Who are the Hui people?

The Hui people (回族, Huí zú) are Chinese-speaking Muslims descended from Persian, Arab, and Central Asian merchants who settled in China during the Tang and Song dynasties.

Where do the Hui people live?

The Hui live throughout China, with the largest concentration in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Substantial communities also exist in Gansu, Qinghai, and Henan.

What distinguishes Hui from other Chinese?

The Hui are physically and linguistically indistinguishable from Han Chinese, but they practice Islam and follow Islamic dietary laws and customs.

What does 'qingzhen' mean?

Qingzhen means 'pure and true' and is the term for halal, Islamic-compliant food, mosques, schools, and businesses in Hui communities.

How do the Hui transmit Islamic learning?

Through mosque-based scripture-hall (jingtang) education, where students study Arabic, Islamic law, and classical Chinese together.

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Hui (回族)

✍️ by xiaoyu luo 🗓️ Updated Jul 29, 2026 Pop: ~11,377,914 · Nationwide distribution across China

The Hui people (回族, Huí zú) represent one of the most widely distributed ethnic minorities in China, with a population of approximately 11.4 million found in virtually every province and major city across the country. Unlike many other Chinese ethnic minorities who are concentrated in specific autonomous regions, the Hui are distinguished by their remarkable geographic dispersion — from the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in the northwest to the bustling Muslim quarters of Beijing, Xi'an, and Kunming. What unites this diverse and far-flung community is not a shared homeland or language, but a shared faith: Islam. The Hui are unique among China's 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities in having no single geographic homeland — they are found in 98% of China's counties, making them the most widely distributed minority group in the country.

Origins and History

The Hui trace their origins to the Silk Road, that ancient network of trade routes that connected China to Central Asia, the Middle East, and beyond. Beginning in the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE), Arab and Persian merchants arrived in Chinese port cities like Guangzhou and Quanzhou, as well as overland trading posts like Chang'an (modern Xi'an). These Muslim traders married local Han Chinese women, and their descendants formed the nucleus of what would become the Hui community. During the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368 CE), the Mongol rulers brought large numbers of Central Asian Muslims — soldiers, administrators, craftsmen, and scholars — to China, further enriching the Hui gene pool and cultural heritage.

Throughout Chinese history, the Hui have played significant roles as merchants, scholars, military commanders, and government officials. The famous Ming Dynasty admiral Zheng He (郑和, Zhèng Hé), who led seven epic maritime expeditions across the Indian Ocean between 1405 and 1433, was of Hui descent. His voyages reached as far as East Africa, decades before Columbus crossed the Atlantic, and they remain one of the great achievements of Chinese — and Hui — history. The Hui community has produced generations of Islamic scholars who have worked to reconcile Islamic teachings with Chinese Confucian philosophy, creating a distinctive Sino-Islamic intellectual tradition known as the Han Kitab — literally "Chinese books" about Islam written in classical Chinese by Hui scholars.

Islamic Faith and Practice

Islam is the defining characteristic of Hui identity. The Hui follow Sunni Islam of the Hanafi school, and their religious practice centers on the Five Pillars: the declaration of faith (shahada), daily prayers (salat), fasting during Ramadan, charitable giving (zakat), and the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj) for those who are able. Hui communities are organized around mosques (清真寺, qīng zhēn sì), which serve not only as places of worship but as community centers where religious education, social gatherings, and charitable activities take place. The call to prayer echoes from minarets across Hui neighborhoods, and the rhythm of daily life is structured around the five prayer times.

The Hui practice of Islam has developed distinctive Chinese characteristics over the centuries. Mosque architecture blends Islamic and Chinese architectural traditions, with prayer halls that feature Chinese-style curved roofs, courtyards, and pagoda-like minarets rather than the domes and pointed arches of Middle Eastern mosques. Islamic calligraphy in China often uses Chinese characters alongside Arabic script, and some Hui scholars have written extensively in classical Chinese about Islamic theology. During Ramadan, Hui communities come alive with night markets selling special foods for breaking the fast, and the celebration of Eid al-Fitr (开斋节, Kāi zhāi jié) and Eid al-Adha (古尔邦节, Gǔ ěr bāng jié) are major events in the Hui calendar that bring entire communities together for prayer, feasting, and celebration.

