Américo Castro Y Quesada (1885–1972) was a Spanish cultural historian, philologist, and literary critic who challenged some of the prevailing notions of Spanish identity, raising heated controversy with his conclusions that (1) Spaniards didn't become the distinct group they are today until after the Islamic conquest of Iberia of 711 CE, an event that turned them into a Christian caste coexisting among Muslims and Jews, and (2) the history of Spain and Portugal was adversely affected with the success in the eleventh to fifteenth centuries of the "Reconquista" or Christian reconquest of the Iberian peninsula and with the Spanish expulsion of the Jews (1492). A historian is a person who studies history. ... Philology is the study of ancient texts and languages. ... Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. ... The Islamic Conquest of Iberia (711—718) commenced when the Moors (mostly Berbers with some Yemenis) invaded Visigothic Christian Iberia in the year 711 CE. Under their Berber leader, Tariq ibn-Ziyad, they landed at Gibraltar on April 30 and proceeded to bring most of the Iberian Peninsula under Islamic... See also: phone number 711. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... For other uses, see Reconquista (disambiguation). ... topographic map of the Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe. ... 1492 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Castro was born on May 4, 1885, in Cantagallo, Brazil, to Spanish parents. In 1890 his parents returned with him to Spain where he then grew up. In 1904 he graduated from the University of Granada, going on to study at the Sorbonne in Paris from 1905 to 1907. After returning to Spain he organized the Centre for Historical Studies in Madrid in 1910 and headed its department of lexicography. In 1915 he became a professor at the University of Madrid. May 4 is the 124th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (125th in leap years). ... 1885 (MDCCCLXXXV) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... The University of Granada is a university at Granada, Spain, founded in 1531 by the Emperor Carlos V, with support of Pope Clemente VII. Categories: University stubs | Universities and colleges in Spain ... The Sorbonne, Paris, in a 17th century engraving The Sorbonne today, from the same point of view The Sorbonne is frequently used in ordinary parlance as synonymous with the faculty of theology of Paris or the University of Paris in its entirety. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Madrid is the capital and largest city in Spain, as well as in the province and the autonomous community of the same name. ... Lexicography is either of two things Practical lexicography is the art or craft of writing dictionaries. ... The University of Madrid can refer to several academic institutions in Madrid, Spain: The Complutense University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Complutense de Madrid) The Autonomous University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, UAM) The Pontifical Comillas University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Pontificia Comillas de Madrid) This is a...

Later, when the Spanish Republic was declared, he became its first ambassador to Germany in 1931. But when the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936 he moved to the United States, teaching literature at the University of Wisconsin from 1937 to 1939, at the University of Texas from 1939 to 1940, and at Princeton University from 1940 to 1953. There have been two Spanish Republics: First Spanish Republic (1873-1874) Second Spanish Republic (1931-1939) Franco declared Spain to be a monarchy, but did not permit a monarch until his death in 1975. ... The Spanish Civil War (July 1936–April 1939) was a conflict in which the incumbent Second Spanish Republic and political left-wing groups fought against a right-wing nationalist insurrection led by General Francisco Franco, who eventually succeeded in ousting the Republican government and establishing a dictatorship. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The University of Wisconsin is a public university in the state of Wisconsin. ... The University of Texas at Austin, often called UT or Texas, is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. ... Princeton University, incorporated as The Trustees of Princeton University, located in Princeton, New Jersey, is the fourth-oldest institution to conduct higher education in the United States. ...

Among Castro's most notable scholarly works are The Life of Lope de Vega (1919), Language, Teaching, and Literature (1924), The Thought of Cervantes (1925), Ibero-America, Its Present and Its Past (1941), The Spaniards: an Introduction to their History (1948), The Structure of Spanish History (1954), and Out of the State of Conflict (1961).

References

Castro, Americo. Edmund L. King, Tr. (1954). The Structure of Spanish History. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Retrieved January 21, 2006, from Questia http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=59130137

"Castro, Americo." (2005). The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Retrieved January 21, 2006, from Info Please http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0810798.html

"Castro, Américo." (2006). Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved January 21, 2006, from Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9020733

Martin, Marina. (2006). "J. Goytisolo's Vindication of Muslim Spain: Count Julian's Revenge" (description of scholarly paper). The Fourth International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities. Retrieved January 19, 2006, from The Humanities Conference 06 website http://h06.cgpublisher.com/proposals/141/index_html