Kazakhstan(1)--part: Akmecet, South(2) Kazakhstan and Taraz Provinces

How is the land laid out?

This area occupies just under 500 thousand square kilometers of south central Kazakhstan, stretching west to east from the Aral Sea to Lake Balkash. Almost all of it is within the Turanian Lowland, and--away from river and mountain valleys--it is desert.

Southern Kazakhstan deserts

The Chu's headwaters are in the mountain ranges that are part of the Tyan(3) Mountains(4). These rise above 2,000 meters here in the extreme southeast of the region, and again, as the Karatau Range, southwest of the Muyunkum Desert.

Lake Balkash, bounding the area's northeast, is the largest area of freshwater.(5) The next largest is the Chardarinskoye Reservoir on the Syrdarya as that river enters the nation.

Who lives there?

Kazakh language and religion

There are no cities of half a million or more, and, of the two that approach that size, neither predominates.

Who was there before?

Turkic migrations

Tatars and Mongols

Russians in Kazakhstan



northwest
north and northeast
southeast
south and southwest

Other broad topics

Kazakhstan
Asia

Footnotes

(1) Can also be transliterated as Khazakhstan or Qazaqstan.
(2) Ontustik in Kazakh.
(3) Also spelled Tien or T'ien. It means 'heavenly' in Chinese.
(4) Shan in Chinese.
(5) It is Asia's fourth largest lake, Only its western half is fresh.