His Original Name Was a Chinese Translation For Muhammad

Zheng He was first known as Ma He. Around 1371, he was born into a Muslim family. He had four sisters and an older brother. Ma is the Chinese equivalent of Muhammad. The fact that both his father and grandfather possessed the title "hajji" shows that they had visited Mecca on pilgrimage. His ancestors were early Mongol Yunnan governors under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty.

Zheng He is an admiral and diplomat who assisted in spreading China's commercial and marine dominance throughout the areas surrounding the Indian Ocean. Nearly a century before the Portuguese reached India by sailing around the southern tip of Africa, he led seven naval journeys.