Al-Riquti was from the city of
Murcia (hence his
nisba al-Mursi), and according to historian
Ibn al-Khatib (1313–1375) he was an expert in logic, mathematics, arithmetic, music, and medicine. He spoke Arabic and the local
Romance language, and possibly Latin and Hebrew as well. Murcia was formerly the seat of
small Muslim kingdom and also an intellectual center, which was conquered by
Castile in 1243 and became a semi-independent protectorate. The Castilian prince Alfonso (the future
Alfonso X of Castile) allowed al-Riquti to found a school and teach Muslims, Christians, and Jews alike. Ibn al-Khatib wrote that al-Riquti taught the three religious groups "in their own languages", and described this school as a "
madrasa". Several modern historians hypothesize that it might be the
Studia Linguarum of the
Dominicans in Murcia. The modern
University of Murcia considered this school as one of the university's forerunners. While most historians assume that al-Riquti's school was located in Murcia, the historian
Gerard Albert Wiegers instead identifies it with a
Estudio general built by Alfonso in
Seville in 1254. Alfonso X became king in 1252 and adopted the policy of encouraging Muslim scholars to stay in conquered formerly Muslim territories and offering rewards for those who converted to Christianity. Meanwhile, Muslims in Murcia
rebelled in 1264, and after it was
defeated by the royal forces in 1266 the region lost its autonomy. Many Muslim intellectuals lost their privileges; al-Riquti felt anxious about the situation and about Alfonso's encouragement to convert to Christianity. Meanwhile, in 1273
Muhammad II became the
Sultan of Granada, the last Muslim state of Spain. He was known as al-Faqih ("the canon lawyer") and competed with Alfonso in attracting learned men to his emirate. Al-Riquti migrated to Granada at the Sultan's instigation. In Granada he was involved in a number of debates, and he held a respectable position until he died. == References ==