The Han Kitab (; ar, هان کتاب) are a collection of
Chinese Islamic texts, written by
Chinese Muslim
Islam has been practiced in China since the 7th century CE.. Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6-2 percent of the total population (21,667,000- 28,210,795) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most numerou ...
s, which synthesise
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
and
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...
. Their name reflects this synthesis: ''Han'' is the Chinese word for Chinese and ''kitab'' means book in Arabic. They were written in the early 18th century during the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
by various Chinese Muslim authors. The Han Kitab were widely read and approved of by later Chinese Muslims such as
Ma Qixi
Ma Qixi (1857–1914; , Xiao'erjing: ), a Hui from Gansu, was the founder of the Xidaotang, a Chinese-Islamic school of thought.
Education and teaching
Ma was born into the family of a Táozhōu ''ahong'' of the Beizhuang ''menhuan'', a Sufi ...
,
Ma Fuxiang
Ma Fuxiang (, Xiao'erjing: , French romanization: Ma-Fou-hiang or Ma Fou-siang; 4 February 1876 – 19 August 1932) was a Chinese military and political leader spanning the Qing Dynasty through the early Republic of China and illustrated the po ...
, and
Hu Songshan
Hu Songshan (1880–1955), a Hui, was born in 1880, in Tongxin County, Ningxia, China. His Muslim name in Arabic was Sa'd al-Din ( ar, سعد الدين '; ). Although he was born Sufi and turned Wahhabi, he changed his views and turned his ...
.
History
The origins of Han Kitab literature can be traced back to the establishment of the scripture hall education (''jingtang jiaoyu)'' system created by scholar Hu Dengzhou in the 16th century. After studying abroad in the Islamic world for years, Hu returned to China and formed the educational system, which incorporated the use of authoritative Islamic texts and foreign language lessons mixed with Chinese.
Initially the Han Kitab was composed of Chinese translations of Sufi texts originally written in Persian. Around the mid-17th century, Chinese Muslim scholars began writing original texts that synthesized Islamic and Classical Chinese thought.
Within a few generations, the instructional system spread throughout China, and subsequent scholars began writing Islamic literature within a Chinese cultural context.
Authorship
Liu Zhi wrote his Han Kitab in
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
in the early 18th century. The works of Wu Zunqie, Zhang Zhong, and
Wang Daiyu
Wáng Dàiyú (, Xiao'erjing: ) (ca. 1570 - ca. 1660) was a Chinese Hanafi-Maturidi ( Hui) scholar of Arab descent. His given name was Ya, style name Daiyu. He called himself ''Zhenhui Laoren'' ("The True Old Man of Islam") and went by his sty ...
were also included in the Han Kitab.
References
Bibliography
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Sunni literature
Islamic literature
Confucian texts
Chinese philosophy
Chinese classic texts
Chinese literature
18th-century books
Islam in China
Religious syncretism
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