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Xinjiang
Xinjiang Uygur
Autonomous Region covers over 16,000,000 square kilometers (6,176,000 square
miles), one-sixth of China's total territory, making it China's largest
province. Xinjiang borders Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, Mongolia, Kazakhstan,
Kirghizstan, Uzbekistan, Tadzhikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. With
a population of over 19 million, Xinjiang is home to 47 ethnic groups
including the Uygur, the major ethnic group in Xinjiang.
Xinjiang has a desert climate with a
low annual rainfall of only 150 millimeters (6 inches). Winters are very
cold and summers extremely hot. The best time to visit this province is in
the autumn, when the days are long, the sky is clear and temperatures more
bearable than in the heat of the summer. Another excellent reason to visit
at that time is the abundance of delicious melons and other fruits and
vegetables which are then available.
Xinjiang has a long history.
The area was called Xiyu in ancient China which means "West Region". It was
plundered by the Huns before the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). During the
Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 24 AD), Xinjiang was treated as an integral
part of the nation's territory. Since then, Xinjiang was governed by all
successive dynasties.
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