Statement of Haji Mahomed Ali, a Mahomedan of Arabic extraction, born in the island of Hainan, China, regarding Mahomedans in China
This is a first-person statement by Haji Mahomed Ali, a Mahomedan of Arabic extraction born in Hainan, China, describing the religious, cultural, and economic position of the Mahomedan (Hue-Hue) community in China. It was published in the Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 9, June 1882, pp. 165–166.
Summary
Ali provides a brief ethnographic sketch of the Hue-Hue in China, noting their adherence to Hanafi jurisprudence (with no Shafei present), their use of the Koran in Arabic interlined with Chinese, and their linguistic profile as Chinese speakers who rarely travel to the Straits but who undertake the Mecca pilgrimage in numbers. He distinguishes their daily practices from those of the Chinese — including the inscription of God’s name and the Prophet’s on doors rather than idol names, and the halal slaughter of poultry in their shops — and records that Hainan has only four mosques while other provinces have many (p. 166).
Ali also offers a short historical note, stating that the community was once powerful and independent but that the death of Raja Tang-wang marked the beginning of their decline. He lists their occupations as rice-cultivation, cocoa-nut and betel-nut planting, gardening, and fishing, noting the absence of large merchants. The statement is dated Singapore, May 1882, and Ali identifies his own linguistic abilities as Hainan, Macao, and Techew, with a little Keh, and limited literacy (p. 166).