Educational Review: International Journal | Vol. 16, No. 2, 2019 p-ISSN 1682-4377 | e-ISSN 0168 2423 ISLAM IN TAIWAN: HISTORY AND EDUCATIONAL RELEVANCE IIS RODIAH Institut Agama Islam Darussalam (IAID), Ciamis, Jawa Barat, Indonesia GOH KENG-HUANG National University of Kaohsiung, Taiwan UJANG ENDANG Institut Agama Islam Darussalam (IAID), Ciamis, Jawa Barat, Indonesia Abstract Islam has been introduced to mainland China since the 7th century AD, then the spread of Islam became more reliable and more widespread when Cheng Ho's fleet from the Ming dynasty arrived in Taiwan in the 16th century. The focus of this research is to examine the history of Islam in Taiwan during the period from the 7th century, dynastic era to the republic era. This research used a qualitative approach to literature study techniques. Islam in Taiwan has gone through a long history, experiencing the ups and downs of political dynamics. Sinicization as an effort to uphold Chinese supremacy by Zhu Yuanzhang and the strong influence of Confucianism is a process of cultural assimilation that has a widespread impact and contributes to the decline of the Muslim community in Taiwan from generation to generation. The progress of Islam in Taiwan currently depends on the increasing number of Taiwanese converts and Muslim immigrants from various countries, including Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Africa, and Muslim Middle Eastern countries. Keywords: Taiwan, Islamic History, Educational Development Educational Review: International Journal 99 Vol. 16, No. 2, 2019 INTRODUCTION Three critical events largely influence the development of Islam in Taiwan in history. First, that Islam was introduced to China during the Tang Dynasty, around the 7th century by Arab and Persian Muslim traders by taking the silk road and maritime ceramic road. Second, the 16th century was marked by the arrival of general Cheng Ho and his troops from the Ming dynasty on the third island of Formosa in 1949 as Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Nationalist party, fled to Taiwan after his defeat of the Communist Party in Mainland China. Historically, the spread of Islam to China occurred around the 6th and 7th centuries AD through trade contacts and diplomatic missions between Arabs and Chinese. The Era is more or less the same as the spread of Islam in Indonesia. Ji (2017: 86) states that during the Tang dynasty (618-907), Arab and Persian merchants came to China. Even some of them later married Chinese and settled for the rest of their lives. The spread of Islam through a diplomatic mission occurred when Caliph Uthman sent an envoy to Changan. Ta Sen (2018: 109) states that Islamic scholars and the Chinese accept that the 6th century AD is the beginning of the spread of Islam in China. Unlike the development of Islam in Indonesia, the history of the development of Islam in Taiwan or the Republic of China (ROC) can be said to be quite slow. It can be seen from the population development of ethnic Chinese (Hui) Muslims in Taiwan. Hsiu Ping (2019) states that in the 1950s, around 20,000 - 40,000 Chinese Muslims came to Taiwan along with the transfer of the national government under Chiang Kai-shek's leadership. Ethnic Categories Population Percentage Indonsian Muslims 280,000 96.80% 83.77% Chinese Muslims (Hui) 8,000-53,000 2.77% 15.86% Pakistani Muslims 300 0.10% 0.09% Turkic Muslims 250 0.09% 0.07& Arab Muslims 200 0.07% 0.06% African Muslims 200 0.07% 0.06% Other ethnic Muslims 300 0.10% 0.09% Total 289.250-334.250 100% 100% Table 1. Statistics of the Muslim population in Taiwan by ethnic category (Hsiu Ping, 2019) 100 Educational Review: International Journal Vol. 16, No. 2, 2019 Currently, the Muslim population in Taiwan is only around 53,000, or an increase of about 24.5% over the past five decades. This amount is equivalent to 2.77% -15.86% of the total Muslim population in Taiwan. Most of the Muslim community in Taiwan today are immigrants or foreign nationals who work in Taiwan, as can be seen in the table. Politically, Taiwan or the Republic of China (ROC) was founded in 2012 after the collapse of the Qing dynasty. Tanasaldi (2017: 3) explains that the ROC was controlled by the leader of the nationalist party known as Kuo Min Tang (KMT faced various political and military upheavals. Many enemies tried to control the mainland China. The communist group was one of the biggest enemies who began to gain great influence in 1930 and has the support of most of the Chinese mainland. Finally, on October 1, 1949, the communist party under the leadership of Mao Zedong succeeded in defeating the nationalist party and establishing the People's Republic of China (PRC). Chiang Kai-shek, who was then leading the nationalist party, then fled to Taiwan. Both the