Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an

oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. With a population of over 500,000, Kashgar has served as a trading post and strategically important city on the

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...

between China, the Middle East and Europe for over 2,000 years, making it one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World. At the convergence point of widely varying cultures and empires, Kashgar has been under the rule of the Chinese, Turkic, Mongol and Tibetan empires. The city has also been the site of a number of battles between various groups of people on the steppes. Now administered as a county-level unit, Kashgar is the administrative center of

Kashgar Prefecture Kashgar Prefecture, also known as Kashi Prefecture, is located in southwestern Xinjiang, China, located in the Tarim Basin region (roughly the southern half of Xinjiang). It has an area of and 4,499,158 inhabitants at the 2015 census with a pop ...

, which has an area of and a population of approximately 4 million as of 2010. The city itself has a population of 506,640, and its urban area covers , though its administrative area extends over . The city was made into a Special Economic Zone in 2010, the only city in western China with this distinction. Kashgar also forms a terminus of the Karakoram Highway, the reconstruction of which is considered a major part of the multibillion-dollar China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Name

The modern

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

name is (), a shortened form of the longer and less-frequently used (''Kāshígá'ěr''). Ptolemy (AD 90–168), in his ''Geography'', Chapter 15.3A, refers to Kashgar as “Kasi”. Its western and probably indigenous name is the ''Kāš'' ("rock"), to which the

East Iranian The Eastern Iranian languages are a subgroup of the Iranian languages emerging in Middle Iranian times (from c. the 4th century BC). The Avestan language is often classified as early Eastern Iranian. As opposed to the Middle Western Iranian diale ...

''-γar'' ("mountain") and Middle Persian ''gar/ġar'', from

Old Persian Old Persian is one of the two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan language, Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native ...

Pahlavi Pahlavi may refer to: Iranian royalty *Seven Parthian clans, ruling Parthian families during the Sasanian Empire *Pahlavi dynasty, the ruling house of Imperial State of Persia/Iran from 1925 until 1979 **Reza Shah, Reza Shah Pahlavi (1878–1944 ...

''girīwa'' ("hill; ridge (of a mountain)") was attached. Alternative historical Romanizations for "Kashgar" include ''Cascar'' and ''Cashgar''. Other names for the city, such as the old Chinese name Shule and

Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...

''Śu-lig'' may have originated as an attempts to transcribe the Sanskrit name for Kashgar, ''Śrīkrīrāti'' ("fortunate hospitality"). Transliterations of the official Uyghur () include: K̂äxk̂är ( SASM/GNC strict) or Kaxkar (SASM/GNC broad). Transliterations of the other Uyghur name () include: Kaxĝär (SASM/GNC strict) or Kaxgar (SASM/GNC broad).

History

Kashgar is located at the convergence point of widely varying cultures and empires, it has been under the rule of the historically Chinese, Turkic, Mongol, and Tibetan empires. The city has also been the site of a number of battles between various groups of people on the steppes.

Han dynasty

The earliest mention of Kashgar occurs when a Chinese Han dynasty envoy traveled the Northern Silk Road to explore lands to the west. Another early mention of Kashgar is during the Former Han (also known as the Western Han dynasty), when in 76 BCE the Chinese conquered the

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 209 ...

, Yutian ( Khotan), Sulei (Kashgar) and a group of states in the Tarim Basin almost up to the foot of the Tian Shan range. Ptolemy speaks of Scythia beyond the Imaus, which is in a “Kasia Regio”, probably exhibiting the name from which Kashgar and Kashgaria (often applied to the district) are formed. The country's people practised Zoroastrianism and Buddhism before the coming of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. In the '' Book of Han'', which covers the period between 125 BCE and 23 CE, it is recorded that there were 1,510 households, 18,647 people and 2,000 persons able to bear arms. By the time covered by the ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...

'' (roughly 25 to 170 CE), it had grown to 21,000 households and had 3,000 men able to bear arms. The ''Book of the Later Han'' provides a wealth of detail on developments in the region: More particularly, in reference to Kashgar itself, is the following record:

The Kushans

The ''Book of the Later Han'' also gives the only extant historical record of Yuezhi or

Kushan The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, i ...

involvement in the Kashgar oasis: However, it was not very long before the Chinese began to reassert their authority in the region: From an earlier part of the same text comes the following addition: The first passage continues:

Three Kingdoms to the Sui dynasty

These centuries are marked by a general silence in sources on Kashgar and the Tarim Basin. The ''

Weilüe The ''Weilüe'' () was a Chinese historical text written by Yu Huan between 239 and 265. Yu Huan was an official in the state of Cao Wei (220–265) during the Three Kingdoms period (220–280). Although not a formal historian, Yu Huan has been h ...

'', composed in the second third of the 3rd century, mentions a number of states as dependencies of Kashgar: the kingdom of Zhenzhong (Arach?), the kingdom of Suoju (Yarkand), the kingdom of Jieshi, the kingdom of Qusha, the kingdom of Xiye (Khargalik), the kingdom of Yinai (Tashkurghan), the kingdom of Manli (modern Karasul), the kingdom of Yire (Mazar − also known as Tágh Nák and Tokanak), the kingdom of Yuling, the kingdom of Juandu (‘Tax Control’ − near modern Irkeshtam), the kingdom of Xiuxiu (‘Excellent Rest Stop’ − near Karakavak), and the kingdom of Qin. However, much of the information on the Western Regions contained in the ''Weilüe'' seems to have ended roughly about (170), near the end of Han power. So, we cannot be sure that this is a reference to the state of affairs during the Cao Wei (220-265), or whether it refers to the situation before the civil war during the Later Han when China lost touch with most foreign countries and came to be divided into three separate kingdoms. Chapter 30 of the ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...

'' says that after the beginning of the

Wei Dynasty Wei or WEI may refer to: States * Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States * Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...

