Ibn Zamrak: the poet whose words are carved into the Alhambra
Ibn Zamrak (1333–1393), pupil of Ibn al-Khatib, was the Nasrid court poet whose Arabic verses were carved into the Alhambra's Court of the Lions and stucco.
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- Also known as
- Ibn Zumruk, Zumruk
Ibn Zamrak (also written Ibn Zumruk) was a poet and statesman born in Granada in 1333, renowned as a vizier and a poet under the Nasrid sultan Muhammad V. His tutor was Ibn al-Khatib, who also acted as his father and maestro. Sources differ on his death: 1393 is the usual date, and 1394 also appears.
His trace is in the Alhambra, where some of his poems still decorate the fountains and palaces. On the basin of the Court of the Lions fountain, lines by Ibn Zamrak compare the water to a lover's tears; the Court of the Lions has its own article. Start at the Alhambra and the Nasrid Palaces. The Lindaraja fountain carries a twenty-verse poem by one of the palaces' main poets, Ibn Zamrak, and the basin is now part of the collection of the Museo de la Alhambra. Some of his work is lost: he also left verse in buildings that no longer stand, such as the country mansion of Los Alixares.
For the setting, read about Muhammad V, the sultan he served and the Nasrid motto repeated across the palace walls.
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Places to see
In their time
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Nasrid Granada
1238–1492
Muhammad I founded the emirate in 1232, became Fernando III's vassal and began the Alcazaba on the Alhambra hill. Yusuf I added the Comares Tower and the Hall of Ambassadors, and Muhammad V finished the Court of the Lions around 1380. In all, 23 sultans ruled for 260 years before the city surrendered in 1492.
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Muhammad I
c. 1195–1273 Historical figure
Muhammad I of Granada founded the Nasrid dynasty and began the Alhambra in 1238. His life, from Arjona to the Sabika hill, and where to see his trace today.
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Ibn al-Khatib
1313–1374 Historical figure
Ibn al-Khatib, born in Loja in 1313, was vizier to Nasrid kings Yusuf I and Muhammad V, and a poet and physician whose verse decorates the Alhambra walls.
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Yusuf I
1318–1354 Historical figure
Yusuf I of Granada ruled the Nasrid sultanate from 1333 to 1354 and left the Alhambra's Puerta de la Justicia and the Madraza. His life and where to find him.
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Ibn Khaldun
1332–1406 Historical figure
Ibn Khaldun, the Tunis-born historian, served the Nasrid court of Granada under Muhammad V. His life, the Alhambra that housed it, and where to read more.
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Muhammad V
1339–1391 Historical figure
Muhammad V of Granada ruled the Nasrid sultanate twice, in 1354–1359 and 1362–1391, and inspired the Palace of the Lions. Where his work survives today.
Undated
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Alcaicería
Monument
Granada's historic silk market, rebuilt after 1843 in Neo-Moorish style. Small shops sell ceramics, taracea woodwork, spices, and leather goods. Free to enter.
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Alhambra
Monument
The Alhambra is Granada's UNESCO fortress-palace: Nasrid Palaces, Alcazaba and Generalife gardens. Tickets sell out weeks ahead; book via the Patronato site.
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Corral del Carbón
Monument
Granada's oldest Arab monument, the Corral del Carbón was built before 1336 as a Nasrid merchant inn, entered through an ornate horseshoe-arch portal.
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Palacio de Dar-al-Horra
Monument
15th-century Nasrid palace in the upper Albaicín, home of Aixa, mother of Granada's last sultan Boabdil. Less visited than the Alhambra, almost as beautiful.
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Nasrid Palaces
Monument
Three royal Nasrid palaces inside the Alhambra, including the Patio de los Leones and Hall of the Ambassadors. Entry is timed: arrive within your booked slot.
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