ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

--- CONTENT ---
A zagüía or zauia (zāwīya; in French, zaouia) is a mixed Islamic institution of monastery, religious school and host in the Maghreb and West Africa, and formerly also in al- Ándalus (Muslim Spain). In these territories, according to Torres Balbás, the zagüía was made up of a simple or composed building, which was usually built around a venerated tomb (of a Muslim saint or scholar), and which was intended for prayer, the study of the Koran and spiritual retreat (in fact, etymologically means "corner"). The zagüía is more like a hermitage, sometimes with an annex cemetery and with a water source or pond inside it.

It is confused with the radish, which is another kind of Islamic building, whose functions are mixed, although the radish is walled for being also military-defensive. Also, zauia may be equivalent to madrasa, but unlike it, zauia usually does not offer higher, but basic, studies. In addition, madrasa is used throughout the Islamic world, while zāwiya is exclusive to the Maghreb dialects.

Historically, the zagüies have served to spread the sufism, which is the most "mystical" branch of Islam. By extension of the term, "zauia" can be referred to both the building and the academic current established there.

Terminology
Zagüía, zauía comes from the Arab-born zāwiya, that is' angle ',' corner '(of the house, of the room). In the medieval Spanish sources it is recorded as çavia, azoia, çahuia, zauia or zagüía. In Portuguese, azoia.

By region

Zāwiya in the Maghreb

In the pre-colonial period, this institution was one of the main sources of education in the Sahara and Sahel area, providing basic literacy to a significant proportion of children, even in the most remote mountain areas. It is widely accepted that literacy rates in Algeria at the time of French colonization in 1830 were higher than in France itself.

The curriculum of these schools began with the memorization of the aliphate and later with brief suras (chapters) of the Quran. If a student was interested enough or fit, he advanced and went on to study laws (fiqh), theology, Arab grammar (usually taught with Ibn Adjurrum's famous summary), mathematics (mainly as it belonged to the complex legal system of inheritance distribution), and sometimes astronomy. These centres are still operational in remote areas of the Maghreb, and remain a major educational source in the Sahel, from Mauritania to Nigeria.

Zagüía on the Iberian peninsula
With the Muslim conquest of Iberia, zauia is introduced as a space for spiritual retreat and prayer. Its function is similar to the radish (ribāш), and they were even used to be confused at that time, but the zauia lacks the military component of the radish