Introduction to Education for Rural Muslim Hui

Abstract

The bus carefully passes through and makes its rough turns alongside the rugged mountains. As soon as the winding road ends, it is broadened up and leads further to a land of barrenness with small villages remotely scattered where mosques are seen standing in the middle of the harsh landscape and nestled at the foot of mountains, far away from the main road but glittering at passersby with their shiny crescent moons and stars on the top. Gongbeis, or enshrined tombs, are built magnificently containing the remains of spiritual Islamic heroes or founders of various sects, stretching a few blocks in villages; Qingzhen (Halal) restaurants line the streets of counties and township, decorated with boards written Tasmi in Arabic scripts that read, “In the name of God, the most gracious, the most merciful.” Images of Al-Masjid Al-Haram, the Sacred Mosque or the Grand Mosque in the city of Mecca, are hung up on the walls, while Hancan (non-Halal) restaurants are nearly invisible. Men and women are often seen in white hats and colorful headscarves on their scooters and bicycles or driving small trucks and vans. This wide space is called Xihaigu, a name unknown to many Chinese people, but a place that generations of Muslim Hui call home. In the past, accessing this heartland of northwestern China is nearly impossible. Today, it is still not easy to access, even with regular bus and train schedules and asphalt-paved roads. It requires an approximate four-hour bus ride from Yinchuan, the capital city of Ningxia Autonomous Region, or an eight-hour bus ride from Xi’an, the capital city of Shaanxi, to reach a main county center in the area, and it takes another hour or more to get to the towns and villages within the county. There is still no high-speed train stopping by the Guyuan City where the nearest train station is located; with slow trains occasionally make their stops in Guyuan, getting from the train station to any parts of county still needs hours more of traveling (Fig. 1.1).