(220) the states of the Western Regions did not arrive as before, except for the larger ones such as Kucha, Khotan,

Kangju Kangju (; Eastern Han Chinese: ''kʰɑŋ-kɨɑ'' < *''khâŋ-ka'' (c. 140 BCE)) was the Chinese name of a kingdom in

Central Asia< ...

Wusun The Wusun (; Eastern Han Chinese *''ʔɑ-suən'' <

Old Chinese

(140 BCE < 436 BCE): *''Ɂâ-sûn'') were an ancient semi-

, Kashgar, Yuezhi, Shanshan and Turpan, who are said to have come to present tribute every year, as in Han times. Silk Road 1992

In 270, four states from the Western Regions were said to have presented tribute: Karashahr, Turpan, Shanshan, and Kucha. Some wooden documents from Niya seem to indicate that contacts were also maintained with Kashgar and Khotan around this time. In 422, according to the ''Songshu'', ch. 98, the king of Shanshan, Bilong, came to the court and "the thirty-six states in the Western Regions" all swore their allegiance and presented tribute. It must be assumed that these 36 states included Kashgar. The "Songji" of the Zizhi Tongjian records that in the 5th month of 435, nine states: Kucha, Kashgar, Wusun, Yueban, Tashkurghan, Shanshan, Karashahr, Turpan and Sute all came to the Wei court. In 439, according to the ''Weishu'', ch. 4A, Shanshan, Kashgar and Karashahr sent envoys to present tribute. According to the ''Weishu'', ch. 102, Chapter on the Western Regions, the kingdoms of Kucha, Kashgar, Wusun, Yueban, Tashkurghan, Shanshan, Karashahr, Turpan and Sute all began sending envoys to present tribute in the Taiyuan reign period (435-440). In 453 Kashgar sent envoys to present tribute (''Weishu'', ch. 5), and again in 455. An embassy sent during the reign of Wencheng Di (452-466) from the king of Kashgar presented a supposed sacred relic of the Buddha; a dress which was incombustible. In 507 Kashgar, is said to have sent envoys in both the 9th and 10th months (''Weishu'', ch. 8). In 512, Kashgar sent envoys in the 1st and 5th months. (''Weishu'', ch. 8). Early in the 6th century Kashgar is included among the many territories controlled by the Yeda or

Hephthalite The Hephthalites ( xbc, ηβοδαλο, translit= Ebodalo), sometimes called the White Huns (also known as the White Hunas, in Iranian as the ''Spet Xyon'' and in Sanskrit as the ''Sveta-huna''), were a people who lived in Central Asia during th ...

Huns, but their empire collapsed at the onslaught of the Western Turks between 563 and 567 who then probably gained control over Kashgar and most of the states in the Tarim Basin.

Tang dynasty

The founding of the Tang dynasty in 618 saw the beginning of a prolonged struggle between China and the Western Turks for control of the Tarim Basin. In 635, the ''

Tang Annals The ''Old Book of Tang'', or simply the ''Book of Tang'', is the first classic historical work about the Tang dynasty, comprising 200 chapters, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories. Originally compiled during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

'' reported an emissary from the king of Kashgar to the Tang capital. In 639 there was a second emissary bringing products of Kashgar as a token of submission to the Tang state. Buddhist scholar Xuanzang passed through Kashgar (which he referred to as ''Ka-sha'') in 644 on his return journey from India to China. The Buddhist religion, then beginning to decay in India, was active in Kashgar. Xuanzang recorded that they flattened their babies heads, tattooed their bodies and had green eyes. He reported that Kashgar had abundant crops, fruits and flowers, wove fine woolen stuffs and rugs. Their writing system had been adapted from Indian script but their language was different from that of other countries. The inhabitants were sincere Buddhist adherents and there were some hundreds of monasteries with more than 10,000 followers, all members of the

Sarvastivadin The ''Sarvāstivāda'' (Sanskrit and Pali: 𑀲𑀩𑁆𑀩𑀢𑁆𑀣𑀺𑀯𑀸𑀤, ) was one of the early Buddhist schools established around the reign of Ashoka (3rd century BCE).Westerhoff, The Golden Age of Indian Buddhist Philosophy ...

School. At around the same era, Nestorian Christians were establishing bishoprics at Herat, Merv and

Samarkand fa, سمرقند , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from the top:Registan square, Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, view inside Shah-i-Zinda, ...

, whence they subsequently proceeded to Kashgar, and finally to China proper itself. In 646, the Turkic Kagan asked for the hand of a Tang Chinese princess, and in return the Emperor promised Kucha, Khotan, Kashgar, Karashahr and Sarikol as a marriage gift, but this did not happen as planned. In a series of campaigns between 652 and 658, with the help of the Uyghurs, the Chinese finally defeated the Western Turk tribes and took control of all their domains, including the Tarim Basin kingdoms. Karakhoja was annexed in 640, Karashahr during campaigns in 644 and 648, and Kucha fell in 648. In 662 a rebellion broke out in the Western Regions and a Chinese army sent to control it was defeated by the Tibetans south of Kashgar. After another defeat of the Tang Chinese forces in 670, the Tibetans gained control of the whole region and completely subjugated Kashgar in 676-8 and retained possession of it until 692, when the Tang dynasty regained control of all their former territories, and retained it for the next fifty years. In 722 Kashgar sent 4,000 troops to assist the Chinese to force the "Tibetans out of "Little Bolu" or

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina: ; ur, ) is the capital city of Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan. The city is located in a broad valley near the confluence of the Gilgit River and the Hunza River. It is a major tourist destination in Pakistan, serving as a h ...

