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Gaochang
Gaochang (; Old Uyghur: ''Qocho''), also called Khocho, Karakhoja, Qara-hoja, Kara-Khoja or Karahoja (قاراغوجا in Uyghur), was a ruined, ancient oasis city on the northern rim of the inhospitable Taklamakan Desert in present-day Xinjiang, China. The site is also known in published reports as Chotscho, Khocho, Qocho or Qočo. During the Yuan dynasty and Ming dynasty, Gaochang was referred to as "Halahezhuo" () (Qara-khoja) and Huozhou. The ruins are located 30 km southeast of modern Turpan, at a place called'' Idykut-schari'' or ''Idikutschari'' by local residents. (see the work of Albert Grünwedel in the external links below). Artistic depictions of the city have been published by Albert von Le Coq. Gaochang is considered in some sources to have been a "Chinese colony", that is, it was located in a region otherwise occupied at the time by West Eurasian peoples. A busy trading center, it was a stopping point for merchant traders traveling on the Silk Road. It w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turfan
Turpan (also known as Turfan or Tulufan, , ug, تۇرپان) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 632,000 (2015). Geonyms The original name of the city is unknown. The form Turfan (while it is older than Turpan), was not used until the middle of the 2nd millennium CE and its use became widespread only in the post-Mongol period. Historically, many settlements in the Tarim Basin have been given a number of different names. Some of these names have also referred to more than one place: Turpan/Turfan/Tulufan is one such example. Others include Jushi/Gushi, Gaochang/ Qocho/ Karakhoja and Jiaohe/Yarkhoto. The center of the region has shifted a number of times, from Yar-Khoto (Jiaohe, to the west of modern Turpan) to Qocho (Gaochang, to the southeast of Turpan) and to Turpan itself. History Turpan has long been the centre of a fertile oasis (with water provided by the '' karez'' canal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turpan
Turpan (also known as Turfan or Tulufan, , ug, تۇرپان) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 632,000 (2015). Geonyms The original name of the city is unknown. The form Turfan (while it is older than Turpan), was not used until the middle of the 2nd millennium CE and its use became widespread only in the post-Mongol period. Historically, many settlements in the Tarim Basin have been given a number of different names. Some of these names have also referred to more than one place: Turpan/Turfan/Tulufan is one such example. Others include Jushi/Gushi, Gaochang/ Qocho/ Karakhoja and Jiaohe/Yarkhoto. The center of the region has shifted a number of times, from Yar-Khoto (Jiaohe, to the west of modern Turpan) to Qocho (Gaochang, to the southeast of Turpan) and to Turpan itself. History Turpan has long been the centre of a fertile oasis (with water provided by the '' karez'' can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Liang
The Northern Liang (; 397–439) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in China. It was ruled by the Juqu family of Lushuihu origin (a branch of the Xiongnu). Although Duan Ye of Han ethnicity was initially enthroned as the Northern Liang ruler with support from the Juqu clan, Duan was subsequently overthrown in 401 and Juqu Mengxun was proclaimed monarch. All rulers of the Northern Liang proclaimed themselves "wang" (translatable as either "prince" or "king"). History Most Chinese historians view the Northern Liang as having ended in 439, when its capital Guzang (姑臧) in modern Wuwei, Gansu fell to Northern Wei forces and the Northern Liang ruler Juqu Mujian captured. However, some view his brothers Juqu Wuhui and Juqu Anzhou, who subsequently settled with Northern Liang remnants in Gaochang (高昌) in modern Turpan Prefecture, Xinjiang, as a continuation of the Northern Liang, and thus view the Northern Liang as having ended in 460 when Gaochang fell to Rouran a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest of the country at the crossroads of Central Asia and East Asia. Being the largest province-level division of China by area and the 8th-largest country subdivision in the world, Xinjiang spans over and has about 25 million inhabitants. Xinjiang borders the countries of Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. The rugged Karakoram, Kunlun and Tian Shan mountain ranges occupy much of Xinjiang's borders, as well as its western and southern regions. The Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract regions, both administered by China, are claimed by India. Xinjiang also borders the Tibet Autonomous Region and the provinces of Gansu and Qinghai. The most well-known route of the historic Silk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Astana Graves
The Astana Cemetery () is an ancient cemetery southeast of Turpan, in Xinjiang, China, from the ancient city of Gaochang. It served mainly as the cemetery for the descendants of Chinese settlers in Gaochang from the 4th century to the first half of the 8th century. The complex covers and contains over 1,000 tombs. Due to the arid environment many important artifacts have been well preserved at the tombs, including natural mummies. Description of the tombs The tombs consist of sloping passageways leading downwards for 4 or 5m to a rockcut entrance, about a meter wide and over a meter high. A step then leads into a brick-lined chamber, square or oblong and measuring between two and four meters wide, three to four meters long and up to two meters high. Some tombs contain one or two narrow antechambers in which there are niches on either side for guardian beasts in effigy. These figures show a variety of animal features and some have human faces. In their exuberance they resemb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albert Grünwedel
Albert Grünwedel (31 July 1856 – 28 October 1935) was a German indologist, tibetologist, archaeologist, and explorer of Central Asia. He was one of the first scholars to study the Lepcha language. Life Grünwedel was born in Munich in 1856, the son of a painter. He studied art history and Asian languages, including Avestan, and in 1883 earned his doctorate at the University of Munich. In 1881 he began work as an assistant at the Museum of Ethnology in Berlin and in 1883 he was appointed deputy director of the ethnographic collection. Grünwedel won accolades for his numerous publications on Buddhist art, archaeology Central Asia, and Himalayan languages. Two notable works were ''Buddhist art in India'' (1893) and ''Mythology of Buddhism in Tibet and Mongolia'' (1900), which concerned the Greek origins of the Gandharan Greco-Buddhist artistic style and its development in Central Asia. In 1899 Grünwedel was invited to join a Russian archaeological research expedition led ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Former Liang
