Islam, one of the three major religions in the world, was introduced into China from Arabia in the middle of the 7th century. After a long period of dissemination, development and evolution, Islam with China characteristics has gradually formed; Looking back at the history of the spread and development of Islam in China, we can see that it is the messengers, religious scholars and businessmen from China and Arabia who built the bridge of economic, cultural and religious exchanges between China and Arab countries, and they transplanted and spread this religion with world influence to China. At the same time, it also brought the ancient China civilization to the Arab and Islamic world. Therefore, when we read the history of China and Arabia, we will deeply feel that China-Arab friendship goes back to ancient times, Islamic culture goes back to ancient times in China, and the spread of Islam in China is also successful.

According to China's historical records, the Tang and Song Dynasties were the period when Islam began to spread in China. However, what contributed to the formation of this great historical event was the world-famous "Silk Road". The Silk Road existed between China and the West for a long time, and it was an important carrier of Islam's introduction into China, which shortened the distance between China and the West. Is it to connect the eastern and western cultures, or to introduce the ancient China civilization to the west, and at the same time to bring Islamic philosophy and western civilization to China, adding new content to the traditional culture of China, which occupies an important position in the world cultural history?

The Tang Dynasty was the heyday of political, economic and cultural development in the history of China. Thanks to China's open policy, friendly exchanges between China and Arab countries have reached a peak. According to Old Books of the Tang Dynasty, in the second year of Yonghui in Tang Gaozong (65 1), the third Arab caliph, Osman, sent a tribute to the Tang Dynasty; Historians in China generally believe that this year is a symbolic year when Islam was introduced into China. It is also recorded in China's history books that from the 2nd year of Yonghui (65 1) to the 14th year of Zhenyuan (798), 39 Arab envoys were sent to China. Arab and Persian Muslims come to China for business or tourism. Frequent friendly exchanges and economic and trade exchanges, on the one hand, promoted the existing traditional friendship between China and Arabia and Persia, on the other hand, created conditions for the spread and development of Islam in China. The routes for Arab and Persian businessmen and tourists to and from China are as follows: from Persia via China and Xinjiang along the Silk Road to Chang 'an and Luoyang in the mainland; From the sea, it starts from the Persian Gulf, bypasses the Malay Peninsula, and reaches Fucheng, a coastal city in the southeast of China. China history books also recorded the business and life of Arab and Persian merchants in Chang 'an and coastal areas. With the permission of Tang and Song Dynasties, they lived in Guangzhou, Yangzhou, Quanzhou, Hangzhou, Chang 'an, Kaifeng and Luoyang, and were called "Ke Fan" or "native Ke Fan". They lived a quiet life as expatriates according to their own beliefs and customs, and built mosques and cemeteries there. Many people stayed for a long time, intermarried with local residents and produced offspring, which gradually formed the early Muslim groups in China. They stick to Islamic beliefs and culture, in order not to collide with China's traditional culture and other religions, especially for the convenience of religious life, they live in a relatively compact community, form their own society, do not teach foreign religions, and try their best to coordinate and adapt to China's economic and cultural environment, thus obtaining a relatively relaxed living space; Hundreds of thousands of Arabs lived in Yangzhou and Hangzhou in history. The four famous mosques in the coastal areas are the physical evidence that Central Asian Muslims lived in China during this period. They adhered to their beliefs and constantly brought China's advanced technology, represented by the four great inventions, into Arabia and introduced it to the West, becoming the scientific and cultural messengers of the Middle Ages.