Yarkant County

Yarkant County
يەكەن ناھىيىسى (Uyghur)
莎车县 (Chinese)
Yarkand; Shache; Soche
A street in Yarkant
A street in Yarkant
Yarkant County (red) within Kashgar Prefecture (yellow) and Xinjiang
Yarkant County (red) within Kashgar Prefecture (yellow) and Xinjiang
Yarkant is located in Xinjiang
Yarkant
Yarkant
Location of the seat in Xinjiang
Yarkant is located in China
Yarkant
Yarkant
Yarkant (China)
Coordinates (County government): 38°23′27″N 77°13′24″E / 38.3909°N 77.2232°E / 38.3909; 77.2232
CountryChina
Autonomous regionXinjiang
PrefectureKashgar
County seatYakan
Area
 • Total8,969 km2 (3,463 sq mi)
Elevation
1,232 m (4,042 ft)
Population
 (2020)[1]
 • Total860,800
 • Density96/km2 (250/sq mi)
Ethnic groups
 • Major ethnic groupsUyghur[2]
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard[a])
Postal code
844700
Websitewww.shache.gov.cn
Yarkant (Shache) County
Street scene in Yarkand in the 1870s
Uyghur name
Uyghurيەكەن (ياركەنت) ناھىيىسى
Literal meaningCliff city[3]
Transcriptions
Latin YëziqiYeken (Yarkent) Nahiyisi
Yengi YeziⱪYəkən (Yarkənt) Nah̡iyisi
SASM/GNCYakän (Yarkänt) Nahiyisi
Siril YëziqiЙәкән (яркәнт) наһийиси
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese莎车
Traditional Chinese莎車
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinShāchē Xiàn
Wade–GilesSha¹-chʻê¹ Hsien⁴
IPA[ʂáʈʂʰɤ́ ɕjɛ̂n]
Alternative Chinese name
Simplified Chinese叶尔羌
Traditional Chinese葉爾羌
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinYè'ěrqiāng Xiàn

Yarkant County,[4][5][6] also Shache County,[7] also transliterated from Uyghur as Yakan County, is a county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China, located on the southern rim of the Taklamakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. It is one of 11 counties administered under Kashgar Prefecture. The county, usually referred to as Yarkand[8] in English, was the seat of an ancient Buddhist kingdom on the southern branch of the Silk Road and the Yarkand Khanate. The county sits at an altitude of 1,189 metres (3,901 ft) and as of 2003 had a population of 373,492.

The fertile oasis is fed by the Yarkand River, which flows north down from the Karakorum mountains and passes through the Kunlun Mountains, known historically as the Congling mountains (lit. 'Onion Mountains' - from the abundance of wild onions found there). The oasis now covers 3,210 square kilometres (1,240 sq mi), but was likely far more extensive before a period of desiccation affected the region from the 3rd century CE onwards.

Today, Yarkant is a predominantly Uyghur settlement. The irrigated oasis farmland produces cotton, wheat, corn, fruits (especially pomegranates, pears and apricots) and walnuts. Yak and sheep graze in the highlands. Mineral deposits include petroleum, natural gas, gold, copper, lead, bauxite, granite and coal.

Map showing the rivers of the Tarim Basin and Yarkand River
  1. ^ Xinjiang: Prefectures, Cities, Districts and Counties
  2. ^ 1997年莎车县行政区划. XZQH.org. 19 November 2010. Retrieved 27 February 2020. 面积12平方千米,人口3.8万,其中维吾尔族占93.2%,
  3. ^ P. Lurje, "Yārkand", Encyclopædia Iranica, online edition
  4. ^ Andrew Jacobs (29 July 2014). "China's Account of Bloodshed in Far West Is Disputed". New York Times. Retrieved 28 February 2020. According to Xinhua, it began at a government building in Yarkant County and spread to surrounding streets, where assailants attacked passers-by and set cars on fire.
  5. ^ An, ed. (20 January 2017). "4.8-magnitude quake jolts Xinjiang: CENC". Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved 28 February 2020. A 4.8-magnitude earthquake hits Yarkant County of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 5:54 p.m. Friday (Beijing Time), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC).
  6. ^ Yarkant Xian (Variant - V) at GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
  7. ^ Shache (Approved - N) at GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
  8. ^ Chris Buckly; Steven Lee Myers (18 January 2020). "Battered but Resilient After China's Crackdown". New York Times. Retrieved 7 April 2020. An ancient Muslim town, Yarkand is a cultural cradle for the Uighurs, who have experienced mass detentions.


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