. In 728, the king of Kashgar was awarded a brevet by the Chinese emperor. In 739, the ''Tangshu'' relates that the governor of the Chinese garrison in Kashgar, with the help of Ferghana, was interfering in the affairs of the Turgesh tribes as far as Talas. Kashgar-casco-viejo-d08

In 751 the Chinese were defeated by an Arab army in the

Battle of Talas The Battle of Talas or Battle of Artlakh (; ar, معركة نهر طلاس, translit=Maʿrakat nahr Ṭalās, Persian: Nabard-i Tarāz) was a military encounter and engagement between the Abbasid Caliphate along with its ally, the Tibetan Empir ...

. The An Lushan Rebellion led to the decline of Tang influence in Central Asia due to the fact that the Tang dynasty was forced to withdraw its troops from the region to fight An Lushan. The Tibetans cut all communication between China and the West in 766. Soon after the Chinese pilgrim monk Wukong passed through Kashgar in 753. He again reached Kashgar on his return trip from India in 786 and mentions a Chinese deputy governor as well as the local king.

Battles with Arab Caliphate

In 711, the Arabs invaded Kashgar. It is alleged that Qutayba ibn Muslim in 712-715 had conquered Xinjiang. Although the Muslim religion from the very commencement sustained checks, it nevertheless made its weight felt upon the independent states of Turkestan to the north and east, and thus acquired a steadily growing influence. It was not, however, till the 10th century that Islam was established at Kashgar, under the Kara-Khanid Khanate. The fall of Kashgar to Qutayba ibn Muslim is claimed as the start of Islam in the region by

Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

ideologue Mustafa Setmariam Nasar and by an article from Al-Qaeda branch

Al-Nusra Front Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra ( ar, جبهة النصرة لأهل الشام, Jabhat an-Nuṣrah li-Ahl ish-Sham lit. ''Front of the Supporters of the People of Syria/the Levant''), known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham ( ar, جبهة فتح ال ...

's English language "Al-Risalah magazine" (), second issue (), translated from English into Turkish by the "Doğu Türkistan Haber Ajansı" (East Turkestan News Agency) and titled Al Risale: "Türkistan Dağları" 1. Bölüm (The Message : "Turkistan Mountains" Part 2.)

The Turkic Rule

According to the 10th-century text, '' Hudud al-'alam'', "the chiefs of Kashghar in the days of old were from the Qarluq, or from the Yaghma." The Karluks, Yaghmas and other tribes such as the Chigils formed the Karakhanids. The Karakhanid Sultan Satuq Bughra Khan converted to Islam in the 10th century and captured Kashgar. Kashgar was the capital of the Karakhanid state for a time but later the capital was moved to

Balasaghun Balasagun ( or ''Balasagyn''; ) was an ancient Sogdian city in modern-day Kyrgyzstan, located in the Chüy Valley between Bishkek and the Issyk-Kul lake. Located along the Silk Road, the ruins of the city were inscribed in 2014 on the UNESCO ...

. During the latter part of the 10th century, the Muslim Karakhanids began a struggle against the Buddhist Kingdom of Khotan, and the Khotanese defeated the Karakhanids and captured Kashgar in 970. Chinese sources recorded the king of Khotan offering to send them a dancing elephant captured from Kashgar. Later in 1006, the Karakhanids of Kashgar under Yusuf Kadr Khan conquered Khotan. The Karakhanid Khanate however was beset with internal strife, and the khanate split into two, the Eastern and Western Karakhanid Khanates, with Kashgar falling within the domain of the Eastern Karakhanid state. In 1089, the Western Karakhanids fell under the control of the Seljuks, but the Eastern Karakhanids was for the most part independent. Both the Karakhanid states were defeated in the 12th century by the Kara-Khitans who captured Balasaghun, however Karakhanid rule continued in Kashgar under the

suzerainty Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is cal ...

of the Kara-Khitans. The Kara-Khitan rulers followed a policy of religious tolerance, Islamic religious life continued uninterrupted and Kashgar was also a Nestorian metropolitan see. The last Karakhanid of Kashgar was killed in a revolt in 1211 by the city's notables. Kuchlug, a usurper of the throne of the Kara-Khitans, then attacked Kashgar which finally surrendered in 1214.

Mongol’s rule

The

Kara-Khitai The Qara Khitai, or Kara Khitai (), also known as the Western Liao (), officially the Great Liao (), was a Sinicized dynastic regime based in Central Asia ruled by the Khitan Yelü clan. The Qara Khitai is considered by historians to be an ...

in their turn were swept away in 1219 by

Genghis Khan ''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan'' , birth_name = Temüjin , successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan , spouse = , issue = , house = Borjigin , ...

. After his death, Kashgar came under the rule of the Chagatai Khans.

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

visited the city, which he calls ''Cascar'', about 1273-4 and recorded the presence of numerous Nestorian Christians, who had their own churches. Later In the 14th century, a Chagataid khan

Tughluq Timur Tughlugh Timur Khan (also Tughluq Tömür or Tughluk Timur) (1312/13–1363) was the Khan of Moghulistan from c. 1347 and Khan of the whole Chagatai Khanate from c. 1360 until his death. Esen Buqa (a direct descendant of Chagatai Khan) is believe ...

converted to Islam, and Islamic tradition began to reassert its ascendancy. Kashgar road scene, 1870s

In 1389−1390 Tamerlane ravaged Kashgar, Andijan and the intervening country. Kashgar endured a troubled time, and in 1514, on the invasion of the Khan Sultan Said, was destroyed by

Mirza Ababakar Mirza Abu Bakr Dughlat (also Ababakar or Abubekr; died shortly after AH Rajab 920 / Aug-Sept 1514; exact date uncertain; year 1516 indicated by some authors is wrong) was a ruler in South-Western part of present Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region ...

