Karasahr or Karashar ( ug, قاراشەھەر, Qarasheher, 6=Қарашәһәр), which was originally known, in the

Tocharian languages The Tocharian (sometimes ''Tokharian'') languages ( or ), also known as ''Arśi-Kuči'', Agnean-Kuchean or Kuchean-Agnean, are an extinct branch of the Indo-European language family spoken by inhabitants of the Tarim Basin, the Tocharians. Th ...

as ''Ārśi'' (or Arshi) and Agni or the Chinese derivative Yanqi ( zh, s=焉耆, p=Yānqí, w=Yen-ch'i), is an ancient town 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 rel ...

and the capital of Yanqi Hui Autonomous County in the Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture,

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwes ...

. it had a population of 29,000,www.xzqh.org
growing to 31,773 persons in 2006; 16,032 persons of which were Han, 7781 people Hui, 7154 people Uyghur, 628

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

and 178 other ethnicities and an agricultural population of 1078 people. The town has a strategic location, being located on the Kaidu River (known in ancient times as the Liusha),

China National Highway 314 China National Highway 314 (G314) (sometimes referred to as Gansu Provincial Highway 314) runs southwest from Urumqi, Xinjiang towards the Khunjerab Pass, which is on the northern border of the Gilgit–Baltistan territory in Pakistan-administer ...

and the Southern Xinjiang Railway and is an important material distribution center and regional business hub. The town administers ten communities. It has a predominately

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 ...

population and contains many mosques. CEM-36-NW-corner

Geography

The modern town of Yanqi is situated about west of the shallow Lake Bosten. The lake is about east to west and north to south with a surface area of about , making it one of the largest lakes in Xinjiang. It has been noted since Han times for its abundance of fish. The lake is fed by the Kaidu River and the Konqi River flows out of it past

Korla Korla,The official spelling according to also known as Kurla, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency or from Mandarin Chinese as Ku'erle or Kuerle, is the second largest city in Xinjiang. It is a county-level city and the seat ...

and across the Taklamakan Desert to

Lop Nur Lop Nur or Lop Nor (from a Mongolian name meaning "Lop Lake", where "Lop" is a toponym of unknown origin) is a former salt lake, now largely dried up, located in the eastern fringe of the Tarim Basin, between the Taklamakan and Kumtag deserts ...

. There are numerous other small lakes in the region. The city, referred to in classical Chinese sources as Yanqi, was located on the branch of the Silk Route that ran along the northern edge of the

Taklamakan Desert The Taklimakan or Taklamakan Desert (; zh, s=塔克拉玛干沙漠, p=Tǎkèlāmǎgān Shāmò, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Такәламаган Шамә; ug, تەكلىماكان قۇملۇقى, Täklimakan qumluqi; also spelled Taklimakan and T ...

in the

Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hyd ...

History

The earliest known inhabitants of the area were an

Indo-European people The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...

who apparently referred to themselves and the city as ''Ārśi'' (pronounced "Arshi"). Their language, since it was rediscovered in the early 20th century, has been known as " Tocharian A" (a

misnomer A misnomer is a name that is incorrectly or unsuitably applied. Misnomers often arise because something was named long before its correct nature was known, or because an earlier form of something has been replaced by a later form to which the name ...

resulting from an assumed relationship to the

Tukhara The Tocharians, or Tokharians ( US: or ; UK: ), were speakers of Tocharian languages, Indo-European languages known from around 7600 documents from around 400 to 1200 AD, found on the northern edge of the Tarim Basin (modern Xinjiang, Ch ...

of Bactria). The people and city were also known as ''Agni'', although this may have been a later

exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group ...

, derived from the word for "fire" in an

Indo-Iranian language The Indo-Iranian languages (also Indo-Iranic languages or Aryan languages) constitute the largest and southeasternmost extant branch of the Indo-European language family (with over 400 languages), predominantly spoken in the geographical subre ...

such as Sanskrit (cognate to English "ignite"). The 7th century

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

monk

Xuanzang Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...

transliterated ''Agni'' into Chinese as ''O-ki-ni'' 阿耆尼 ( MC ZS: *''ʔɑ-ɡiɪ-ɳˠiɪ'' standard: ''Āqíní''). ''Ārśi'' was bordered by related Tocharian cultures, many of which also spoke related languages: ''Kuča'' (or ''Kucha''), ''Gumo'' (later ''Aksu'') to the west, '' Turfan'' (''Turpan'') to the east and to the south, ''Krorän'' (''Loulan''). In China,

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...

sources describe Yanqi (''Ārśi'' / ''Agni'') as a relatively large and important neighboring kingdom. According to '' Book of Han'', the various states of the " Western Regions", including Yanqi, were controlled by the nomadic

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 20 ...

