It’s unusual for a Main Street to start out life with a different name. Alhambra’s Main Street was originally called Boabdil Avenue back in 1874. You can guess why a moniker like that would be changed, but why “Boabdil” in the first place? Well, since Alhambra’s namesake is the famous 13th century palace/fortress in Granada, Spain (see Alhambra Road for some background), its first five streets were given relevant names: Alhambra Road, Granada Avenue, Vega Street, Almansor Street, and Boabdil Avenue, which became Main Street around 1890. “Boabdil” was the Spanish name for Muhammad XII of Granada (c. 1460-1533), the last Moorish ruler of the region. He was overthrown in 1492 by Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, who took over the Alhambra, told Christopher Columbus to ship out, and the rest is history.
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