Some people think that the Muslims of China are only the Uyghurs, and it's no wonder, as the media focuses heavily on them due to the severe repression they face. However, the reality is that the Muslims of China are divided into 10 different ethnic groups, each with its own unique characteristics. This is what we will explore together. But first, it's important to know that China has 55 ethnic minorities, 10 of which are Muslim, with an official population of about 30 million people combined. However, in reality, their numbers far exceed this figure.
We can begin by dividing these ten Muslim ethnic groups into two main categories. The first group consists of four ethnicities: Hui, Dongxiang, Salar, and Bao'an.
These four ethnic groups are of Arab and Persian origin. Their ancestors arrived in China a long time ago for trade and other purposes, and they settled there, intermarrying with the Chinese. As a result, they are almost indistinguishable from the native Chinese in terms of appearance, language, customs, and traditions, even in their names. However, they avoid the prohibitions and forbidden acts of Islam. They can be distinguished from non-Muslim Chinese by their gathering places or when they wear Islamic attire.
The second group consists of six ethnicities: Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik, and Tatar.
These groups are of Turkic and Tatar origin, and they differ from the Chinese in their appearance, customs, traditions, and languages. They live in what was formerly known as East Turkestan, now called the Xinjiang region, which has an autonomous governance system for the Uyghur ethnicity. This system was established by Communist China, and while the governor is from the ethnic minority with the majority population, in reality, he follows the central government's directives and implements its policies. Due to the ethnic differences, particularly with the Uyghur ethnicity, which forms the majority of the population in this region, Xinjiang has seen heightened security measures and restrictions in many religious and other areas.
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