, who with the aid of ten thousand men built a new fort with massive defences higher up on the banks of the Tuman river. The dynasty of the Chagatai Khans collapsed in 1572 with the division of the country among rival factions; soon after, two powerful Khoja factions, the White and Black Mountaineers (

Ak Tagh Khoja or Khwaja ( kk, Қожа; ug, خوجا; fa, خواجه; tg, хӯҷа; uz, xo'ja; ), a Persian word literally meaning 'master' or ‘lord’, was used in Central Asia as a title of the descendants of the noted Central Asian Naqshbandi Su ...

liq or Afaqi, and

Kara Taghliq Kara or KARA may refer to: Geography Localities * Kara, Chad, a sub-prefecture * Kára, Hungary, a village * Kara, Uttar Pradesh, India, a township * Kara, Iran, a village in Lorestan Province * Kara, Republic of Dagestan, a rural locality in Da ...

or Ishaqi), arose whose differences and war-making gestures, with the intermittent episode of the

Oirats Oirats ( mn, Ойрад, ''Oirad'', or , Oird; xal-RU, Өөрд; zh, 瓦剌; in the past, also Eleuths) are the westernmost group of the Mongols whose ancestral home is in the Altai region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western Mongolia. Histor ...

of Dzungaria, make up much of recorded history in Kashgar until 1759. The Dzungar Khanate conquered Kashgar and set up the Khoja as their puppet rulers.

Qing conquest

The Qing dynasty defeated the Dzungar Khanate during the Ten Great Campaigns and took control of Kashgar in 1759. The conquerors consolidated their authority by settling other ethnics emigrants in the vicinity of a

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) and ...

garrison. Rumours flew around Central Asia that the Qing planned to launch expeditions towards Transoxiana and Samarkand, the chiefs of which sought assistance from the

Afghan Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

king Ahmed Shah Abdali. The alleged expedition never happened so Ahmad Shah withdrew his forces from Kokand. He also dispatched an ambassador to Beijing to discuss the situation of the Afaqi Khojas, but the representative was not well received, and Ahmed Shah was too busy fighting off the

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

to attempt to enforce his demands through arms. The Qing continued to hold Kashgar with occasional interruptions during the

Afaqi Khoja revolts In 1759, the Qing dynasty of China defeated the Dzungar Khanate and completed the conquest of Dzungaria. Concurrent with this conquest, the Qing occupied the Altishahr region of Eastern Turkestan which had been settled by Muslims who followed the ...

. One of the most serious of these occurred in 1827, when the city was taken by

Jahanghir Khoja Jahanghir Khoja, Jāhangīr Khwāja or Jihangir Khoja (, جهانگير خوجة; ; 1788 – 1828), was a member of the influential East Turkestan Afaqi khoja clan, who managed to wrest Kashgaria from the Qing Empire's power for a few years ...

; Chang-lung, however, the Qing general of Ili, regained possession of Kashgar and the other rebellious cities in 1828. Kalmak archer

The Kokand Khanate raided Kashgar several times. A revolt in 1829 under

Mahommed Ali Khan Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monothe ...

and Yusuf, brother of Jahanghir resulted in the concession of several important trade privileges to the Muslims of the district of

Altishahr Altishahr (, , ; romanized: ''Altä-şähär'' or ''Alti-şähär''), also known as Kashgaria, is a historical name for the Tarim Basin region used in the 18th and 19th centuries. The term means 'Six Cities' in Turkic languages, referring to oasis ...

(the "six cities"), as it was then called. The area enjoyed relative calm until 1846 under the rule of Zahir-ud-din, the local Uyghur governor, but in that year a new Khoja revolt under

Kath Tora Kath or KATH may refer to: * Kath (city), the historical capital of Khwarezm * Kath (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * KATH-TV, the NBC TV station in Juneau, Alaska * KATH (AM) KATH (910 kHz) is an ...

led to his accession as the authoritarian ruler of the city. However, his reign was briefat the end of seventy-five days, on the approach of the Chinese, he fled back to

Khokand Kokand ( uz, Qo‘qon/Қўқон/قوقان, ; russian: Кока́нд; fa, خوقند, Xuqand; Chagatai: خوقند, ''Xuqand''; ky, Кокон, Kokon; tg, Хӯқанд, Xöqand) is a city in Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan, at the sou ...

amid the jeers of the inhabitants. The last of the Khoja revolts (1857) was of about equal duration, and took place under Wali-Khan, who murdered the well-known traveler

Adolf Schlagintweit Adolf von Schlagintweit (9 January 1829 – 26 August 1857) was a German botanist and explorer of Central Asia. Brothers Hermann, Adolf and Robert Schlagintweit were commissioned by the British East India Company to study the earth's magnetic fi ...

1862 Chinese Hui revolt

The great Dungan revolt (1862–1877) involved insurrection among various Muslim ethnic groups. It broke out in 1862 in

Gansu Gansu (, ; alternately romanized as Kansu) is a province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibet ...

then spread rapidly to Dzungaria and through the line of towns in the Tarim Basin. Dungan troops based in

Yarkand Yarkant County,, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency also Shache County,, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency also transliterated from Uyghur as Yakan County, is a county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous ...

rose and in August 1864 massacred some seven thousand Chinese and their Manchu commander. The inhabitants of Kashgar, rising in their turn against their masters, invoked the aid of

Sadik Beg Sadiq is an Arabic masculine given name. Originally a word in Arabic صديق which is translated as ''friend''. The Arabic word for friend is derived from the root ''sdk'' صدق which often refers to honesty, sincerity, truth or loyalty. Variants ...

, a

Kyrgyz Kyrgyz, Kirghiz or Kyrgyzstani may refer to: * Someone or something related to Kyrgyzstan *Kyrgyz people *Kyrgyz national games *Kyrgyz language *Kyrgyz culture *Kyrgyz cuisine *Yenisei Kirghiz *The Fuyü Gïrgïs language in Northeastern China ...

chief, who was reinforced by

Buzurg Khan Buzurg may refer to: *Bozorgmehr, legendary Sassanian prime-minister of Persia *Bisanda Buzurg, a town and a nagar panchayat in Banda district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India *Hasan Buzurg, the first of several de facto independent Jalayirid r ...