, but later came under the influence of the Han dynasty, following a Han show of force against

Dayuan Dayuan (or Tayuan; ; Middle Chinese ''dâiC-jwɐn'' <

LHC

: ''dɑh-ʔyɑn'') is the Chinese

Fergana Fergana ( uz, Fargʻona/Фарғона, ), or Ferghana, is a district-level city and the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 420 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km west of Andijan, and less than 20 km ...

) in the late 2nd century BCE. From the 1st century BCE onwards, many populations in the Tarim Basin, including the ''Ārśi'' underwent conversion to Buddhism and, consequently, linguistic influence from

Indo-Iranian languages The Indo-Iranian languages (also Indo-Iranic languages or Aryan languages) constitute the largest and southeasternmost extant branch of the Indo-European language family (with over 400 languages), predominantly spoken in the geographical subr ...

, such as

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

, Bactrian, Gandhari and Khotanese (Saka). The city of ''Ārśi'' became commonly known as ''Agni'', almost certainly derived from the Sanskrit अग्नि "fire". Names such as ''Agnideśa'' (अग्निदेश) and ''Agni-visaya'', both of which are Sanskrit for "city of fire", are also recorded in Buddhist scriptures. Soldiers from Karasahr, 8th century

According to 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 Lat ...

'', General

Ban Chao Ban Chao (; 32–102 CE), courtesy name Zhongsheng, was a Chinese diplomat, explorer, and military general of the Eastern Han Dynasty. He was born in Fufeng, now Xianyang, Shaanxi. Three of his family members—father Ban Biao, elder brother B ...

went on a punitive campaign against Yanqi in 94 CE after they attacked and killed the Protector General

Chen Mu Chen Mu (, d. 75) was a governor and general during the Han Dynasty who served the first Protector General of the Western Regions under Eastern Han between 74–75. During his service, he was killed by the rebels in Karasahr in A.D. 75, during the ...

and Vice Commandant Guo Xun in 75 CE. The king of Yanqi was decapitated and his head displayed in the capital. Later rebellions were subdued by Ban Chao's son Ban Yong in 127 CE. :It has "15,000 households, 52,000 individuals, and more than 20,000 men able to bear arms. It has high mountains on all four sides. There are hazardous passes on the route to Qiuci ( Kucha) that are easy to defend. The water of a lake winds between the four mountains, and surrounds the town for more than 30 '' li'' 2.5 km" ''Agnideśa'' became a tributary state of Tang China in 632 CE. In 644, during the Tang expansion into the Tarim Basin, Emperor Taizong of Tang launched a military campaign against Yanqi after the kingdom allied itself with the Turks. The

Four Garrisons of Anxi The Four Garrisons of Anxi were Chinese military garrisons installed by the Tang dynasty between 648 and 658. They were stationed at the Indo-European city-states of Qiuci (Kucha), Yutian (Hotan), Shule (Kashgar) and Yanqi ( Karashahr). The ...

was established with one based at Yanqi. According to '' Book of Zhou'' (636 CE) the kingdom of Yanqi (Karashahr) was a small country with poor people and nine walled towns, and described the country and their custom thus: : Marriage is about the same as among the Chinese. All the deceased are cremated and then buried. They wear mourning for seven full days, after which they put it off. The adult men all trim their hair to make a head decoration. Their written characters are the same as those of India. : : It is their custom to serve "Heavenly God(s)" but they also show reverence and trust in the doctrines of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

. They especially celebrate these days: The eighth day of the second month, and the eighth day of the fourth month. All the country abstains and does penance according to the teachings of Śākya, and follows His Way. : : The climate is cold, and the land good and fertile. For cereals, they have rice, millet, pulse, wheat, and barley. For animals, they have camels, horses, cows, and sheep. They raise silk-worms but do not make silk, merely using he silk fiberfor padding. It is their custom to relish grape wine, and also to love music. It is some ten ''li'' north of a body of water, and has an abundance of fish, salt, and rushes. In the fourth year of the period Pao-ting, its king sent an envoy to present its renowned horses. Turkish dignitaries visiting king Varkhuman, One of them is labeled as coming from Argi, Karashahr in modern Xinjiang

Turkish dignitaries visiting king Varkhuman, One of them is labeled as coming from Argi, Karashahr in modern Xinjiang

By the mid-9th century, the area had been conquered by the Uyghur Khaganate and the

were fading from use. ''Agnideśa'' became widely known by the Uyghur Turkic name ''Karasahr'' (or ''Karashar''), meaning "black city". The influence of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

grew, while older religions such as Buddhism and

Manichaenism Manichaeism (; in New Persian ; ) is a former major religionR. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century AD by the Parthian prophet Mani (A ...

declined. Between the mid-13th century and the 18th century, Karasahr was part of the

Chagatai Khanate. Karashahr may have been known to late medieval Europeans as ''Cialis'', ''Chalis'', or ''Chialis'', although ''Korla'', ''Krorän'', and other city names are instead favored by some scholars. In the early 17th century, the Portuguese

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

lay brother Bento de Góis visited the Tarim Basin on his way from India to China (via

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into #Districts, 22 municipal dist ...