Cuisine and Halal Culture

Hui cuisine is one of the most visible and beloved contributions of the Hui people to Chinese food culture. The Hui adhere to halal dietary laws, which prohibit the consumption of pork, alcohol, and improperly slaughtered meat. Within these constraints, Hui chefs have developed a rich culinary tradition that combines Chinese cooking techniques with Central Asian and Middle Eastern influences. Lanzhou beef noodle soup (兰州拉面, Lán zhōu lā miàn) is perhaps the most famous Hui dish — hand-pulled noodles served in a clear, aromatic beef broth, found in Muslim restaurants across China and increasingly around the world. The art of pulling noodles by hand, transforming a lump of dough into hundreds of uniform strands through a series of rhythmic stretches and folds, is a culinary performance that has become iconic of Hui food culture.

Other iconic Hui dishes include yangrou paomo (羊肉泡馍), a hearty mutton soup with crumbled flatbread from Xi'an that has been called the "number one dish of the ancient capital"; shouzhua yangrou (手抓羊肉), boiled mutton eaten with the hands and seasoned simply with salt and cumin; and various grilled lamb skewers (羊肉串, yáng ròu chuàn) seasoned with cumin and chili that have become popular street food throughout China. Hui pastries and snacks, such as sanzi (馓子, fried dough twists) and various nut-filled cakes, are especially popular during festivals. The Hui have also contributed to Chinese tea culture, with the "eight-treasure tea" (八宝茶, bā bǎo chá) — a blend of tea leaves, dried fruits, nuts, and rock sugar — being a Hui specialty served to guests as a gesture of hospitality.

Community and Identity

Hui communities in Chinese cities are often organized around a central mosque and are easily identifiable by the presence of halal restaurants, butcher shops, and businesses displaying Arabic calligraphy. The Hui speak Mandarin Chinese as their native language, but their speech is often peppered with Arabic and Persian loanwords related to religious practice. Hui names typically combine a Chinese surname with a Muslim given name — for example, Ma (马), one of the most common Hui surnames, derived from the Chinese transliteration of "Muhammad." Other common Hui surnames include Ha (哈), Sha (沙), and Na (纳), all reflecting the community's Central Asian and Middle Eastern heritage.

Hui identity exists at an interesting intersection of Chinese and Islamic civilization. Unlike the Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim groups in Xinjiang, the Hui are culturally Chinese in language, dress, and many customs, while maintaining a distinct religious identity. This dual heritage has allowed the Hui to serve as cultural bridges between China and the Islamic world, facilitating trade, diplomacy, and cultural exchange. Today, the Hui continue to navigate the balance between their Chinese nationality and Islamic faith, contributing to China's multicultural society while maintaining the traditions that have defined their community for over a thousand years. From the Great Mosque of Xi'an — one of China's oldest and most architecturally significant mosques — to the bustling Muslim Quarter of Beijing's Niujie district, Hui culture remains a vibrant and essential thread in the fabric of Chinese civilization.

Hui Weddings and Family Life

Hui family life follows a pattern shared with other Chinese communities but framed by Islamic rite. Marriages are typically arranged with the consent of both families and solemnized by a nikah-style ceremony conducted by an imam, who offers a sermon and recites blessings as the couple and witnesses share dates and sweets. The bride's household observes modest customs, and the wedding feast is strictly halal, centered on mutton, beef, and noodle dishes rather than pork. Family bonds are strong, with several generations often maintaining close contact and mutual support. Children are raised speaking Chinese at home while learning the basics of Islamic prayer and fasting as they grow, so that faith and family upbringing reinforce one another from an early age.

