English and the World · Spain · 6 · Granada · A1–C2 · A1–A2 free
A quarter below the Alhambra, a Jewish poet who commanded an army, a family of translators who carried learning across Europe, and the decree of 1492. Choose your level.
The Realejo, Granada
The Realejo is a quarter of Granada on the slope below the Alhambra. It has quiet squares, old churches, small bars and colourful paintings on the walls. Many people say that, in the Middle Ages, this was the Jewish quarter of the city.
For hundreds of years, Jews, Muslims and Christians lived in Granada. Jewish families here spoke Arabic at home and in the market, and they read and prayed in Hebrew. Some of them were doctors, merchants, poets and translators.
Granada in the 11th and 12th centuries
Samuel ibn Naghrela was born in Spain, in Córdoba, in 993. He was a Jewish poet and scholar. He worked for the king of Granada and became his chief minister. He wrote poems in Hebrew, and he even led the king’s army!
Judah ibn Tibbon was born in Granada in about 1120. He left Spain and went to France. There he translated important books from Arabic into Hebrew. People call him “the father of translators”. Today there is a statue of him in the Realejo.
In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella ordered all Jews to become Christians or leave Spain. Many went to Portugal, Morocco, Italy and Turkey. Their families are called Sephardic Jews, from Sefarad, the Hebrew name for Spain.
🦉 Want more? Sophia explains common and proper nouns, and when to use capital letters, in A Name for Everything (Philo & Sophia, Lesson 7).
Language: countries, nationalities and languages
| Country | Nationality / adjective | Language |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | Spanish | Spanish |
| France | French | French |
| Italy | Italian | Italian |
| Portugal | Portuguese | Portuguese |
| Morocco | Moroccan | Arabic (and Berber languages) |
| Turkey | Turkish | Turkish |
⚠️ In English, countries, nationalities, languages and religions always start with a capital letter: Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew, Jewish, Muslim, Christian. In Spanish they don’t: español, árabe, judío.
Read the texts first. Press “Check my answers” at the end.
Choose the best answer.
1. Where is the Realejo?
2. What languages did Jewish families in Granada use?
3. Who was “the father of translators”?
4. Where does the word “Sephardic” come from?
Write the nationality or language.
5. People from Spain are .
6. Judah ibn Tibbon lived in France. People there speak .
7. People from Portugal are .
8. Fez is a city. (Morocco)
Choose the correct sentence.
9. Which sentence is correct?
10. Which sentence is correct?
11. Which sentence is correct?
12. Which sentence is correct?
Go there!
Walk: from the Plaza Nueva, walk up to the Realejo → find the statue of Judah ibn Tibbon → visit a small museum about Jewish life in Granada (check the opening times) → have tapas in the Campo del Príncipe square → look for the colourful paintings on the walls of the old streets.
Your task: write about five people in your family or class: their country, their nationality and the languages they speak. Remember the capital letters!
It tells the story of Samuel ibn Naghrela, the Jewish poet who led Granada’s armies, of the violence of 1066, of the Ibn Tibbon family who carried Arabic learning into Europe, and of the decree signed in the Alhambra in 1492 and the Sephardic diaspora that followed, with grammar, practice, etymology and a visit plan.
The A1–A2 version above is free for everyone.
It tells the story of Samuel ibn Naghrela, the Jewish poet who led Granada’s armies, of the violence of 1066, of the Ibn Tibbon family who carried Arabic learning into Europe, and of the decree signed in the Alhambra in 1492 and the Sephardic diaspora that followed, with grammar, practice, etymology and a visit plan.
The A1–A2 version above is free for everyone.