The Alhambra palace and fortress complex is located in Granada, Spain.
The Alhambra occupies a hill overlooking Granada and was developed primarily under the Nasrid dynasty, the last Muslim ruling house in the Iberian Peninsula. Its name derives from an Arabic phrase commonly translated as “the red one,” probably referring to the reddish appearance of its walls.
The complex includes palaces, courtyards, gardens, defensive walls, and the Alcazaba fortress. The Nasrid Palaces are especially known for carved stucco, glazed tiles, wooden ceilings, Arabic inscriptions, and carefully controlled water features.
Christian rulers retained and altered the site after the conquest of Granada in 1492. The nearby Palace of Charles V, begun in the 16th century, is therefore Renaissance rather than Nasrid. This mixture explains why the Alhambra is both an Islamic architectural masterpiece and a layered Spanish historical site.