The Former Liang (; 320–376) was a dynastic state, one of the Sixteen Kingdoms, in Chinese history. It was founded by the Zhang family of the Han ethnicity. Its territories included present-day Gansu and parts of Ningxia, Shaanxi, Qinghai and Xinjiang. All rulers of the Former Liang remained largely titularly under the court of the Eastern Jin dynasty as the Duke of Xiping except Zhang Zuo who proclaimed himself ''wang'' (prince/king). However, at times the other Former Liang rulers also used the ''wang'' title when imposed on them when they were forced to submit to their powerful neighbour states - initially the Han Zhao, then the Later Zhao, and finally Former Qin. In 327, the Gaochang commandery was created by the Former Liang under Zhang Jun. After this, significant Han settlement occurred in Gaochang, a major, large part of the population becoming Han. In 376, the final ruler of Former Liang Zhang Tianxi surrendered to Former Qin, ending the state. However, in the a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Former Qin
The Former Qin, also called Fu Qin (苻秦), (351–394) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in Chinese history ruled by the Di ethnicity. Founded by Fu Jian (posthumously Emperor Jingming) who originally served under the Later Zhao dynasty, it completed the unification of northern China in 376. Its capital was Xi'an up to the death of the Emperor Xuanzhao in 385. Despite its name, the Former Qin was much later and less powerful than the Qin dynasty which had ruled all of China proper during the 3rd century BC. The adjectival prefix "former" is used to distinguish it from the " Later Qin dynasty" (384-417). In 383, the severe defeat of the Former Qin by the Jin dynasty at the Battle of Fei River encouraged uprisings, splitting Former Qin territory into two noncontiguous pieces after the death of Fu Jian. One fragment, at present-day Taiyuan, Shanxi was soon overwhelmed in 386 by the Xianbei under the Later Yan and the Dingling. The other struggled in g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 209 BC, founded the Xiongnu Empire. After their previous rivals, the Yuezhi, migrated west into Central Asia during the 2nd century BC, the Xiongnu became a dominant power on the steppes of East Asia, centred on the Mongolian Plateau. The Xiongnu were also active in areas now part of Siberia, Inner Mongolia, Gansu and Xinjiang. Their relations with adjacent Chinese dynasties to the south-east were complex—alternating between various periods of peace, war, and subjugation. Ultimately, the Xiongnu were defeated by the Han dynasty in a centuries-long conflict, which led to the confederation splitting in two, and forcible resettlement of large numbers of Xiongnu within Han borders. During the Sixteen Kingdoms era, as one of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taklamakan Desert
The Taklimakan or Taklamakan Desert (; zh, s=塔克拉玛干沙漠, p=Tǎkèlāmǎgān Shāmò, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Такәламаган Шамә; ug, تەكلىماكان قۇملۇقى, Täklimakan qumluqi; also spelled Taklimakan and Teklimakan) is a desert in Southwestern Xinjiang in Northwest China. It is bounded by the Kunlun Mountains to the south, the Pamir Mountains to the west, the Tian Shan range to the north, and the Gobi Desert to the east. Etymology While most researchers agree on being the Persian word for "place", etymology of ''Takla'' is less clear. The word may be a Uyghur borrowing of the Persian , "to leave alone/out/behind, relinquish, abandon" + ''makan''. Another plausible explanation suggests it is derived from Turki ''taqlar makan'', describing "the place of ruins". Chinese scholars Wang Guowei and Huang Wenbi linked the name to the Tocharians, a historical people of the Tarim Basin, making the meaning of "Taklamakan" similar to "Tocharistan". ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albert Von Le Coq
Albert von Le Coq (; 8 September 1860 Berlin, Prussia – 21 April 1930 Berlin, Germany) was a Prussian/German brewery owner and wine merchant, who at the age of 40 began to study archaeology.''Schatzjagd an der Seidenstraße.'' A film by Susanne Rostosky. A production of Story House Productions GmbH, in cooperation with Logo ARTE and ZDF Enterprises. © ZDF 2013. Presented in Finland on YLE TV 1 on 16 March 2014 with the title “The surprising finds of the Silk Road.” Background He was born at Berlin, of a family of French Huguenot origin, as evidenced in his family name. Von Le Coq was heir to a sizable fortune derived from breweries and wineries scattered throughout Central and Eastern Europe, thus allowing him the luxury of travel and study at his leisure. The business he owned survives today as the A. Le Coq brewery in Tartu, Estonia. Career as archaeologist Aided by his wealth, von Le Coq became a famous archaeologist and explorer of Central Asia. Von Le Coq was co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gushi Culture
The Jushi (), or Gushi (), were a people who established a kingdom during the 1st millennium BC in the Turpan basin (modern Xinjiang, China). The kingdom included the area of Ayding Lake, in the eastern Tian Shan range. During the late 2nd and early 1st century BC, the area was increasingly dominated by the Han Dynasty and the northern neighbours of the Jushi, the Xiongnu, and became one of the many minor states of the Western Regions of Han dynasty China. The Jushi capital (Jiaohe, later known as Yarkhoto, and Yarghul) was destroyed in a Mongol attack in the 13th century. They may have been one of the Tocharian peoples and spoken one of the associated languages. Historical accounts According to J. P. Mallory and Victor H. Mair, the earliest accounts of the Jushi report them to have "lived in tents, followed the grasses and waters, and had considerable knowledge of agriculture. They owned cattle, horses, camels, sheep and goats. They were proficient with bows and arrows". Jushi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
