The Moors of Mauritania

The Moors of Mauritania, numbering approximately 3,890,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are the predominantly Muslim populations of medieval North Africa and al-Andalus, composed largely of Amazigh (Berber) and Arab peoples united by Islamic civilization rather than by a single ethnic identity. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Hassaniyya is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Moor

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Arab Peoples
Country: Mauritania
People Cluster: Arab, Hassaniya
Primary Language(s): Hassaniyya (mey)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 3,890,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG013586
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Moors of Mauritania

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

100%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Hassaniyya
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Hassaniyya Speakers

Media Resources in Hassaniyya:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Hassaniyya:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
PBT Version✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Hassaniyya bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Moors are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Moors:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Pray specifically for the Moors of Mauritania

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
readGenesis 3:15

Pray that those without Christ will hear the words of Genesis 1-3 in their own language, and desire to know their Creator and His provision of salvation.

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
read2 Timothy 4:3-4

Pray that the lost will be open to the truth of the gospel and turn from false teachings and myths to the sound doctrine of Christ in faith.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
readPsalm 27:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, God will strengthen them when they face persecution of any kind for Jesus' name’s sake.

And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
readIsaiah 51:11

Pray that, as God sends people to cross cultures and share the good news of Jesus, many will turn to the Lord in repentance and faith and start a personal relationship with Him that will bring them everlasting joy.

Moor, Beidane (White) Across Countries (ROP3 - 106417) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

4 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDName ▼CountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MoorsMoorsMali706,000Unengaged and UnreachedHassaniyyaFolk Islam
MoorsMoorsMauritania3,890,000Engaged yet UnreachedHassaniyyaSunni Islam
MoorsMoorsMorocco3,135,000Unengaged and UnreachedHassaniyyaSunni Islam
MauritaniansMauritaniansCanada1,200Engaged yet UnreachedHassaniyyaSunni Islam

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

Scroll to Top