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[[File: Muslim Spain One.jpg|200px|thumb|left|A Muslim and a Christian musician]]
== Socio-Economic changes after the invasion==
Islamic Spain was under the control of one religious group, namely the Muslims, who ruled Iberia in their own interests and who frequently exploited the population. Muslim Spain was, in fact, a society that was dominated by a military elite. To maintain their position, they had to dominate the other groups especially the majority Christian population. They imposed a series of legal disabilities on Christians and Jews and both religions were denied all political rights <ref> Roth, Norman, The Jews in the Muslim Conquest of Spain. Jewish Social Studies, 38, 2, (1986) 145-158</ref>. They were expected to pay a poll tax that was used to support the Muslim army and administration. It also seems that the Arabs appropriated many of the lands of Christians and they seemed to have taken over the vast estates of the Visigoths. The invasion saw a revolution of who owned the land in Iberian society. Christians were no longer privileged and they were now subjects of a foreign ruling class who had a different religion. The Christian community was in many instances reduced to the status of serfs. As the Muslims entered the local society they caused great disruption and they destroyed an Iberian society that had been in large measure like that under Roman rule. Muslim rule brought a rapid change in Spanish society and no aspect of life was left untouched. The Muslims re-defined the relationships between the Christian and the Jews and the Peninsula became integrated into the Muslim Empire. The Peninsula became part of the Muslim world politically and economically. This was to benefit the Spanish economy enormously. The invaders introduced many new crops and advanced irrigation technologies. After Spain was integrated into the Muslim world, the Peninsula became part of a large free trade bloc and as a result , there was a marked increase in trade. This led to an increase in wealth and lead to the growth of towns and cities. Soon cities like Toledo were sprawling metropolis and they became major centers of culture. One of the areas where there was a rapid change was in the legal code. As in other societies that they conquered the Muslims imposed their own legal code. The traditional laws were overturned, and this impacted on every aspect of society. Before the Muslim conquest the law was structured to represent Christian values but now it reflected the conquerors ' religion. The Christian’s were now classed as the Dhimmi. They enjoyed legal protection in the eyes of the law and their person and body were fully protected<ref> Bernard Lewis. History of the Middle East; a brief history of the last 2000 years (Touchstone Books, University of Michigan, 2008), p. 45</ref>. However, they were obliged to pay regular tribute to their Muslim overlords. The Arabs introduced a new language into the territories that they conquered, and Latin went into decline. Arabic became the official language, and this was the lingua franca of the bureaucracy and the army. This led to the emergence of a scribal class that was versed in Arabic and a culture that was decisively influenced by Islamic culture.
[[File: Muslim Spain 2.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Muslim soldiers from a Spanish Medieval manuscript]]
==Continuities after the Muslim Invasion==
Some historians argue that over time there was a blurring of the distinctions between the three main religious groups and this produced ultimately a tolerant and pluralistic society. Many revisionist historians have criticized this as a myth. However, there is some agreement on the fact that in the immediate aftermath of the conquest, there were ‘obvious differences between conquerors and conquered and Muslims and non-Muslims’ <ref> Collins, p. 56</ref>. There was as a result little interaction between the various communities. The invaders did not influence their new subjects, at first because they lived in separate military settlements or ‘cantonments’ <ref> Collins, p. 57 </ref>. The three main religious groups in Islamic Spain were reluctant to enter marriages that could lead to assimilation and the loss of their religious and ethnic identity. It appears that sexual unions were generally frowned upon by all religions groups because this could undermine a communities’ religious identity. This was typical, and it was indicative of the limited contacts between the conquerors and their subjects in the first century or so of their rule. This meant that the majority Christian community was not really influenced by the Muslims, because there was little social interaction and cultural exchange between them. This is also very similar to the case of the Zoroastrian population of Persia who were not influenced by Muslim culture and mores until some two centuries after the Arab conquests <ref> Kennedy, Hugh, The Great Arab Conquests how the spread of Islam changed the world (De Capo Press, Philadelphia, 2007), p. 78 </ref>. For many ordinary Christians who lived in isolated villages and communities the Muslims overlords were distant and had no real impact on their lives. In fact, it could be argued that the Muslims made the local Christians more attached to their faith and this even confirmed the power of the Spanish Church. For the large Jewish community, the Muslim conquest only meant exchanging one ruling class for another. By and large they benefitted from Muslim rule, but they were arguably still not the equal of Christians <ref> Roth, Norman, The Jews in the Muslim Conquest of Spain. Jewish Social Studies, 38, 2, (1986) 145-158</ref>.. The Muslim writer Al Jahiz claimed in the 8th century that ‘Christians were more favored than Jews’ <ref> Al-Jahiz (d. 869 C.E.). A Reply to Christians. Translated by Joshua Finkel. Reprinted in N. A. Newman, ed., The Early Christian-Muslim Dialogue, 689-[718]</ref>. The Jews continued to suffer a level of discrimination as they had done under the Visigoths. The Muslims were in very many ways like the Visigoths especially in the early years of their rule. Like the Visigoths they were distinct from most of the population by religion. The old rulers of Iberia were Arian Christians while the majority were Catholics. The Arab conquerors also like their predecessors established a feudal system with contingents of armed colonists situated throughout the land to maintain control of the local peasantry. To many peasants there was no real difference between the Muslims and the old Visigoth regime. It would have appeared to them that one foreign military elite had been replaced by another one.
