Is China a House of Islam? Chinese Questions, Arabic Answers, and the Translation of Salafism from Cairo to Canton, 1930-1932

A rare glimpse into the transnational exchange of Islamic thought during the interwar period reveals how Rashīd Riḍā's fatwas to China, overlooked by historians, illuminate Sino-Muslim debates and the global spread of Salafism. These legal responses, translated into Chinese, demonstrate Riḍā's meticulous adaptation of his methods and values for a predominantly Ḥanafī Muslim audience in China. The study provides a concrete, historical understanding of Salafism's origins in China by analyzing the specific questions posed by Sino-Muslim nationalists and the nuanced answers provided from Cairo between 1930-1932.

Halevi, L. (2019). Is China a House of Islam? Chinese Questions, Arabic Answers, and the Translation of Salafism from Cairo to Canton, 1930-1932. Die Welt Des Islams, 59(1), 33–69. https://doi.org/10.1163/15700607-00591p03