Hello Urumqi

My Central Asian journey began in Urumqi, one of the principal cities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). The city has not been the safest in recent years, as the people living there have had conflicts with the government. But all that aside, the few days I spent there were incredible. The city itself is spectacular, and there was plenty of time for me to do some research on the region's ancient history. While researching the beginnings of the XUAR, I also discovered many things about the tension between the government and people of the XUAR. Below are two research summaries that I intend to hand in with a paper to my college history professor upon my return to the USA.

The XUAR: Conquests & Turmoil

China has always been famous for its lengthy history of the rise and fall of dynasties, and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has stayed true to the legacy of conflict. Since its beginnings in 206 BC, it has struggled under fierce rulers and fought for eventual independence. The region’s first iron fisted rulers were the Han Dynasty, who held the XUAR as a Chinese protectorate until the Han Dynasty was challenged by northern neighbors. The Han Dynasty overcame its northern enemies and continued to hold the XUAR as a commodity. Then, after the fall of the Han Dynasty, warring ethnic groups continually tried to take control the region, with its ownership under question for much of the next few hundred years. Just when there appeared to be room for the XUAR to escape control, the Tang Dynasty took over. They maintained control for the next hundred years, until an empire unlike anything the XUAR had seen arrived, The Uyghur Empire. They beat out the Tang Dynasty for control of the region, and would reign supreme in the area for the next 100 years, until a small tribe arrived that threatened to destroy everything. The Kyrgyz tribe arrived in 840 with great ambition and a fiery spirit. In fact, they were so driven that they, in war, defeated the Uyghur Empire, scattering the Uyghur people all throughout Central Asia.

Gradually, the Uyghur people managed to group back together and stay that way until the 1200’s. Then, they sensibly offered allegiance to Genghis Khan and the Mongol Army, riding the coattails of his success for a long time. This cycle of conquests and turmoil continued through the 1800’s, until 1912, when the XUAR became part of the Republic of China, where they remain today. The reason this lengthy history is so significant is because of the lingering cultural tensions still rotted in the region today. A melting pot of peoples, the area has suffered greatly due to violence and uprisings in the past few years, all of which are reminiscent of the conflict of the XUAR’s early years.

Trouble in the XUAR

The XUAR is known for housing a melting pot of cultures and people, but what does a pot do when it gets too hot? It boils over, and that is exactly what happened during the 2008 Uyghur unrest. The region has had a long history of conflict, dating all the way back to its origins. The Uyghurs, one of the foundation ethnic groups, in the XUAR, has been trying since the 1700’s to obtain self determination, which is basically the ability for a group of people to determine their own way of life. The Chinese government has made many attempts to curb the rise of independence groups like the Uyghurs. Following the death of a famous businessman who was in police custody in 2008, several pro-independence groups, some of which were predominantly Uyghur, were sparked to protest the government in Xinjiang. Simultaneously, a Uyghur woman detonated a bomb in a packed bus, escaping as the only one alive. The authorities started blaming random ethnic groups for starting the protests and also for bombing the bus, which lead to even greater chaos. This sparked a chain of events that included bombings, police brutality, and shooting. The situation continued to escalate with more and more deaths until things finally calmed down in late August.

After several days on enjoying Urumqi and all that the city has to offer, it was time for me to go. I hopped on a bus and headed for Almaty. But before I got there I had to cross the Tian Shan Mountains. They tower over the rest of Central Asia, and needless to say, were quite impressive. Below is my research piece on this famous Mountain Range.

The Tian Shan Mountains

The name Tian Shan in Chinese means celestial mountains, suggesting perhaps that the Tian Shan Mountains reach the heavens, which wouldn’t be too much of an exaggeration. With its highest point towering above the surrounding peaks at 24,406 feet, the Tian Shan Mountains are some of the highest mountains in all of Asia. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and the XUAR are all in proximity to these mountains, located to the northwest of the Taklimakan Desert. As I mentioned earlier, the highest peak is Victory Peak, named because of the incredible feat it would be to climb it. The largest passage through the mountains is via Torugart Pass, connecting Kyrgyzstan to the XUAR. Serving as a shield from the outside world, the Tian Shan Mountain range arches around Central Asia, protecting and enclosing the countries tucked inside.

For pictures of Urumqi, the Urumqi riots that were a large part of the unrest there, and to see the Tian Shan Mountains, see my next post.