Granada, << gruh NAH duh >>, was once a Moorish kingdom in southern Spain. The name may have come from the Spanish word granada (pomegranate) or from the Arabic word Karnattah (Hill of Strangers).
Granada lay on the southern coast of Spain, and had an area of about 12,000 square miles (31,100 square kilometers). In the 700’s, Moorish invaders conquered Granada and most of the rest of Spain. Granada became an independent kingdom in 1238. It remained a center of Muslim learning and civilization after the Moorish strongholds in other parts of Spain had fallen.
The downfall of Granada came when Moorish rulers began to quarrel among themselves. The armies of Ferdinand and Isabella gained possession of the kingdom of Granada in 1492. During the 1800’s, the area was divided into three provinces called Granada, Málaga, and Almería. The province of Granada has an area of 4,838 square miles (12,530 square kilometers) and a population of 790,515. The capital of the province is the city of Granada.
