The Lusitano, also known as the Pure Blood Lusitano or PSL (Puro Sangue
Lusitano), is a Portuguese horse breed.
Horses were known to be present on
the Iberian Peninsula as far back as 20,000 BC, and by 800 BC the region
was renowned for its war horses. The fame of the horses from Lusitania
goes back to the Roman Age, which attributed its speed to the influence of
the West wind, who was considered capable of fertilizing the mares.
When
the Muslims invaded Iberia in 711 AD, they brought Arabian horses with
them that were crossed with the native horses, developing a horse that
became useful for war, dressage and bull fighting.
The Portuguese horse
was named the Lusitano , after the word Lusitania, the ancient Roman name
for the region that modern Portugal occupies. There are four main breed
lineages within the breed today, and characteristics differ slightly
between each line.
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