Moorish is a term used to describe different things, depending on the context. Here are some of the meanings of the term:

• Historical Context: The term Moor was first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim populations of the Maghreb, al-Andalus (Iberian Peninsula), Sicily, and Malta during the Middle Ages. During the context of the Crusades and the Reconquista, the term Moors included the derogatory suggestion of "infidels". Moorish architecture is the articulated Islamic architecture of northern Africa and parts of Spain and Portugal, where the Moors were dominant between 711 and 1492.

• Ethnic Group: Apart from these historic associations and context, Moor and Moorish designate a specific ethnic group speaking Hassaniya Arabic. They inhabit Mauritania and parts of Algeria, Western Sahara, Tunisia, Morocco, Niger, and Mali. In Niger and Mali, these peoples are also known as the Azawagh Arabs, after the Azawagh region of the Sahara.

• Sovereign Citizen Movement: The Moorish sovereign citizen movement is a collection of independent organizations and lone individuals who emerged in the early 1990s as an offshoot of the larger sovereign citizen movement in the United States. Members of the Moorish sovereigns, called Moors, have come into conflict with federal and state authorities over their refusal to obey laws and government regulations. Moorish sovereign citizens espouse an antigovernment doctrine in which its members claim to be part of a sovereign nation. For some who identify themselves as “Moor,” “Moorish” or something similar, there is a belief that a fictitious 1787 treaty between the United States and Morocco grants them immunity from U.S. law.