Zheng He

Zheng He
Statue from a modern monument to Zheng He at the Stadthuys Museum in Malacca City, Malaysia
Born	1371 Kunyang, Yunnan, China
Died	1433 (aged 61–62) or 1435 (aged 63–64)
Resting place	Unknown
Other names	Ma He Sanbao
Occupation	Admiral, diplomat, explorer, and palace eunuch
Era	Ming dynasty

Zheng He
"Zheng He" in Traditional (top) and Simplified (bottom) Chinese characters
Traditional Chinese	鄭和
Simplified Chinese	郑和
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhèng Hé Wade–Giles Cheng4 Ho2 Yale Romanization Jèng Hé IPA [ʈʂə̂ŋ xɤ̌] Wu Suzhounese Zên Ghóu Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Jehng Wòh IPA [tsɛ̀ːŋ wɔ̏ː] Jyutping Zeng6 Wo4 Southern Min Hokkien POJ Tēⁿ Hô Tâi-lô Tēnn Hô

Zheng He (1371–1433 or 1435), formerly romanized as Cheng Ho, was a Hui Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, and fleet admiral during China's early Ming dynasty. Born Ma He, Zheng commanded expeditionary voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, Western Asia, and East Africa from 1405 to 1433. His larger ships stretched 120 meters in length. These carried hundreds of sailors on four tiers of decks.

As a favorite of the Yongle Emperor, whose usurpation he assisted, Zheng He rose to the top of the imperial hierarchy and served as commander of the southern capital Nanjing (the capital was later moved to Beijing by the Yongle Emperor). These voyages were long neglected in official Chinese histories but have become well known in China and abroad since the publication of Liang Qichao's Biography of Our Homeland's Great Navigator, Zheng He in 1904. A trilingual stele left by the navigator was discovered on the island of Sri Lanka shortly thereafter.

Zheng He was the second son of a family from Kunyang, Yunnan. He was originally born with the name Ma He. His family were Hui people. He had four sisters and one older brother.