, the heir of

, and his general

Yakub Beg Muhammad Yaqub Bek (محمد یعقوب بیگ; uz, Яъқуб-бек, ''Ya’qub-bek''; ; 182030 May 1877) was a Khoqandi ruler of Yettishar (Kashgaria) during his invasion of Xinjiang from 1865 to 1877. He held the title of Atalik Ghazi ("C ...

. The latter men were dispatched at Sadik's request by the ruler of Khokand to raise what troops they could to aid his Muslim friends in Kashgar. Night interview with King

Sadik Beg soon repented of having asked for a Khoja, and eventually marched against Kashgar, which by this time had succumbed to Buzurg Khan and Yakub Beg, but was defeated and driven back to Khokand. Buzurg Khan delivered himself up to indolence and debauchery, but Yakub Beg, with singular energy and perseverance, made himself master of Yangi Shahr, Yangi-Hissar,

and other towns, and eventually became sole master of the country, Buzurg Khan proving himself totally unfit for the post of ruler. With the overthrow of Chinese rule in 1865 by Yakub Beg (1820–1877), the manufacturing industries of Kashgar are supposed to have declined. Yaqub Beg entered into relations and signed treaties with the Russian Empire and the British Empire, but when he tried to get their support against China, he failed. Kashgar and the other cities of the Tarim Basin remained under Yakub Beg's rule until May 1877, when he died at Korla. Thereafter Kashgaria was reconquered by the forces of the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

general Zuo Zongtang during the

Qing reconquest of Xinjiang The Qing reconquest of Xinjiang () was the event when the Qing dynasty in China reconquered Xinjiang after the Dungan Revolt (1862–77), Dungan Revolt in the late 19th century. After a century of Xinjiang under Qing rule, Qing rule, the Uzbek pe ...

Qing rule

Sign marking previous Russian Consulate in Kashgar

There were eras in Xinjiang's history where intermarriage was common, and "laxity" set upon Uyghur women led them to marry Chinese men in the period after Yakub Beg's rule ended. It is also believed by Uyghurs that some Uyghurs have Han Chinese ancestry from historical intermarriage, such as those living in Turpan. Even though Muslim women are forbidden to marry non-Muslims in Islamic law, from 1880 to 1949 it was frequently violated in Xinjiang when Chinese men married Uyghur women. Because they were viewed as "outcast", Islamic cemeteries banned the Uyghur wives of Chinese men from being buried within them. Uyghur women got around this problem by giving shrines donations and buying a grave in other towns. Besides Chinese men, other men such as Hindus, Armenians, Jews, Russians, and Badakhshanis ( Pamiris) intermarried with local Uyghur women. The local society accepted the Uyghur women and Chinese men's mixed offspring as their own people despite the marriages being in violation of Islamic law. An anti-Russian uproar broke out when Russian customs officials, 3 Cossacks and a Russian courier invited local Uyghur prostitutes to a party in January 1902 in Kashgar. There was a general anti-Russian sentiment, but the inflamed local Uyghur populace started a brawl with the Russians on the pretense of protecting their women. Even though morality was not strict in Kashgar, the local population confronted with the Russians before they were dispersed by guards, and the Chinese then sought to end tensions by preventing the Russians from building up a pretext to invade. After the riot, the Russians sent troops to Sarikol in Tashkurghan and demanded that the Sarikol postal services be placed under Russian supervision, the locals of Sarikol believed that the Russians would seize the entire district from the Chinese and send more soldiers even after the Russians tried to negotiate with the Begs of Sarikol and sway them to their side, they failed since the Sarikoli officials and authorities demanded in a petition to the Amban of Yarkand that they be evacuated to Yarkand to avoid being harassed by the Russians and objected to the Russian presence in Sarikol, the Sarikolis did not believe the Russian claim that they would leave them alone and only involved themselves in the mail service. In 1902, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake caused up to 10,000 fatalities, including 667 in Kashgar. The earthquake was followed by a major

aftershock In seismology, an aftershock is a smaller earthquake that follows a larger earthquake, in the same area of the main shock, caused as the displaced crust adjusts to the effects of the main shock. Large earthquakes can have hundreds to thousand ...

a few days later, measuring 6.8.

Republic of China (1913-1933)

First East Turkestan Republic

Kashgar was the scene of continual battles from 1933 to 1934. Ma Shaowu, a

Chinese Muslim Islam has been practiced in China since the 7th century CE.. Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6-2 percent of the total population (21,667,000- 28,210,795) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most numerou ...

, was the Tao-yin of Kashgar, and he fought against Uyghur rebels. He was joined by another Chinese Muslim general, Ma Zhancang.

Battle of Kashgar (1933)

Uighur and Kyrgyz forces, led by the Bughra brothers and Tawfiq Bay, attempted to take the New City of Kashgar from Chinese Muslim troops under General Ma Zhancang. They were defeated. Tawfiq Bey, a Syrian Arab traveler, who held the title ''Sayyid'' (descendant of Muhammed) and arrived at Kashgar on 26 August 1933, was shot in the stomach by the Chinese Muslim troops in September. Previously Ma Zhancang arranged to have the Uighur leader Timur Beg killed and beheaded on 9 August 1933, displaying his head outside of Id Kah Mosque. Han Chinese troops commanded by Brigadier Yang were absorbed into Ma Zhancang's army. A number of Han Chinese officers were spotted wearing the green uniforms of Ma Zhancang's unit of the 36th division; presumably they had converted to Islam.

