold of Islam on the Pyrenee Peninsula in the era of Andalusia (711-1492), local Muslims advocate the preservation of the stability of the Islamic community.
After the expulsion of Muslims during the reign of Catholic monarchs (1469-1516), Islam has long been absent in Spain, but in recent decades began to return thanks to the migration and appeal of the Spaniards in Islam.
According to the Union of Islamic Communities of Spain (UCIDE), by December 2024 the number of Muslims in the country reached 2.54 million people, which is more than four times higher than the 2000 indicator.
Granada remains one of the most significant cities for Muslims of Spain. According to the UCIDE report, 44,307 Muslims live in the city, of which 23,899 are migrants, and 20 408 – citizens of Spain. The main part of the Spanish Muslims are made up of Morocco, but the number of ethnic Spaniards who accepted Islam is also growing.
“To be a Muslim in Spain is a challenge and blessing”
“My parents accepted Islam when I was only a year. My whole life passed in the Muslim environment,” the Spaniard Muhammad Amin Botelia told Anadol. According to him, Granada is the best place in Spain for the life of Muslims.
“to be a Muslim in Spain is the simultaneous challenge and blessing. We are surrounded by a culture that does not contribute to an Islamic lifestyle. However, Vera makes us stronger, gives wealth to the soul,” he said.
Botelia emphasized that Muslims should learn from the past. “We are aware that in a sense we repeat the return of Islam to Granada. But the time has changed, the calls are others. We should not fall into the romanticization of the past, but take the best from it,” he added.
A new generation of Muslims is growing in Granada
Another Muslim of Spanish origin, Ismail Perez, noted that he is proud of the fact that it is part of the new generation of Spanish Muslims.
“The most important thing for us is the realization that we represent the second and new generation of Muslims in Spain,” he said.
According to him, the local Islamic community feels comfortable and does not face oppression. “Granada was the last stronghold of Muslims in Spain. Now we are a new community, but Islam has always been here,” he summed up.