Aben Abou

Aben Aboo (also written Aben Abó or Abenabó; died 1571), also known as Diego López, was a Morisco leader during the final phase of the Second Rebellion of the Alpujarras in the Kingdom of Granada. After the assassination of his cousin Aben Humeya in 1569, he was proclaimed leader of the Morisco insurgency and adopted the regnal name Muley Abdalla (Muley Abdallah).

He led the Morisco resistance during the last stages of the revolt against the Spanish Crown, which ended with his death in 1571 and the collapse of organized insurgency in the Alpujarras.

History

The Second Rebellion of the Alpujarras (1568–1571) was the largest Morisco uprising in sixteenth-century Spain. The revolt broke out in the mountainous Alpujarra region of the former Emirate of Granada following increasing pressure on Morisco communities, including prohibitions on language, dress, and cultural practices imposed by royal policy.

Internal divisions among rebel factions and the growing strength of royal forces gradually weakened the resistance.

Aben Aboo was killed in 1571 by members of his own entourage during the final stage of the rebellion. His death effectively ended coordinated Morisco resistance in the Alpujarras, and the revolt soon collapsed under the pressure of royal military campaigns.

Much of the early narrative of the rebellion comes from contemporary or near-contemporary Spanish chroniclers such as Luis del Mármol Carvajal. Modern historians have re-examined these sources critically, comparing them with archival material in order to reconstruct the social and political dynamics of the Morisco revolt.