Tarim Basin

The Tarim Basin is the largest basin in the world, lying between several mountain ranges in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region (also known as East Turkistan and Chinese Turkistan) in China's far west. Much of the basin is dominated by the Taklamakan Desert. The area is sparsely settled by Uighurs and other central Asian peoples, as well as by Chinese, many of them recent immigrants to the area from other parts of China.

Related Topics:
Basin - Mountain range - Xinjiang - Turkistan - China - Taklamakan Desert - Uighur - Central Asia - Chinese

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The Silk road in the Tarim Basin between Kashgar ({{coor dm|39|28|N|76|03|E|}}) and Yumen ({{coor dm|39|50|N|97|34|E|region:CN_type:city(100,000)}}) split in two routes, along the northern and the southern edges of the Taklamakan. Cities along each branch (from West to East) include:

Related Topics:
Silk road - Kashgar - Yumen

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• Northern route: Aksu ({{coor dm|41|10|N|80|15|E|}}), Kucha ({{coor dm|41|39|N|82|54|E|}}), Korla ({{coor dm|41|39|N|86|08|E|region:CN_type:city(200,000)}}), Turfan ({{coor dm|42|59|N|89|11|E|}}), Loulan ({{coor dm|40|9|N|89|5|E}}, "middle route", deserted from the 6th century)
• Southern route: Yarkand ({{coor dm|37|52|N|77|24|E|}}), Pishan ({{coor dm|37|37|N|78|18|E|}}), Khotan ({{coor dm|37|6|N|80|1|E|}})

Formerly the Tocharian languages were spoken in the Tarim Basin. They were the easternmost of the Indo-European languages. The Chinese name "Yuezhi" (Chinese 月氏; Wade-Giles: Yüeh-Chih) denoted an ancient Central Asian people settled in the Tarim Basin, who, vanquished by the Xiongnu, later migrated southward to form the Kushan Empire in northern India.

Related Topics:
Tocharian languages - Indo-European languages - Yuezhi - Xiongnu - Kushan Empire

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The Chinese managed to take control of the Tarim Basin from the Xiongnu at the end of the 1st century CE under the leadership of general Ban Chao (32-102 CE).

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The powerful Kushans expanded back into the Tarim Basin in the 1st-2nd centuries CE, where they established a kingdom in Kashgar and competed for control of the area with nomads and Chinese forces. They introduced the Brahmi script, the Indian Prakrit language for administration, and Buddhism, playing a central role in the Silk Road transmission of Buddhism to Eastern Asia.

Related Topics:
Kashgar - Brahmi - Prakrit - Buddhism - Silk Road transmission of Buddhism

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Lop Nur, a saline marshy depression at the east end of the Tarim Basin, is a nuclear test site for the People's Republic of China. The Tarim River empties into the Lop Nur.

Related Topics:
Lop Nur - Nuclear test - People's Republic of China - Tarim River

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The Tarim Basin is thought to contain large reserves of petroleum and natural gas.

Related Topics:
Petroleum - Natural gas

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Tarim Basin: See also ►