11 March 2022 | Author/Destination: Asia / Asien | Rubric: General
Reading Time: 25 minutesXinjiang Internment Camps map © US National Geospatial Intelligence Agency and Australian Strategic Policy Institute
Xinjiang, officially the
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (East Turkestan) and
formerly romanized as
Sinkiang, is a landlocked
autonomous region of the
People’s Republic of China (PRC), located in the
northwest of the country close to
Central Asia. Being the
largest province-level division of China and the
8th-largest country subdivision in the world, Xinjiang spans over 1.6 million square kilometres (620,000 sq mi) and has about 25 million inhabitants. Xinjiang borders the countries of
Mongolia,
Russia,
Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan,
Afghanistan,
Pakistan and
India. The rugged
Karakoram,
Kunlun and
Tian Shan mountain ranges occupy much of Xinjiang’s borders, as well as its western and southern regions. The
Aksai Chin and
Trans-Karakoram Tract regions, both administered by China, are claimed by India. Xinjiang also borders the
Tibet Autonomous Region and the provinces of
Gansu and
Qinghai. The most well-known route of the historic
Silk Road ran through the territory from the east to its northwestern border. It is home to a number of ethnic groups, including the
Turkic Uyghur,
Kazakhs and
Kyrgyz, the
Han,
Tibetans,
Hui,
Chinese Tajiks (
Pamiris),
Mongols,
Russians and
Sibe. There are more than a dozen autonomous prefectures and counties for minorities in Xinjiang. Older English-language reference works often refer to the area as Chinese Turkestan, East Turkestan and East Turkistan. Xinjiang is divided into the
Dzungarian Basin in the north and the
Tarim Basin in the south by a mountain range, and only about 9.7% of Xinjiang’s land area is fit for human habitation. Capital und largest city by far is
Ürümqi.
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