Battle of Kashgar (1934)

The 36th division General

Ma Fuyuan Ma Fuyuan () was a Chinese Muslim general of the New 36th Division (National Revolutionary Army), who served under Generals Ma Zhongying and Ma Hushan. He was present with Ma Zhongying, Ma Shih-ming, Ma Shih-lu, and Ma Ho-ying during a meeti ...

led a

army to storm Kashgar on 6 February 1934, attacking the Uighur and

rebels of the First East Turkestan Republic. He freed another 36th division general, Ma Zhancang, who was trapped with his

and Han Chinese troops in Kashgar New City by the

Uighurs The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghu ...

and

since 22 May 1933. In January 1934, Ma Zhancang's Chinese Muslim troops repulsed six Uighur attacks, launched by

Khoja Niyaz Khoja Niyaz, also Khoja Niyaz Haji ( ug, خوجا نىياز ھاجى, Xoja Niyaz Haji; ; 1889 – 21 August 1941), was a Uyghur independence movement leader who led several rebellions in Xinjiang against the Kumul Khanate, the Chinese governo ...

, who arrived at the city on 13 January 1934, inflicting massive casualties on the Uighur forces. From 2,000 to 8,000 Uighur civilians in Kashgar Old City were massacred by Tungans in February 1934, in revenge for the

Kizil massacre The Kizil massacre () occurred in June 1933, when Uighur and Kirghiz Turkic fighters of the First East Turkestan Republic broke their agreement not to attack a column of retreating Hui Chinese soldiers and civilians from Yarkand New City on thei ...

, after retreating of Uighur forces from the city to Yengi Hisar. The Chinese Muslim and 36th division Chief General Ma Zhongying, who arrived at Kashgar on 7 April 1934, gave a speech at Id Kah Mosque in April, reminding the Uighurs to be loyal to the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

government at Nanjing. Several British citizens at the British consulate were killed or wounded by the 36th division on 16 March 1934.

Republic of China (1934-1949)

People's Republic of China

Kashgar was incorporated into the People's Republic of China in 1949. During the Cultural Revolution, one of the largest statues of Mao in China was built in Kashgar, near People's Square. Cafe built on site of old British Consulate-General

Cafe built on site of old British Consulate-General

On 31 October 1981, an incident occurred in the city due to a dispute between Uyghurs and Han Chinese in which three were killed. The incident was quelled by an army unit. In 1986, the Chinese government designated Kashgar a "city of historical and cultural significance". Kashgar and surrounding regions have been the site of Uyghur unrest since the 1990s. In 2008, two Uyghur men carried out a vehicular, IED and knife attack against police officers. In 2009, development of Kashgar's old town accelerated after the revelations of the deadly role of faulty architecture during the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Many of the old houses in the old town were built without regulation, and as a result, officials found them to be overcrowded and non-compliant with fire and earthquake codes. Additionally, the newer buildings may also have been built with increased ease of surveillance in mind. When the plan started, 42% of the city's residents lived in the old town. As the plan was undertaken, residents have been removed from their homes in order to demolish large sections of the old city and replace these areas with new developments. The European Parliament issued a

resolution Resolution(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Resolution (debate), the statement which is debated in policy debate * Resolution (law), a written motion adopted by a deliberative body * New Year's resolution, a commitment that an individual mak ...

in 2011 calling for "culture-sensitive methods of renovation." The International Scientific Committee on Earthen Architectural Heritage (ISCEAH) has expressed concern over the demolition and reconstruction of historic buildings. ISCEAH has, additionally, urged the implementation of techniques utilized elsewhere in the world to address earthquake vulnerability. Following the July 2009 Ürümqi riots, the government focused on local economic development in an attempt to ameliorate ethnic tensions in the greater Xinjiang region. Kashgar was made into a Special Economic Zone in 2010, the first such zone in China's far west. In 2011, a spate of violence over two days killed dozens of people. By May 2012, two-thirds of the old city had been demolished, which, according to critics, was done partially in order to fulfill the political goal of eroding Uighur culture. According to the Chinese government, demolition and rebuilding was necessary because the entire Kashgar area was "in a special area in danger of earthquakes." Over the last two decades, similar demolition of historic architecture followed by their replacement with "shopping malls and highways" have also been ongoing in the rest of China, often with inadequate consultation of local residents. Critics have called the destruction of the old city part of a campaign of cultural genocide. On 21 October 2014, Aqqash Township (Akekashi) was transferred from Konaxahar (Shufu) County to Kashgar city.

Climate

Kashgar features a desert climate ( Köppen ''BWk'') with hot summers and cold winters, with large temperature differences between those two seasons: The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from in January to in July, while the annual mean is . Spring is long and arrives quickly, while autumn is somewhat brief in comparison. Kashgar is one of the driest cities on the planet, averaging only of precipitation per year. The city's wettest month, May, only sees on average of rain. Because of the extremely arid conditions, snowfall is rare, despite the cold winters. Records have been as low as in January and up to in July. The frost-free period averages 215 days. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 50% in March to 70% in September, the city receives 2,726 hours of bright sunshine annually.

Administrative divisions

Kashgar includes eight subdistricts, two

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

, and nine townships. Subdistricts ( / ) * Chasa Subdistrict (Qiasa; / ), Yawagh Subdistrict (Yawage; / ), Östeng Boyi Subdistrict (Wusitangboyi; / ),

Qum Derwaza Subdistrict Qom (also spelled as "Ghom", "Ghum", or "Qum") ( fa, قم ) is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. Qom is the capital of Qom Province. It is located to the south of Tehran. At the 2016 census, its popul ...

(Kumudai'erwazha; / ), Gherbiz Yurt Avenue Subdistrict (Xiyu Dadao; / ), Sherqiy Köl Subdistrict (Donghu; / ),

Merhaba Avenue Subdistrict Turkish ( , ), also referred to as Turkish of Turkey (''Türkiye Türkçesi''), is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, with around 80 to 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. Significant smal ...

