The limits of artificial intelligence in analyzing Moorish manuscripts

Abstract

The world today is witnessing a growing expansion in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies across various fields, including the preservation and analysis of cultural heritage and historical manuscripts. Among these, Morisco manuscripts stand out as a unique case characterized by linguistic complexity and cultural and script-based encryption, making them a significant challenge for contemporary AI systems. This study aims to explore the technical and epistemological limits of applying AI to the analysis of such manuscripts. Adopting a descriptive-analytical methodology, the research examines the structure of Morisco manuscripts and reviews the most commonly used AI tools—such as Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Natural Language Processing (NLP), and deep learning—while analyzing the difficulties these tools face in dealing with hybrid and encrypted texts. The study concludes that despite AI's advanced capabilities, it still requires integration with human expertise through the development of hybrid models that combine machine analysis with cultural context, alongside the construction of specialized databases that enhance AI’s ability to interpret Morisco manuscripts accurately.