By: Amtul Mussawir Mansoor

When one hears of China, one thinks of Confucianism, Buddhism, or other Chinese folk religion, but who would have known that Islam was established in China only 18 years after Prophet Muhammad’s death, and had a major influence in the development of China.

Islam was officially introduced to China in the year 650 C.E. during the Tang dynasty (618-907).[1]  Hadhrat Uthman, the third Caliph of Islam, sent a delegation led by Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas, the maternal uncle of Prophet Muhammad, may peace be on him, who invited the Chinese Emperor to recognize Islam.  The emperor was pleased with the teachings of Prophet Muhammad^(pbuh), due to the fact that many aspects of Islam were similar to the teachings of Confucius, and he granted the “freedom to propagate their faith and expressed his admiration for Islam.”[2]  In addition to the warm welcome, the first Mosque, the Huaisheng Mosque, was built in the city of Guangzhou to show respect to the delegation sent by the Caliph.

During the Tang dynasty, Arab and Persian traders gradually arrived in China traveling by sea routes and through the Silk road.  The settlers built mosques, mostly along the Canton River.  They were also responsible for bringing various elements of the Muslim culture to the Chinese world, such as various Muslim cuisines and their knowledge of medicine to China.[3]

Great Mosque of Xi’an

Muslims continued to settle in China during the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and these Muslims began to have a great economic impact and influence on the country.  They started dominating foreign and the import/export industry. Consequently, the office of Director of General of Shipping in Quanzhou, one of the largest seaports in China at the time, was held by a Muslim. In 1070, the Song emperor invited 5,300 men from Bukhara, a major Muslim city along the Silk Road, to settle in the Chinese cultural borders, and to act as a buffer between the Chinese and Liao Empire.  These men were led by Prince Amir Sayyid, who is regarded as the father of the Muslim community in China.  Prior to the Prince, Islam was regarded as ‘Dashi fa’ (law of the Arabs), but he renamed Islam to ‘Huihui Jiao’ [the religion of Huihui (Muslims)].[4]  In addition, in 1080, around 10,000 Arab Muslim men and women settled in northern and north-easter provinces of China, further increasing the Muslim population in China.

Muslim influence further grew during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), which was ruled by the Mongols.  In the previous dynasties, Muslims were regarded as important figures in the society but were never entrusted with governmental positions, due to the Chinese’s aversion towards minor ethnic groups.  But to keep the Chinese majority in check, the Mongol rulers decided to elevate the status of many minority ethnic groups within China, including the Muslims.  They also greatly encouraged Muslim migration in order to balance out the Chinese majority.  The newly acquired Yuan territory was broken into twelve smaller districts and eight of the districts were governed by a Muslim governor, while the remaining four districts had Muslims as the vice governor.  So the Muslim population greatly increased during this time, reaching four million by the fourteenth century.[5]

The Mongol rules placed a great importance on science especially related to agriculture, so they turned to known Muslim scientists to further their cause.  Kublai Khan brought Iranian scientists to Beijing to build observatories and make advances in calendar making and astronomy.  In addition, several Arab medical texts in the field of anatomy, pharmacology, and ophthalmology were introduced in China.  One of the most famous books in the history of medicine, Avicenna’s The Cannon of Medicine, was translated into Chinese during this time.[6]

When the Yuan dynasty was overthrown, the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) was established.  Muslims were heavily involved in the founding of the Ming Dynasty, so much so that many of the commanders who had a major role in overthrowing the Yuan government were Muslims.  Some scholars even believe that Hongwu Emperor, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, was a Muslim, due to the fact that his wife was a Muslim, many of his trusted generals were Muslims, and that he forbade the drinking of wine.[7] In addition, he ordered the building of several mosques in Southern China, and wrote a 100 characters in praise of Islam, God, and Prophet Muhummad.[8]

