The Hui people originated from Arab and Persian Muslim caravans.

Since the opening of the Silk Road in the Western Han Dynasty, especially in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the "Hu merchant trade" has reached unprecedented prosperity. A large number of Arab, Persian, and Muslim caravans passed through the land Silk Road and The Maritime Silk Road came to China for business, and economic and trade exchanges led to a large number of Muslim merchants immigrating to China (a round trip from Arabia to China took about two years at that time).

At that time, people called the phenomenon of foreign businessmen staying in China and never returning home "living in the Tang Dynasty". Thousands of Muslims live in important port places such as Chang'an, Guangzhou, Yangzhou, and Nanhai Island. This kind of settlement of Fan merchants was called "Fan Fang". There are nursing homes, markets, cemeteries, mosques, and a publicly elected leader in Fanfang.

Due to the attention and active encouragement of the Song Dynasty, Arab and Persian merchants came to China to trade like the Qianjiang River, and the number of Muslims settling in China increased day by day. At its peak, the number could reach tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands. Some of them brought their wives, who were called "Bodhisattvas" (in Persian) - Muslim women. Some marry Han women as wives in China.

Their children born in China are called "local-born guests." By 1114 in the Northern Song Dynasty, there were already many "native-born Tibetan guests" who had lived in China for more than one life. To this end, the Northern Song Dynasty government also specially issued a "Heritage Law of the Fifth Shang Dynasty" to solve the problem of the distribution of their inheritance in China.

Despite this, these Tibetan guests have always been regarded as foreign expatriates, and all political and religious matters are handled by the "Tibetan chief" with full authority. Through trade, these Muslims who came to live in the Tang Dynasty for a long time became the original origin of the Hui people in China.

Ethnic distribution of the Hui people

As for the distribution characteristics of the Hui people, generally speaking, it is mainly characterized by a pattern of "large dispersion and small settlements". "Great dispersion" is mainly reflected in the fact that almost all the Hui people are distributed in more than 2,000 counties (cities) across the country.

This is also reflected in the proportion of the Hui population in the total population of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities where they are located. Among the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, the Hui population accounts for more than 10% of the total population of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in only two. (Ningxia and Qinghai), there are 6 provinces accounting for 1%-5%, and 23 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities accounting for less than 1%.

At the same time, judging from the proportion of the Hui population in the total population of ethnic minorities in various regions, the highest is in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and the lowest is in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. There are 10 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities where the Hui population accounts for Ethnic minorities account for more than 50% of the total population in these provinces and regions.

In Shanghai, Anhui, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Beijing, Tianjin, Jiangsu and other places, although the Hui population is small, they are the largest ethnic minority in these provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government. The characteristics of "small settlements" are concentrated in the living situation of the Hui people across the country. In the western provinces and regions, the Hui people are characterized by contiguous settlements, which is reflected in the fact that the Hui autonomous regions, autonomous prefectures, and autonomous counties are all in the north or west.

The eastern region is characterized by settlements in counties, villages, and streets, mostly along the Grand Canal. Unlike the northwest region, the size of the Hui people in the southeast region ranges from a hundred to ten thousand people.