Aksu PrefectureThe official spelling according to is located in mid-Western

Xinjiang Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...

, China. It has an

area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

of and 2.714 million inhabitants at the 2020 census whom 715,319 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made up of Aksu urban district. The name Aksu is Turkic for 'white water'. Aksu Prefecture has a long international boundary with

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

and

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

Etymology

The name Aksu comes from the name of the Aksu River which is Turkic for 'white water'. The name is similar to that of the nearby Zhetysu region which means "seven rivers". The name of Aksu Prefecture's Onsu County (Wensu) means "ten water" in Uyghur and other Turkic languages, and 'Kizilsu' in Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture means 'red water'- all of these names consist of a descriptor followed by 'su' (river; water).

History

In 717 AD, the Arabs, guided by their Turgesh allies, besieged Buat-ɦuɑn (撥換, roughly modern Aksu) and Dai-dʑiᴇk-dʑiᴇŋ (大石城, roughly modern Uqturpan) in the Battle of Aksu. On August 15, the Arabs,

Tibetan Empire The Tibetan Empire (,) was an empire centered on the Tibetan Plateau, formed as a result of expansion under the Yarlung dynasty heralded by its 33rd king, Songtsen Gampo, in the 7th century. It expanded further under the 38th king, Trisong De ...

, and Suluk Khan of the Türgesh Khaganate formed an alliance to besiege the city of Dai-dʑiᴇk-dʑiᴇŋ (now Usi County). The Tang army, commanded by Tang Jiahui ( zh, 汤嘉惠), allied with

Karluks The Karluks (also Qarluqs, Qarluks, Karluqs, , Qarluq, Para-Mongolic languages, Para-Mongol: Harluut, zh, s=葛逻禄, t=葛邏祿 ''Géluólù'' ; customary phonetic: ''Gelu, Khololo, Khorlo'', , ''Khallokh'', ''Qarluq'') were a prominent no ...

and Ashina Xian of Western Turkestan to alleviate the siege. The Arab army faced a counterattack and withdrew to

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

, where numerous Arab soldiers were captured but later released upon the payment of a ransom by the Umayyad caliphs. Subsequent to the conflict, the Arabs were displaced from the northern section of the Hezhong region. The Turks re-engaged with the Tang and then launched an assault on the Arabs in Fergana. Following 720, the Tubo forces advanced northward into the Tarim Basin, while the Tang army re-entered Anxi in the 740s. The Battle of Talas in 751 inflicted severe losses on the Tang army, resulting in the original four towns of Anxi falling under the influence of the

and Qocho. The city of Togang was reestablished under Tubo control in 790. By 840, the Qocho disintegrated, with a portion of the Qocho population establishing the Qocho Empire (present-day

Turpan Turpan () or Turfan ( zh, s=吐鲁番) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 693,988 (2020). The historical center of the ...

) as their base and adopting the Turkic designation Aksu. Following the eleventh century, Aksu commenced its Islamization under the influence of the Kura Khanate. In the twelfth century, Aksu, together with the Gaochang Qocho, became incorporated into Western Liao.

Geography

The prefecture occupies the northwestern part of the Tarim Basin and the southern slopes of the Tian Shan. The southern part of the prefecture is within the Taklamakan desert. Agriculture is only possible in the areas irrigated by the Tarim River and its glacier-fed tributaries, the Aksu River and the Muzart River. Aksu Prefecture surrounds Aral, Xinjiang.

Administrative divisions

Aksu Prefecture is divided into 2

county-level cities , map = , category = Third level administrative division of a unitary state , territory = People's Republic of China , upper_unit = Prefectures, Provinces , start_date = , current_number = 411 (408 controlled, 3 claimed) , number_da ...

and 8 counties:

Demographics

As of 2020, 2,051,412 (80.1%) of the 2,561,674 residents of the county were Uyghur, 475,323 (18.6%) were

Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...

and 34,939 were from other ethnic groups. As of 1999, 75.0% of the population of Aksu (Aqsu, Akesu) Prefecture was Uyghur and 23.7% of the population was Han Chinese.

References

External links

{{Authority control Prefecture-level divisions of Xinjiang