Minoritization of Muslims: A Social History of China’s Regulatory Systems over the Hui

• Applicant: Gang Li, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Asian Studies ; Islamic Studies, Arabian Studies, Semitic Studies ; Religious Studies and Jewish Studies
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 545149516

Over a millennium, Islam has become the predominant religion among ten ethnic groups in China. Among these groups, the Hui stand out with the largest population of Muslim adults. Unlike the Uyghur and other Turkic Muslim groups who inhabit predominately Xinjiang in northwest China, the Hui Muslims, closely aligned with the Han Chinese, are widely dispersed across China, spanning from the northwestern provinces of Xinjiang and Ningxia to the southwestern province of Yunnan. The historical relationship between the Hui and the Chinese authority has been intricate, particularly in recent years, which have witnessed noteworthy shifts in ethnicity/religion policies affecting Muslim communities across China. Against this background and drawing on primary and secondary sources, this project aims to present a social history of the regulatory systems of the Chinese Party-State, that is, the legal, political, and practical strategies employed by the Chinese Communist Party (Party/CCP) in governing Hui Muslims and their practice of Islam, focusing on the period from 1976 to 2012. The project is guided by three core inquiries: Firstly, what are the CCP’s regulatory systems governing Islam and the Hui Muslims? Secondly, how have the regulatory systems impacted the Hui and their practice of Islam? Lastly, which historical, cultural, and international factors have contributed to the Party’s approaches to regulating the Hui and their practice of Islam? These inquiries will be addressed through qualitative text analysis and empirical fieldwork, examining an array of legal and political documents issued by the CCP. It aims not only to illuminate the historical trajectory of the Party’s engagement with Islam and Muslims but also to enhance understanding of the contemporary dynamics between the Chinese authorities and the Muslim population in the People’s Republic of China. The project’s final results will be published as a book monograph and an edited volume.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants