The subject of this research is the terminological polemics in Arab historiography of the late XX - early XXI centuries unfolded around the terms referring to Crusades and crusaders. Proceeding from the fact that the era of Crusades has been and remains one of the most traumatizing periods within the Arab historical memory, it seems relevant to explore the terminology used by the modern Arab historians for describing the evens and personalities of that time. Terminological polemics around designating crusaders in the modern Arab historiography has not previously become an independent subject of research in Western or Russian historical science. Examination of terminological question was conducted within the framework of the methodology of discourse analysis by juxtaposing the opinions of Arab historians, analysis of their structure, and correlation with the historical context. Analysis of the narrative of modern Arab historiography demonstrates that the Arab author do not have a uniform opinion on legitimacy of the use of the Arab term “Crusades” - al-hurub as-selibiyah. At the same time, in modern Arab historiography, “secular” historians along the authors considering these historical events first and foremost as a part of history of the Muslim world, either advocate or dispute the use of the term salibi that stands for the crusader. The examination of this aspect is a step towards understanding the processes of formation of image of the other within modern Arab historiography.