ROC and the PRC are implementing the One China Policy, which emphasizes that there is only one Chinese state in the world. The political dynamics of the ROC and the PRC in world relations at the United Nations force Taiwan as a country with two systems or a semi-independent country with limited recognition. Regarding the history of Islam in Taiwan, which is also called island China, however, the Islamic style there has an important timeline related to the development of Islam in mainland China (mainland) in previous times. How are the development of Islam to the present and its direction to the future, it is interesting to examine more deeply. METHOD The research method used to understand the history of Islam in Taiwan is a qualitative approach, using literature study techniques and looking at various library materials, especially those published in the last five years, both in the form of printed and electronic libraries. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Early Spread of Islam in China The history of Islam in Taiwan cannot be separated from the history of the development of Islam in mainland China. As stated by Pelletier, Robert (2014: 23), China is still considered by Waishengren as the place of origin for their cultural traits. They believe that Taiwanese culture is also "Chinese". In other words, Educational Review: International Journal 101 Vol. 16, No. 2, 2019 culturally, there are similarities and links between Taiwan as a nation and China as ethnicity in its history. It is in line with Ta Sen's opinion (2018: 6). He emphasized that the spread of a religion or culture is through the community through several stages, and not from a single event. Furthermore, Ta Sen noted that the spread of religion is a process among a group of people, communities, or tribes over a period. Therefore, to understand the history of Islam in Taiwan, it is also essential to understand the history of development from its roots since the early period of the growth of Islam in China. Chinese civilization emerged and developed from the valley between two major rivers, namely the Yellow and Yangtse rivers. Shaughnessy (20000: 12) in Ta Sen (2018: 23) states that the central plains bordered by these two great rivers are the heart of Chinese civilization. Historians claim it is the original world of China. History records that Confucianism and Taoism are two philosophical pillars that developed and took root in the life of Chinese society. For Chinese people, Confucianism and Atheism, which have existed since 550 Before Christ, are a side of life that must be held. The traditions and culture of Chinese society are almost inseparable from the two values. Although Buddhism was recorded as having entered China in the 1st century AD during the reign of Emperor Ming Di of the Han Dynasty, and Islam entered China in the 7th century AD, however, the values of Confucianism or Taoism were always colored as a form of cultural assimilation. Regarding the entry of Islam in China, Chen Yuan (Shoujiang & Jia: 2017: 1) states that Islam was introduced to China in the second year of Emperor Yonghui of the Tang Dynasty in 651 AD He found Tang historical records and "Cefu Yuangui" (book guide ) which states that Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty received the arrival of the diplomatic envoy of the third Caliph of Arabia Othman (644-656 AD) in Chang'an, the capital of Tang. Ta Sen (2018: 110) states that from 651 to 798 or in 148 years, there were no less than 39 Arabic honorary missions sent to the Tang Palace. Apart from being introduced through the diplomatic mission of the caliph Arabia Othman, Islam was also introduced through trade missions. Ji (2017: 86) mentions that during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Arab and Persian traders came to China. Many of them chose to live in China for the rest of their lives and married the Chinese (Chinese). Ta Sen (2018: 113) further explains that these pioneering Muslims built settlements in the capital city and trade centers in China. Islam then developed and experienced the most important period in terms of its spread during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), which was founded by the Mongols. Ta Sen (2018: 119) states that in 1271, China was conquered by the 102 Educational Review: International Journal Vol. 16, No. 2, 2019 Mongol nomadic forces, led by Temujin, who later adopted the title, Genghis Khan. It is an important event in Chinese history. According to him, the Mongols colonized not only China but also Central Asia, West Asia, and Eastern Europe. This established the Mongols as the world's superpower in the 13-14 century. It was under this Mongol government that a massive migration of Muslims from Asia and West Asia took place in China.