Saturday, February 20, 2021

Taiwan Post Famous Mosques in Taiwan

TAIWAN POST (Chunghwa Post) issued two First Day Cover stamps of the Taipei Grand Mosque and Taiching Mosque in 2020.  Interestingly, Islam first reached Taiwan in the 17th century when a few Muslim families from the southern Chinese coastal province of Fujian accompanied Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong). He invaded Taiwan to oust the Dutch from Tainan in 1661, thus establishing the Kingdom of Tungning. From that time, and under trying times during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan when foreign religions were forbidden, the Muslim population underwent great change, yet continued to flourish after 1945. From what I have read I understand there are around 60,000 Muslims in Taiwan, of which about 90% belong to the Hui ethnic group. I am also aware that there are more than 180,000 foreign Muslims working in Taiwan from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, as well as other nationalities from more than 30 countries. And as of 2018, there are eleven mosques in Taiwan, with the most notable being the Taipei Grand Mosque, the oldest and largest one. I see too that Taiwan promotes itself as a Muslim-friendly travel destination, and the country even has halal certification for food manufactured in Taiwan.


 

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