Funeral and Burial Customs

Hui funerals follow Islamic practice, emphasizing simplicity, equality, and swift burial. After death, the body is washed by same-sex relatives or helpers, wrapped in a plain white shroud, and laid in a simple wooden coffin without elaborate decoration. Prayers are led by an imam, and burial takes place in a dedicated Muslim cemetery, with the body placed directly in the earth facing west toward Mecca. Mourning is restrained, and the community provides practical and financial support to the bereaved family. Food is shared among neighbors and the poor rather than displayed in lavish banquets. These rites, carried out consistently across Hui communities, reflect the belief that all believers meet death as equals before God.

Scripture-Hall Education

For centuries the Hui transmitted Islamic learning through the jingtang jiaoyu (经堂教育, jīng táng jiào yù), or 'scripture-hall' system, in which a mosque hosts classes where students study the Quran, Arabic grammar, and Islamic law alongside classical Chinese. Pioneered in the late Ming period, the method used Chinese phonetic notation to teach Arabic texts, allowing scholars to serve both faiths at once. Graduates became imams and teachers who staffed mosques across the country, and the system produced the bilingual religious literature known as the Han Kitab. Although modern schools now complement it, the scripture hall remains a living institution in many Hui areas, preserving a distinctly Chinese form of Islamic scholarship.

Hui in Trade and Craft

From the start the Hui have been a people of the market as much as the mosque. Descended from Silk Road merchants, they built livelihoods as traders, caravan agents, butchers, and restaurateurs, and their halal eateries became fixtures of cities from Xi'an to Kunming. Hui craftsmen specialized in leather, metalwork, and the preparation of dried fruits and spices, while Hui caravans linked interior China with Central Asia. In smaller towns the weekly bazaar often centered on the Hui quarter, where the call to prayer and the noise of commerce mixed. This commercial heritage helps explain why the Hui, though scattered, are present in nearly every county and why their cuisine has entered the mainstream of Chinese food culture.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

The Hui people (回族, Huí zú) are Chinese-speaking Muslims descended from Persian, Arab, and Central Asian merchants who settled in China during the Tang and Song dynasties.
The Hui live throughout China, with the largest concentration in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Substantial communities also exist in Gansu, Qinghai, and Henan.
The Hui are physically and linguistically indistinguishable from Han Chinese, but they practice Islam and follow Islamic dietary laws and customs.
The most important festivals are Eid al-Fitr (开斋节, Kāizhāi Jié) and Eid al-Adha (古尔邦节, Gǔ'ěrbāng Jié), celebrated with prayers and feasts.
Qingzhen means 'pure and true' and is the term for halal, Islamic-compliant food, mosques, schools, and businesses in Hui communities.
Through mosque-based scripture-hall (jingtang) education, where students study Arabic, Islamic law, and classical Chinese together.

Chinese Terms

回族 (Huí zú)

The Hui ethnic group

清真寺 (qīng zhēn sì)

Mosque

兰州拉面 (Lán zhōu lā miàn)

Lanzhou hand-pulled noodles

开斋节 (Kāi zhāi jié)

Eid al-Fitr

古尔邦节 (Gǔ ěr bāng jié)

Eid al-Adha — Festival of Sacrifice

清真 (qīng zhēn)

Qingzhen, 'pure and true'; the term for halal/Islamic

回回 (Huí huí)

Traditional historical name for the Hui

经堂教育 (jīng táng jiào yù)

Scripture-hall Islamic education

Fun Facts

The great Ming Dynasty admiral Zheng He, who commanded the largest wooden ships ever built and led expeditions across the Indian Ocean, was a Hui Muslim from Yunnan province whose grandfather had made the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.
Hui mosques in China often face a unique architectural challenge: they must be oriented toward Mecca (west), but traditional Chinese architecture favors a south-facing orientation — resulting in creative architectural solutions that blend both traditions.
The Hui are found in 98% of China's counties, making them the most widely distributed ethnic minority in the country — you can find Hui restaurants and communities from the deserts of Xinjiang to the tropical island of Hainan.
The term qingzhen (pure and true) labels not only halal food but also mosques, schools, and businesses across Hui communities.
Hui Islamic learning long used 'scripture halls' (jingtang) where Arabic and classical Chinese were studied side by side.
The Hui surname Ma is so widespread that folk saying links it to Muhammad, reflecting the community's deep historical roots.