Taqiyya, niyya y el islam de los Moriscos

Abstract

The claim that Moriscos knew and made use of the Islamic concept of taqiyya has become almost a requirement for all those interested in the circumstances of their lives as cryptomuslims. However, the term is not found in the writings of the Moriscos, although the fatwà of the Mufti of Oran gave them some guidance for practicing their religion within a hostile environment. Without denying that Moriscos came to dissimulation for their own safety, the aim of this paper is, on the one hand, to reconsider the accuracy of the concept of niyya to explain how the Moriscos developed their belief and worship and, on the other hand, to argue that, since the Mudejar period, the Moriscos only did what was the usual practice around them.