AbstractsHistory

This thesis is a study of the history of Islam in China during the T'ang and Song periods, based on Chinese and Arabic sources. After investigation of the early contacts between the Muslims and China during the T'ang era (618 – 907), the thesis analyzes the reasons for the spread of Islam into southern Chinese Turkistan. The thesis then goes on to examine the Muslim commercial activities in Song China (960 – 1276). This study will lead to the conclusion that Muslim military campaigns in Chinese Turkistan and Muslim merchants' commercial activities in China's south-east coastal provinces during the T'ang and Song dynasties contributed to the early spread and development of Islam in China.