Ruud Streefkerk

We are here in Andalusia, in the south of Spain. The first civilization to settle here after the Neanderthals and the Cro-Magnon man, was the Phoenician. Nevertheless, the Phoenicians found an already developed Iberian culture, grown from Neolithic tribes originating from Africa. In the Iron Age the Turdetani lived here, mingling with Celts and Greeks who had colonized the northeast of Spain. Around 500 BC, Carthaginians invaded the area. They lingered in Spain and tightened their grip on the area, without coming as far as an actual annexation. After that, Andalusia was the last stronghold of the Moors, until they were expelled in 1492. But Moorish architecture is still abundantly found here. Finally, the Andalusian dialect became the basis of the Spanish language spoken throughout Latin America, due to the role that Seville played as a gateway to the Spanish colonies in America in the 16th and 17th centuries.