Ma surname in Hui nationality is mainly related to the transliteration of Arabic and Persian names, especially to the transliteration of Muhammad, the founder of Islam. Because Ma and Mu are homophonic, Muhammad was translated into Mahama in many ancient books. This translation method has a great influence on the Qing Dynasty and its descendants. For example, Waterway to the Western Regions and Wei Yuan's Atlas of Sea Countries both translated the first sound of a person's name "wood" into "horse".

Under the influence of this situation, Hui people do not attach importance to the pedigree of surnames like Han people, but they are free to choose surnames, so many Hui people choose "Ma" surnames.

Migration and communication:

Ma surname of Han nationality originated in Handan City, Hebei Province during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. At the end of the Warring States period, some descendants of Ma moved to Guanzhong, Shaanxi. In the following time, the surname Ma continued to develop, and many people became senior officials of the dynasty. The family gradually prospered, eventually making Fufeng Maoling (now Maoling, Xingping City, Shaanxi Province) become the development and reproduction center of horses.

From the Han Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties, horses became a famous family in Fufeng Maoling, and they were also distributed in some places in Henan, Hebei, Shandong, Hubei, Sichuan, Gansu, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other provinces. At the same time, during the Han Dynasty, the Ma clan moved westward to the northwest and then eastward to Huanghuai.