The main purpose of this conference is to briefly review the different types of strophic poetry from Al-Andalus, analyzing its origin, form and content. First of all, we will try to clarify terminological issues and analyze the names given in Spanish to the variants of strophic poetry (jarchas, moaxajas and cejeles). Secondly, we will analyze the formal differences between these genres, with special attention paid to the strophic form and the topic of poetic meter, which has been greatly discussed, because some researchers argue that it is an adaptation of traditional Arabic metrics, while others maintain that it is a syllabic metric of Romance origin. Thirdly, we will review the content of this poetry in order to determine whether it is closer to the Arabic poetry tradition coming from the East or whether it has points in common with a supposedly pre-existing Hispanic or Romance lyrical expression. Finally, we will see some examples of each of the variants of strophic poetry from Al-Andalus so that those attending can receive direct information right out of the authentic texts of this type of poetry in Arabic (and their translations into Spanish), which is so unusual, and which has been studied with such great effort by specialists.

Ignacio Ferrando (Zaragoza, 1966)
A professor of Arabic language at the University of Cádiz, where he teaches subjects related to Arabic language and literature (grammar, history of the Arabic language, classical and Andalusian Arabic literature, translation ar>es, etc.). He has also taught translation at the Universities of Castilla-La Mancha (Toledo School of Translators), Granada (Master’s Degree in Conference Interpreting) and Abdelmalek Essaadi (King Fahd College in Tangier, year 2011).

He has authored two dictionaries, the first with F. Corriente: Diccionario Avanzado árabe-español (Advanced Arabic-Spanish Dictionary, Barcelona, published by Herder, 2005, 1326 pgs.), and a second dictionary, the Diccionario pocket árabe-español español-árabe (Pocket Arabic-Spanish Spanish-Arabic Dictionary, Barcelona, published by Herder, 2006, 583 pgs.). He also authored the book “Introducción a la historia de la lengua árabe. New Perspectives,” (“Introduction to the History of the Arabic Language: New Perspectives,” Zaragoza, 2001).