Islam in Vietnam is primarily the religion of the Cham people, an Austronesian minority ethnic group; however, roughly one-third of Muslims in Vietnam are of other ethnic groups. There is also a community, who describes itself of mixed ethnic origins (Cham, Khmer, Malay, Minang, Viet, Chinese and Arab), that practices Islam and are also known as Cham, or Cham Muslims, around the region of Châu Đốc in the Southwest. History Spread of Islam (750–1400) Uthman ibn Affan, the third Caliph of Islam, sent the first official Muslim envoy to Vietnam and Tang Dynasty China in 650. Seafaring Muslim traders are known to have made stops at ports in the Champa Kingdom en route to China very early in the history of Islam. During the 9th and 12th century, various medieval Arabic geographical works had identified modern-day eastern Indochina as lands of the Qimar (Khmer, Cambodians), the Sanf (Cham) and the Luqin (Vietnamese). Arab Muslim merchamnts reached Luqin (Hanoi) while Vietnam was under Tang China's rule. Luqin (Hanoi in north Vietnam) was home to one of the biggest Muslim foreign quarters when Vietnam was ruled by Tang China. However, the earliest material evidence of the transmission of Islam consists of Song Dynasty-era documents from China, which record that the Cham familiarized themselves with Islam in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. Following the usurpation of Lưu Kế Tông (r. 986–989), many Chams and Muslims sought refuge in China. The Song dynastic records state that in 986, hundreds of people from Champa, having been led by Pu Bo E (Abu Nurs), arrived at Hainan. In the next two years, nearly 500 refugees from Champa arrived at Canton headed by Li Ning Bian and Hu Xuan (Hussain), who "demanded the protection of China". At the same time, during the Mongol invasions of Vietnam, several Mongol generals were Muslims, including Omar Nasr al-Din, and the major bulk of Mongol army invading Đại Việt and Champa came from the Turks and Persians. During their short conquest, the Mongols managed to spread Islam, although it was never large enough to challenge the Vietnamese. During a visit to Champa in 1340s, Ibn Battuta described a princess who met him, spoke in Turkish, was literate in Arabic, and wrote out the bismillah in the presence of the visitor. However, Ibn Battuta did not consider Champa an Islamic state. The number of followers began to increase as contacts