中华 People's Republic (Zhōnghuá People's Republic)--part: 新疆 维吾尔 自治区 (Xīnjiāng Wéiwúĕr Zìzhìqū)

How is the land laid out?

The 新疆 维吾尔 自治区 (Xīnjiāng¹ Wéiwúěr² Zìzhìqū³) is in the northwest of the 中华 (Zhōnghuá⁴) People's Republic. It has two basins surrounded by mountains: the Tarim⁵ Basin⁶ in the south and Dzungaria in the northwest.

The Tarim Basin contains the vast sand dunes of the Taklimakan Desert. At the feet of the rings of mountains and along rivers are poplar groves. The Tarim River and its feeds--the Aksu, Yarkant⁷ and Hotan--flow through the north of the basin. It used to flow into a large salt water lake called Lop Nur⁸ but human activities have left it dry.

Northwestern 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) Province consists of the western and northern Dzungarian⁹ Basin and its mountainous edges. In the northeast are the Altay Mountains. These run northwest from where Kazakhstan and Mongol Uls¹⁰ are barely separated by Россия (Rossiya¹¹) and 中华 (Zhōnghuá), to the southeast along the Mongolian border. The highest peak is Kulten-Uul, almost 5000 meters, on the Mongolian border. The south side of the range is drained by the Irtys¹² River and its right bank feeders. Farther south the Ulungur River flows through the northern part of the Gubantuggut Desert and into Ulungur Lake.¹³ Yet further south is desert. Northwestern 新疆 (Xīnjiāng)--beyond the Manas River--is well watered steppe and swamp. The Manas flows from the Tian¹⁴ Mountains¹⁵ north into Manas Lake. Beyond it the land slopes downward, interrupted by highlands. Ebinur Lake is less than 200 meters above sea level and just beyond it is the Dzungarian Gate, a low pass into the Kazakh steppe. Farthest south is part of the Tian Mountains. These top out at over 5000 meters at Tumul Peak and contain vast glaciers. Between the ranges the Ili River flows west into Kazakhstan.

The Tarim is bounded north by the eastern end of the Tian Mountains, west by the Pamir and Karakorum Mountains and south by the Kunlun and Altun Mountains.

The Tian Mountains within 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) Province have parallel ranges with river valleys between; the Kaidu¹⁶ is the important one in this area. It flows through the grasslands of the Yanqi¹⁷ Basin to Bosten¹⁸ Lake. The lake used to be fresh but human activities have turned it salty. The Tian's tallest peak is Pobedy at over 7000 meters.

The 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) Pamir¹⁹ top at Kongur²⁰ at over 7,700 meters, and the Karakorum at K2,²¹ the world's second tallest moutain--about 8,600 meters high--on the border²² with Pakistan.

The highest of the Kunlun is Muztag,²³ 7723 meters, on 新疆 (Xīnjiāng)'s southern border, and the tallest of the Altun is Uzatag at over 6000 meters.

Two areas beyond these basins and their mountains are the high southeast and the populous lowlands of the east.

Southeast of the Altun within Sinkiang is a part of the Tibetan Plateau where all the land is over 4000 meters. There are two large salt lakes in these highlands: Ayakkum²⁴ is the biggest.

Eastern Sinkiang Province includes the eastern end of the Tian Mountains, with crests over 4000 meters, and the Bogda Range, whose chief peak with the same name tops 5000 meters. North of them is the eastern end of the Gurbantuggut Desert of Dzungaria. Between them and to their southeast is the Turban or Durban Basin, which drops below sea level. To its east is the Hami Basin, with oases along its north side.

Who lives there?

In eastern 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) the Putonghua Chinese are the majority. When observant, while some are Moslems (the Hui), most of the ethnic Chinese practice a mix of Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism and folk religions. In southern 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) the Uighurs are probably the majority. In northwestern 新疆 (Xīnjiāng) the majority probably consists of Kazakhs. Sunni Moslems are the overwhelming majority in both the south and the northwest.

乌鲁木齐 (Wūlǔmùqí) is the capital of 新疆 (Xīnjiāng).

Within the Area

Chāngjí Huízú Zìzhìzhōu;, Tǔlǔfān Shì, Wūlǔmùqí Shì, Hāmì Shì; and Wǔjiāqú Shì

Ili Kazahk Autonomous Prefecture (including Tacheng Prefecture and Altay Prefecture), Bortala Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, and Karamay Municipality

Bayan Gol Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Hotan Prefecture, Aksu Prefecture, Kashi Prefecture, Kizil-Su-Kirghiz Autonomous Prefecture

Footnotes

1. Hsin-chiang is an alternate transliterations from Chinese; it could be translated as New Frontier. Sinkiang in English.
2. Uyghur or Uighur in English.
3. Or Tzu-chih-ch'u. Autonomous Region in English.
4. Or Chung-hua or Junghwa in transliterated Pŭtōnghuà Chinese. The first character means central and the second means Chinese/ illustrious/ flowery. China is its English name.
5. Or T'a-li-mu.
6. 'Basin' in Chinese is pendi.
7. Or Lo-pu Po.
8. Or Lo-pu Po.
9. Transliterated strictly from Chinese as Junggar Basin. 'Basin' is pendi in Chinese. Also called Dzungaria.
10. Mongolia in English.
11. Or Rossija. Russia in English.
12. Called the Ertix in 中华 (Zhōnghuá). It flows eventually into Россия (Rossiya), and joins the Ob' River. The combination is the fifth longest river in the world, second longest in Asia.
13. 'Lake' is Hu in Chinese.
14. Or Tien. It can be translated from Chinese as heavenly.
15. 'Mountains' is shan in Chinese.
16. Or Karaxahar or K'ai-tu.
17. Or Yen-ch'i or Karashahr.
18. Or Bagrax or Po-ssu-t'eng.
19. Called the Pamir Mountains or Plateau, or just the Pamir Knot.
20. Or Kungur.
21. Or Qagir.
22. Pakistan claims some land about the Karakorum that China administers, including K2.
23. More than one mountain is called Muztag in whole or part.
24. Or A-ya-ko-k'u-k'u-le.