Hispalis

Hispalis is the Latin name for the city now known as Seville (Sevilla), the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It lies on the left bank of the Guadalquivir River near its mouth, a position that has long favored maritime and commercial activity.

Origins of the site are ancient and debated. Archaeological evidence points to early Iberian and Phoenician or Tartessian influences, which were later built upon by a substantial Roman urban center. Under Roman rule, Hispalis developed into an important port and commercial hub in the province of Hispania Baetica, linking Atlantic trade with inland networks. The nearby settlement of Italica, founded in the late Republic and the birthplace of the emperor Trajan, illustrates the region’s Roman significance.

In late antiquity and the ensuing Islamic period, the city continued as a regional urban center. Under Muslim rule it became Ishbiliyah (Ishbiliya) in Al-Andalus and remained an important port and cultural site within the Caliphate and its successor states.

After the Christian Reconquista, Ferdinand III captured Seville in 1248, and the city became a major Castilian political and commercial center. In the early modern era, Seville grew extraordinarily wealthy from transatlantic trade, regulated by the Casa de Contratación (House of Trade) established in 1503 to manage voyages to the Americas and related commerce.

The name Seville ultimately derives from Hispalis, the Latin form preserved in early modern usage and adapted into the modern Spanish Sevilla. The Arabic name Ishbiliyah also left an imprint on local toponymy. Today Seville is a major cultural and historical city, renowned for monuments such as the cathedral, the Alcázar, and the Archivo de Indias.