(Yingbin Dadao; / ), Gherbiz Baghcha Subdistrict (Xigongyuan; / ) Towns ( / ) * Nezerbagh (Naize'er Bage;, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency / ; formerly ), Shamalbagh (Xiamalebage; / ; formerly ) Townships ( / ) * Döletbagh Township (Duolaitebage; / ), Qoghan Township (Haohan; / ), Semen Township (Seman; / ), Xangdi Township (Huangdi; / ), Beshkërem Township (Baishikeranmu; / ), Paxtekle Township (Pahataikeli; / ),

Awat Township Awat County, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency () is a county in Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. Awat County is located on the southern foot of the Tian Shan mountain range and on the northern edge o ...

(Awati; / ), Yëngi’östeng Township (Yingwusitan; / / ), Aqqash Township (Akekashi; / )

Demographics

Uyghur family with two calves for sale at Kashgar market

Kashgar is predominantly populated by

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

Uyghurs. Compared to Ürümqi, Xinjiang's capital and largest city, Kashgar is less industrial and has significantly fewer Han Chinese residents. In 1998, the urban population of Kashgar was recorded as 311,141, with 81% Uyghurs and 18% Han Chinese. In 1999, 81.24% of the population of Kashgar (Kashi) city was Uyghur and 17.87% of the population was Han Chinese. In the 2000 census, the population of the city of Kashgar was given as 340,640. In the 2010 census, this number increased to 506,640. Some of the increase is due to boundary changes and the number may include some rural population. In the 2015 census, 534,848 of the 628,302 residents of the county were Uyghur, 88,583 were Han Chinese and 66,131 were from other ethnic groups. ;Kasghar Census 2015 ;Kashgar Nationality breakdown, 2018

Economy

The city has a very important Sunday market. Thousands of farmers from the surrounding fertile lands come into the city to sell a wide variety of fruit and vegetables. Kashgar's livestock market is also very lively. Silk and carpets made in Hotan are sold at bazaars, as well as local crafts, such as copper teapots and wooden jewellery boxes. In order to boost the economy in Kashgar region, the government classified the area as the sixth

Special Economic Zone of China When Deng Xiaoping took over as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC), he presented himself as a pragmatic contrast to his predecessor Mao, who was more of a theorist and an ideologist. Deng's main goal was to lift people out ...

in 2010. The movie '' The Kite Runner'' was filmed in Kashgar. Kashgar and the surrounding countryside stood in for Kabul and Afghanistan, since filming in Afghanistan was not possible due to safety and security reasons.

Sights

Before its demolition, Kashgar's Old City had been called "the best-preserved example of a traditional Islamic city to be found anywhere in Central Asia". It was estimated to attract more than one million tourists annually.Michael Wines
To Protect an Ancient City, China Moves to Raze It
, ''The New York Times'', 27 May 2009 * Id Kah Mosque, the largest mosque in China, is located in the heart of the city. * People's Park, the main public park in central Kashgar. * An high statue of Mao Zedong in Kashgar is one of the few large-scale statues of Mao remaining in China. * The tomb of Afaq Khoja in Kashgar is considered the holiest Muslim site in Xinjiang. Built in the 17th century, the tiled mausoleum northeast of the city center also contains the tombs of five generations of his family. Abakh was a powerful ruler, controlling Khotan,

, Korla, Kucha and Aksu as well as Kashgar. Among some Uyghur Muslims, he was considered a great saint (Aulia). *

Sunday Market A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or ...

in Kashgar is renowned as the biggest market in central Asia; a pivotal trading point along the Silk Road where goods have been traded for more than 2,000 years. The market is open every day but Sunday is the largest.

Gallery

File:Downtown Kashgar. 2011.jpg, Downtown Kashgar. 2011 File:Id Kah Mosque (39712811190).jpg, Id Kah Mosque File:Kashgar minaret 9908.JPG, Kashgar minaret at night File:Kashgar-apakh-hoja-d04.jpg, The tomb of Afaq Khoja File:KashgarAbakhHojaTomb.jpg, Mosque next to the tomb of Afaq Khoja. File:Mao statue in Kashgar.jpg,

Mao Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ...

statue in the city square of Kashgar. File:Kashgar-casco-viejo-d07.jpg, An old Kashgar city street.

Transportation

Air

Kashgar Airport serves mainly domestic flights, the majority of them from Urumqi.

Rail

Kashgar has the westernmost railway station in China. It is connected to the rest of China's rail network via the Southern Xinjiang Railway, which was built in December 1999. Kashgar–Hotan Railway opened for passenger traffic in June 2011, and connected Kashgar with cities in the southern Tarim Basin including Shache (Yarkand), Yecheng (Kargilik) and

Hotan Hotan (also known as Gosthana, Gaustana, Godana, Godaniya, Khotan, Hetian, Hotien) is a major oasis town in southwestern Xinjiang, an autonomous region in Western China. The city proper of Hotan broke off from the larger Hotan County to become ...

. Travel time to Urumqi from Kashgar is approximately 25 hours, while travel time to Hotan is approximately ten hours. The investigation work of a further extension of the railway line to Pakistan has begun. In November 2009, Pakistan and China agreed to set up a joint venture to do a feasibility study of the proposed rail link via the Khunjerab Pass. Proposals for a rail connection to Osh in Kyrgyzstan have also been discussed at various levels since at least 1996. In 2012, a

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

railway from Kashgar via Tajikistan and Afghanistan to Iran and beyond has been proposed.