and

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

). De Góis and his traveling companions spent several months in the "Kingdom of Cialis", while crossing it with a caravan of

ian merchants (ostensibly, tribute bearers) on their way to

Ming China The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

. The travelers stayed in Cialis City for three months in 1605, and then continued, via

Turpan Turpan (also known as Turfan or Tulufan, , ug, تۇرپان) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 632,000 (2015). Geonyms The original name of the cit ...

and Hami (all parts of the "Kingdom of Cialis", according to de Góis), to the Ming border at Jiayuguan. Kaidu river yanqi xinjiang

The British traveller Francis Younghusband briefly visited Karasahr in 1887 on his overland journey from

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. He described it as being "like all the towns hereabouts, is surrounded by a mud wall, and the gateways are surmounted by the usual pagoda-like towers. There is a musketry wall round outside the main wall, but it is now almost in ruins. Inside the wall are some yamens, but only a few houses. Outside, to the south, are a few shops and inns." An early-20th-century traveler described the situation in Karashahr as follows: :"The whole of this district round Kara-shahr and Korla is, from a geographical and political point of view, both interesting and important; for whilst all other parts of Chinese Turkestan can only be reached either by climbing high and difficult passes—the lowest of which has the same elevation as Mont Blanc—or traversing extensive and dangerous waterless deserts of sand-hills, here we find the one and only convenient approach to the land through the valleys of several rivers in the neighbourhood of Ili, where plentiful water abounds in the mountain streams on all sides, and where a rich vegetation makes life possible for wandering tribes. Such Kalmuck tribes still come from the north-west to Tal. They are Torgut nomads who pitch their yurts round about Kara-shahr and live a hard life with their herds ... :Just as these Mongols wander about here at the present day, so the nomadic tribes of an earlier period must have used this district as their entrance and exit gate. The Tochari (Yue-chi) inyin: Yuezhi on their way from China, undoubtedly at that time passed through this gate to get into the Ili valley ..."

Rulers

(Names are in modern Mandarin pronunciations based on ancient Chinese records) *Shun (舜) 58 *Zhong (忠) 88 *Guang (廣) 91 *Yuan Meng (元孟) 94–127 *Long An (龍安) 280 *Long Hui (龍會) 289 *Long Xi (龍熙) 306 *Long Jiushibeina (龍鳩屍卑那) 385 *Tang He (唐和) 448 *Che Xie (車歇) 449 *Qu Jia (麴嘉) 497 *Long Tuqizhi (龍突騎支) 605 *Long Lipozhun (龍栗婆准) 644 *Long Xuepoanazhi (龍薛婆阿那支) 645 *Long Xiannazhun (龍先那准) 649 *Long Tuqizhi (龍突騎支) 650 *Long Nentu (龍嫩突) 651 *Long Yantufuyan (龍焉吐拂延) 719 *Long Chang'an (龍長安) 737 *Long Tuqishi (龍突騎施) 745 *Long Rulin (龍如林) 767–789? / Tang general – Yang Riyou 789

Footnotes

References

Sources

* Hill, John E. (2004). ''The Peoples of the West from the Weilue'' 魏略 ''by Yu Huan'' 魚豢'': A third century Chinese account composed between 239 and 265 CE''
Draft annotated English translation
* * Puri, B.N. (2000) 987 ''Buddhism in Central Asia''. (reprint ed.) Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. * * Stein, Aurel M. (1990)

912 Year 912 ( CMXII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. __NOTOC__ Events By place Byzantine Empire * May 11 – Emperor Leo VI (the Wise) dies after a 26-year reign in wh ...

''Ruins of Desert Cathay: Personal narrative of explorations in Central Asia and westernmost China'', 2 vols. (reprint ed.) Delhi, IN: Low Price Publications. * Stein, Aurel M. (1980)

921 __NOTOC__ Year 921 ( CMXXI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March – Battle of Pegae: Bulgarian forces under ''kavhan'' (first ...

''Serindia: Detailed report of explorations in central Asia and westernmost China'', 5 vols. (orig ed.) London & Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press. (reprint ed.) Delhi, IN: Motilal Banarsidas

* Stein Aurel M. (1981)

928 Year 928 ( CMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * King Rudolph I loses the support of Herbert II, count of Vermandois, who controls the ...

''Innermost Asia: Detailed report of explorations in central Asia, Kan-su and eastern Iran'', 5 vols. (orig ed.) Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press. (reprint ed.) New Delhi, IN: Cosmo Publications. *

External links

Silk Road Seattle - University of Washington
(The Silk Road Seattle website contains many useful resources including a number of full-text historical works, maps, photos, etc.) {{DEFAULTSORT:Karasahr County seats in Xinjiang Central Asian Buddhist kingdoms Central Asian Buddhist sites Populated places along the Silk Road Populated places in Xinjiang Ancient peoples of China Former countries in Chinese history Township-level divisions of Xinjiang Tocharians Yanqi Hui Autonomous County