The influence of Islamic Migration on Russian and Spanish Society: Verbalization of the Concept "Moor"

This article analyses the transformation of the concept of "Moor" under the influence of migrations in the Russian and Spanish languages. The authors gathered the primary source material through fieldwork expeditions to the border regions of Russia and Spain. The change in the semantics of the concept "Moor" indicates a shift from labelling a specific "other" (Muslims originally from North Africa who occupied and settled in the Iberian Peninsular in the eighth century) to a more general term for immigrant "others" in both Spain and Russia today. New meanings of the concept of "Moor" in the Russian language have parallels due to the promotion of "Moorish" culture in Europe. The concept of "Moor" expands its meaning in the Russian linguistic worldviews of the world under the influence of migrants from Central Asia and Ukraine. © 2020 Muzeul Municipal Ioan Raica Sebes. All rights reserved.