During the Ming Dynasty, the Muslims fully assimilated themselves with the Chinese culturally. They adopted the Chinese language, dress, and surname.  Muslims continued to hold influential positions in the government.  One of the most famous Muslim from the Ming Dynasty and Chinese history, is Zheng He.  He was a mariner, an explorer, a diplomat, and a fleet admiral known for making the famous voyages around the globe.  Particularly, his expeditions had a great impact in Southeast Asia, as the Indonesian Islamic scholar Hamka claimed in 1961 that “The development of Islam in Indonesia and Malaya is intimately related to a Chinese Muslim, Admiral Zheng He.”[9]  Islamic scholarship also increased during the Ming Dynasty.  Several books were written by Wang Daiyu and Liu Zhi, which include, ‘A Commentary on the Orthodox Faith,’ ‘Islamic Philosophy,’ ‘The Last Prophet of Islam.’  In addition, to writing books, many of the Islamic works were translated into Chinese, to prove to the Chinese people that Islam was not inferior to the teachings of Confucius.

When the Ming Dynasty was overthrown by the Manchu people, a minor ethnic group, the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) was founded.  During this time period, the social treatment of Chinese Muslims took a sharp turn and grew worse.  The Manchu especially used brute force on the Muslim community, for their support to the Ming Dynasty.  The government forbid constructions of new mosques and Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca.  Consequently, the relationship between the Qing government and the Muslims deteriorated, leading to rebellions.[10]  As a result of the rebellions, the Qing government organized a massacre of the Yunnanese Muslims (Yunnanese was the location of the rebellion), so many Muslims had to flee the region and take refuge.  Millions of Muslims died during the rebellion and the ordered massacre.  During the Qing Dynasty, Sufism spread in northwestern China.[11]

In 1911, the Qing Dynasty fell, and as a result, the brutality towards the Muslims ended.  The Republic of China was established, and Sun Yat Sen, asserted that the country equally belonged to the Han Chinese, the Hui (Muslim) and the Tsang (Tibetan).  Due to increased transportation and establishment of the new modern government, Chinese Muslims were able to travel to Middle East and study Islam in a more formal setting.  Islamic scholarship also flourished as there were more than a hundred Muslim periodicals at the time before the Sino-Japanese War of 1937.  In addition, the Chinese Muslims felt the need for unity among Muslims, so the ‘Chinese Muslim Federation’ was founded, with chapters in various cities.  It was estimated that just before the Communist revolution, there were 48 million Muslims in China with more than 42,000 mosques.

As the Communist government took control and founded the People’s Republic of China in 1949, many minority cultures were harmed including the Hui (Muslim) people.  The government constantly accused Muslims and other religious groups of holding “superstitious beliefs” and promoting “anti-socialist” trends.  Mosques were defaced and copies of the Quran were burned.[12]  But in 1979, Deng Xiaoping, seized control of the government, and the government began to liberalize its policies towards Muslims and their practice of Islam.  Since then the government has been largely respectful of Islam.  This is seen when the government ordered advertising agencies to resist using pig images, cartoons, or slogans, in 2007, the year of the pig, due to the sensitivity of the Muslims.[13]  Currently, there are 25 million Muslims in China, about 2% of the entire population.  It appears as though Islam is undergoing a modest revival and there is a reawakening of interest in Islam among the young.  There have been many nationwide Islamic established to coordinate activities between the Muslims.  There are also eight different translations of the Quran in the Chinese language.  There has been various concession granted to Muslims by the government of China, such as: Having separate cemeteries; Muslim couples may have their marriage consecrated by an Imam; Muslim workers are permitted to take days off during major religious festivals; Chinese Muslims are allowed to make Hajj; where Muslims are a majority, breeding of pigs is not allowed.[14]

When one thinks of China, Islam doesn’t come to mind, but Islam played a significant role in Chinese history.  It was introduced within 18 years of Prophet Muhammad’s death, and Muslims played a crucial role in the development of early Chinese culture, and were responsible for trade, astronomy, and medicine.  Muslims not only influenced China socially and scientifically, but also influenced their political and economical systems.