Three Cultures of Medieval Spain
Robert Blake
Spanish and Portuguese
Robert J. Blake (Distinguished Professor, Emeritus, Ph.D. University of Texas) has been professor of Spanish linguistics at UC Davis since 1992. He has published widely in Spanish linguistics and the history of the Spanish language. In 2019, Georgetown University Press published the third edition of his book on technology, Brave New Digital Classroom; in 2016, Georgetown also released his new book on applied linguistics and Spanish. For the last ten to fifteen years, he has pioneered online first-year and second-year Spanish courses taught as part of the UC Office of the President online offerings. He has repeatedly taught a summer graduate course on language and technology in Salamanca, Spain, and was a visiting professor at the University of Salamanca in fall 2013. In 2004, he was named a member of the North American Academic of the Spanish Language, making him a corresponding member of the Royal Spanish Academy. He is also an avid jazz guitarist and student of the Arabic language.
A Message to Students and Parents
“Medieval Spain is one of the most intriguing historical periods precisely because the three ethnic groups—Christian, Jewish, and Muslim—that were forced to live together, for better or worse, for eight centuries (711-1429). As a Spanish linguist, I have been fascinated all my professional life with the enormous contribution of Arabic loanwords firmly ensconced in the Spanish language (around 3,000 words). They include words for the most advanced scientific concepts and material improvements of the day. How did the different sectors of this medieval society work out all of their differences and accommodate these radically different cultural traditions? Many answers can be found in the historical and architecture sites still preserved today: enchanting cities such as Toledo, Córdoba, Sevilla, and Granada. We will find old Spanish churches and synagogues built according to Arabic aesthetics, the great mosque at Córdoba with a Christian chapel inserted into the middle of it (16th century), and a modern-day Granada feeling more like a part of Morocco along with its Alhambra Palace, one of the wonders of the world. This summer course will examine these questions up close, brick by brick, while also enjoying the synergism of contemporary Spanish culture that these three traditions produced over time. Students will start with background lectures in Salamanca, one of the safest and most revered university towns in Europe and an important anchor of the Christian kingdom during medieval times of the Reconquest. Mester Academy will provide guided tours as well as all of the travel and lodging logistics for our stay in Salamanca and the field trips to the south. Transportation, lodging, and food will be pre-arranged from start to finish, with the main meal (around 2 p.m.) provided by the program. Students just need to relax, observe, and absorb the best of Spanish life along with the cultural topics to be explored. Remember to leave the U.S. on Sunday, June 16th, in order to arrive in Madrid in the morning of June 17th before 1 p.m., where you will be met by Prof. Blake and bused together to your first home stay in Salamanca. The program ends in Granada at noon on Sunday, July 14th when you are free to travel more in Europe or return to the U.S."