The Generalife (Spanish pronunciation: [xe.ne.ɾa.ˈli.fe]; Arabic: جَنَّة الْعَرِيف, romanized: Jannat al-‘Arīf) was a summer palace and country estate of the Nasrid rulers of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus.

Latham suggests is evidence that the first word was originally jinan (Arabic: جِنَاْن; a plural version derived from the same root), not jannat.

[3] An ornamental inscription by Ibn al-Yayyab inside the palace names it as the Dar al-Mamlakat as-Sa'ida ("House of the Felicitous Kingdom").

[7][9] The creation of such rural estates and gardens by rulers and elites in al-Andalus dated back to the Umayyad period (8th–10th centuries).

[2][10] Such estates are also found in some historic cities of North Africa, such as the Agdal Gardens of Marrakesh, which have survived to the present day.

[15] Even if he did not begin its construction, Muhammad III at least contributed to some of its early decoration and he was responsible for adding the mirador chamber in the palace's northern pavilion.

[7][15] Venetian traveler Andrea Navagero visited the Generalife in 1524–26, providing a description of it before the majority of subsequent Spanish modifications had taken place which has been useful to modern scholars in reconstructing the original appearance of the palace and its gardens.

[13] Théophile Gautier, a mid-19th century visitor, complained that: Of the Generalife nothing now remains but some arcades and some large panels of arabesques, unfortunately plastered over with layers of whitewash that have been applied again and again with all the obstinacy of a dispiriting cleanliness.

What is at present nothing more than a faintly-vermiculated wall, was formerly open lace-work as fine as those ivory leaves which the patience of the Chinese carves for fans.

However, the damage from the fire and the subsequent repairs that were undertaken also allowed for significant excavations to document the original form of the gardens.

It includes walls formed by trimmed cypress trees and a large cruciform pool inspired by Islamic/Moorish gardens, along with other decorative plants.

[10] The core of the palace complex is centered on the Patio de la Acequia ("Courtyard of the Water Canal"), the largest structure.

[7] Aligned with the middle of the courtyard is also a small belvedere or mirador (lookout) chamber that projects outward from the western wall of the garden.

Occupied by pools, gardens, and paved paths, this courtyard's current design and construction date from after the Nasrid period.

Next to the Stairway and to the Patio de la Sultana are the High Gardens or Jardines Altos, arranged across several terraces climbing up the hillside.

At the southeast end of the gardens and of the main palace structure is the Paseo de las Adelfas ("Walk of the Oleanders"), which today is the path used by visitors to exit the Generalife.

[17] In this regard, it was similar in function to other such royal countryside estates that had existed as far back as the early Umayyad emirate (8th-10th centuries) of Cordoba.

[13] The Silla del Moro (the "Seat of the Moor"), a ruined structure today on the hilltop overlooking the Generalife, was once a fort and monitoring post that protected the water supply infrastructure in this area.

[14] Although a main entrance existed for visitors at the southern end of the grounds, the Nasrid rulers could reach the Generalife palace directly from the Alhambra through a private covered passage, partly sunken and hidden between walls, that crossed the ravine between them.

Its gardens are modern replacements but they follow the original layout: a quadripartite division with a central water channel running down its long middle axis.

The projecting tower on its north side, which includes another mirador chamber with original stucco decoration, was added by Isma'il I in 1319.

[4] The bathhouse was likely located close to the present-day Patio de la Sultana, where remains of its hypocaust system and of a large water channel were uncovered.

Navagero, for example, described a fountain in one of the lower courtyards (probably the Patio de Polo) which spouted a jet of water ten yards into the air.

It draws water from the Darro River at an uphill location in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, about 6.1 kilometers east of the Alhambra.

The main branch, proceeding along lower ground, also arrives at the Generalife palace and supplies water to the Patio de la Acequia.

[13][7][14] One part of this hydraulic complex, the Albercones, consists of a medieval water tank which could hold 400 cubic meters and allowed for the irrigation of higher orchards and gardens.