A pomegranate tree is planted in the Alhambra in memory of the Loja poet Ibn al-Khatib

The Alhambra is remembering the poet Ibn al-Khatib (Loja 1313) on the 700th anniversary of his birth. This morning the Director of the Council of the Alhambra and Generalife, María del Mar Villafranca, and the Mayor of the town of Loja, Francisco Joaquín Camacho, planted a pomegranate tree in the vegetable gardens of the Generalife as a tribute to one of the most influential figures in the Court of the Nasrid Dynasty. “The Alhambra is indebted to Al-Khatib and this pomegranate tree ensures he will always be remembered here” said Villafranca.
This initiative is the product of the “enthusiasm” and “determination” of the Loja trekking club A medio camino, who in addition to proposing the “twinning of these pomegranate trees (one planted in Loja and the other in the Alhambra) also intend to organize a walking route between the town where Ibn al-Khatib was born and Granada” explained the Mayor of Loja, Francisco Joaquín Camacho.
Ibn al-Khatib’s family were of Cordoban origin and came to live in Loja before eventually moving to Granada, where Ibn al-Khatib studied under his father’s watchful eye, learning all he could about philosophy and acquiring extensive knowledge of medicine. Fascinated by the written word, he also developed great skill with the plume, becoming a highly-gifted poet and letter-writer.
He entered the court at Granada at an early age during the reign of Yusuf I, when, on the death of his father in 1340, he was appointed as secretary to the correspondence department. When the new King Muhammad V ascended to the throne, Ibn al Khatib demonstrated his qualities for diplomacy, and was appointed as double vizier, a title normally granted to viziers with executive powers.