Road

The Karakorum highway (KKH) links Islamabad, Pakistan with Kashgar over the Khunjerab Pass. The China–Pakistan Economic Corridor is a multibillion-dollar project that will upgrade transport links between China and Pakistan, including the upgrades to the Karakorum highway. Bus routes exist for passenger travel south into Pakistan. Kyrgyzstan is also accessible from Kashgar, via the Torugart Pass or the Irkeshtam Pass; as of summer 2007, daily bus service connects Kashgar with

Bishkek Bishkek ( ky, Бишкек), ), formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. The region surrounds the city, although the city itself is not part of ...

's Western Bus Terminal. Kashgar is also located on China National Highways G314 (which runs to Khunjerab Pass on the Sino−Pakistani border, and, in the opposite direction, towards Ürümqi), and G315, which runs to Xining, Qinghai from Kashgar.

International relations

Consulates (in the past)

The British Empire had a consulate from 1890 to 1948 at Kashgar. Though a British consulate, it was manned and paid by the Indian Political Department of British India. The consulate was not fully recognized by

Qing China The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu people, Manchu-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin (1616–1636), La ...

until 1908. It was upgraded to a consulate-general in 1911. The wives of the inaugural consul and of the last consul left important ethnographic accounts of Kashgar, namely ''An English Lady in Chinese Turkestan'' (1931) by Lady Macartney and ''That Antique Land'' (1950) by

Diana Shipton Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997 ...

, the wife of mountaineer and consul

Eric Shipton Eric Earle Shipton, CBE (1 August 1907 – 28 March 1977), was an English Himalayan mountaineer. Early years Shipton was born in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1907 where his father, a tea planter, died before he was three years old. When he was eigh ...

Twin towns – Sister cities

Kashgar is twinned with: * Malacca City, Malaysia from February 2012 *

, Pakistan from May 2009

Notable persons

Mahmud al-Kashgari Mahmud ibn Husayn ibn Muhammed al-Kashgari, ''Maḥmūd ibnu 'l-Ḥusayn ibn Muḥammad al-Kāšġarī'', , tr, Kaşgarlı Mahmûd, ug, مەھمۇد قەشقىرى, ''Mehmud Qeshqiri'' / Мәһмуд Қәшқири uz, Mahmud Qashg'ariy / М ...

, 11th-century scholar *

Abdurehim Heyt Abdurehim Heyit ( Uyghur: ئابدۇرېھىم ھېيىت; born 1962) is a Uyghur folk singer‌ and compositor. The Uyghur people are a Turkic language-speaking group and a spokesman for the Turkish foreign ministry described Abdurehim as a "d ...

, Uyghur folk singer *

Nury Turkel Nury Ablikim Turkel (; ; born 1970) is a Uyghur American attorney, public official and human rights advocate based in Washington, D.C. He is currently the Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. Turkel was born ...

, commissioner on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, one of the Time 100 Most Influential People in the World

Notes

References

Citations

Sources

* Boulger, Demetrius Charles ''The Life of Yakoob Beg, Athalik Ghazi and Badaulet, Ameer of Kashgar'' (London: W.H. Allen & Co.) 1878 * Gordon, T. E. 1876. ''The Roof of the World: Being the Narrative of a Journey over the high plateau of Tibet to the Russian Frontier and the Oxus sources on Pamir.'' Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. Reprint: Ch’eng Wen Publishing Company. Taipei. 1971. * Hill, John E. 2004. ''The Peoples of the West from the Weilüe ''()'' by Yu Huanbr>: A Third Century Chinese Account Composed between 239 and 265 CE.
'' Draft annotated English translation. * Hulsewé, A. F. P. and Loewe, M. A. N. 1979. ''China in Central Asia: The Early Stage 125 BC − AD 23: an annotated translation of chapters 61 and 96 of the History of the Former Han Dynasty''. E. J. Brill, Leiden. * Kim, Hodong ''Holy war in China. The Muslim Rebellion and State in Chinese Central Asia, 1864–1877'' (Stanford University Press) 2004 * Puri, B. N. ''Buddhism in Central Asia'', Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited, Delhi, 1987. (2000 reprint). * Shaw, Robert. 1871. Visits to High Tartary, Yarkand and Kashgar. Reprint with introduction by Peter Hopkirk, Oxford University Press, 1984. . * Stein, Aurel M. 1907.
Ancient Khotan: Detailed report of archaeological explorations in Chinese Turkestan
'', 2 vols. Clarendon Press. Oxford. * Stein, Aurel M. 1921.
Serindia: Detailed report of explorations in Central Asia and westernmost China
'', 5 vols. London & Oxford. Clarendon Press. Reprint: Delhi. Motilal Banarsidass. 1980. * Tamm, Eric Enno. ''The Horse That Leaps Through Clouds: A Tale of Espionage, the Silk Road and the Rise of Modern China.'' Vancouver: Doulgas & McIntyre, 2010. See also http://horsethatleaps.com/chapter-6/ * Yu, Taishan. 2004. ''A History of the Relationships between the Western and Eastern Han, Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Western Regions''. Sino-Platonic Papers No. 131 March 2004. Dept. of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania.

External links

Interactive Maps and Slide Shows comparing Old and New Kashgar

Explore Kashgar's Old Town on Global Heritage Network (GHN)

Kashgar City government website

Photos of Kashgar
''Kashgar Pamir Youth Hostel''
Photos of Kashi
''dheera.net''

''berclo.net'' * T. Digby

Shanghai Star ''Shanghai Star'' (上海英文星报) was a weekly English-language newspaper published in Shanghai, China, between 1992 and 2006. It was owned and run by its parent, the Beijing-based China Daily ''China Daily'' () is an English-langua ...

, 9 May 2002.
Images and travel impressions along the Silk Road – Kashgar
{{Authority control Populated places along the Silk Road Populated places in Xinjiang Ancient peoples of China Central Asian Buddhist kingdoms Central Asian Buddhist sites Former countries in Chinese history Oases of China Cities in Central Asia Kashgar Prefecture Sites along the Silk Road Göktürks County-level divisions of Xinjiang