One Land, Two Peasantries. Moriscos and Old Christians in the Upper Genal Valley, Málaga (16th – 18th Centuries) (original) (raw)

Abstract We present the results of research undertaken in the Genal Valley (Málaga, Spain), where Morisco and Castilian peasants coexisted for most of the 16th century. Our analysis of the written record, which was combined with fieldwork, enabled us to identify the agricultural areas used by both communities. Our examination of the distribution of land ownership has revealed that Morisco and Castilian fields formed separate compact blocks, and that the larger and flatter plots of land were owned by Castilians. We have also noted that the property of Moriscos tended to be fragmented into small plots, which must have prevented any single Morisco landowner from amassing large, compact blocks of land. The expulsion of the Moriscos in 1570 triggered a tendency towards the concentration of land in fewer hands.