July 17 1402 – 17 Av 5162
Chinese Ming emperor Yongle began his reign. Yongle welcomed Jews into his empire and even bestowed the honorific surname Chao on Jewish physician Y’en Ch’eng. Jewish communities had reportedly already existed in China for some seven centuries. Originally regarded by the Chinese as a strain of Islam, Judaism was recognized as a separate religion and culture only after the Mongol conquest in the 13th century.