Why is Medieval Spain covered in a Middle East History class, given that Spain is part of Europe?

Write a 4-5 page paper on the following topic: Why is Medieval Spain covered in a Middle East History class, given that Spain is part of Europe? What is the relationship between southern Spain and the Middle East during the years 711-1248? Be sure to identify political and cultural connections between these two regions. You may only cite the assigned readings for this class in your paper: Watt’s book A History of Islamic Spain; Ibn Hazm’s chapters on love; the poems of Ibn Zaydun and al-Mu’tamid; and the introduction to Ibn ‘Arabi by William Chittick