Mosque in Khotan.

Khotan or Hotan (Uyghur: خوتەن/Hotǝn; Chinese: 和田; Pinyin: Hétián, formerly: Simplified Chinese: 和阗; Traditional Chinese: 和闐; Pinyin: Hétián) (37°6′N 80°1′E) is an oasis town in Khotan Prefecture and its capital as well, population 114,000 (2006). An important station on the southern route of the historic Silk Road, it has always depended on two strong rivers the Karakash River and the Yurungkash River to provide the water needed to survive on the southwestern edge of the vast Taklamakan, the world's second largest desert. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (768x1024, 204 KB) 09/10/2005 es: Khotan (Hotan / Hetian) es una ciudad-oasis en la Región Autónoma Uigur de Xinjiang en la República Popular China. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (768x1024, 204 KB) 09/10/2005 es: Khotan (Hotan / Hetian) es una ciudad-oasis en la Región Autónoma Uigur de Xinjiang en la República Popular China. ... The Badshahi Masjid in Lahore, Pakistan with an iwan at center, three domes, and five visible minarets A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith. ... Uyghur (in Uyghur: ئۇيغۇرچه, new spelling: UyÆ£urqÉ™ or ئۇيغۇر تىلى, UyÆ£ur tili; in Chinese: 维吾尔语 WéiwúěryÇ”) is a Turkic language spoken by the Uyghur people in Xinjiang (also called East Turkestan or Uyghuristan), China. ... Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: 汉语拼音; Traditional Chinese: 漢語拼音; Hanyu Pinyin: , lit. ... Simplified Chinese characters (Simplified Chinese: 简体字; Traditional Chinese: 簡體字; pinyin: jiÇŽntǐzì; also called 简化字/簡化字, jiÇŽnhuàzì) are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Traditional Chinese characters are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: 汉语拼音; Traditional Chinese: 漢語拼音; Hanyu Pinyin: , lit. ... Oasis in the Libyan part of the Sahara In geography, an oasis is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source. ... For other uses, see Silk Road (disambiguation). ... The Karakash or Black Jade River flows from its origin near Sumde on the northern slopes of the Karakorum Mountain range, the actual Aksai Chin on the Tibetan Plateau westward along the northern crest range of the Kuen Luns. ... The White Jade River (Chinese: 白玉江) is a river in the Taklamakan desert of China. ... Dust storm in Taklamakan from space, June 25, 2005 The Taklamakan (also Taklimakan) is a desert of Central Asia, in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Desert view in Saudi Arabia. ...

Located in the south of the present-day Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in western China, this ancient city has a rich history and was long famous for its silk, jade, and pottery products. See the Kingdom of Khotan article for more information on historic Khotan. Xinjiang (Chinese: 新疆; pinyin: Xīnjiāng; Wade-Giles: Hsin1-chiang1; Postal Pinyin: Sinkiang; literal meaning: New Frontier; Uyghur: شينجاڭ) Uyghurs Autonomous Region of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), sometimes known as Chinese Turkestan, Eastern Turkestan (Turkestan also spelt Turkistan) or Uyghuristan. ... Silk weaver Silk is a natural protein fiber that can be woven into textiles. ... A selection of antique, hand-crafted Chinese jadeite jade buttons Jade An ornamental stone, jade is a name applied to two different silicate minerals. ... Unfired green ware pottery on a traditional drying rack at Conner Prairie living history museum. ... The Kingdom of Khotan is an ancient Buddhist kingdom that was located on the branch of the Silk road that ran along the southern edge of the Taklamakan desert in the Tarim basin. ...

Today this remote town, populated almost exclusively by Uyghur, is a minor agricultural center. The Uyghur (Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر; Turkish: Uygur; Simplified Chinese: 维吾尔; Traditional Chinese: 維吾爾; Pinyin: Wéiwúěr) are a Turkic people, forming one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the Peoples Republic of China. ...

The town lies just west of the Yurungkash River or White Jade River, named for the white jade recovered from its alluvial deposits. Most of the jade is now gone, but an occasional piece may still be found. The river still provides water and irrigation for the town and region. The White Jade River (Chinese: 白玉江) is a river in the Taklamakan desert of China. ... The White Jade River is a river in the Taklamakan desert of China. ... A selection of antique, hand-crafted Chinese jadeite jade buttons Jade An ornamental stone, jade is a name applied to two different silicate minerals. ... Alluvium is soil land deposited by a river or other running water. ...

Khotan is recently famous for the discovery of caucasoid mummies, which are evidence of long term inhabitation of the area by the Tocharians. The desert atmosphere has preserved perishable items such as wood and fabric, attracting archaeologists. The area is rich in archaeological sites that are buried beneath the desert sand. Typical Caucasoid skull Caucasoid is a racial classification usually used as part of a phenotypal system, also including other classifications such as Australoid, Mongoloid, Negroid, and sometimes others such as Capoid. ... Mummified cat from Ancient Egypt. ... The Tocharians were the easternmost speakers of an Indo-European language in antiquity, inhabiting the Tarim basin in what is now Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, northwestern Peoples Republic of China. ...

Facts

Sunday market in Khotan

• Airport Code - HTN
• Culture - Uyghur
• Population - 1.4 Million (Town & Region)
• Religion - Muslim

Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1024x768, 187 KB) 09/10/2005 es: Khotan (Hotan / Hetian) es una ciudad-oasis en la Región Autónoma Uigur de Xinjiang en la República Popular China. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1024x768, 187 KB) 09/10/2005 es: Khotan (Hotan / Hetian) es una ciudad-oasis en la Región Autónoma Uigur de Xinjiang en la República Popular China. ... The Uyghur (Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر; Turkish: Uygur; Simplified Chinese: 维吾尔; Traditional Chinese: 維吾爾; Pinyin: Wéiwúěr) are a Turkic people, forming one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the Peoples Republic of China. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is an adherent of Islam. ...

Historical

• Tocharians - Early Indo-European culture
• Kingdom of Khotan
• Kushan Empire
• Han conquest - 73 A.D
• Uyghur uprising - 1995

The Tocharians were the easternmost speakers of an Indo-European language in antiquity, inhabiting the Tarim basin in what is now Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, northwestern Peoples Republic of China. ... The Kingdom of Khotan is an ancient Buddhist kingdom that was located on the branch of the Silk road that ran along the southern edge of the Taklamakan desert in the Tarim basin. ... Boundary of the Kushan empire, c. ... // Han in China Chinese (æ¼¢), an abbreviation or adjectival modifier for things Chinese. ...

Early history

The oasis of Khotan is strategically located at the junction of the southern (and most ancient) branch of the famous “Silk Route” joining China and the West with one of the main routes from India and Tibet to Central Asia and China. It provided a convenient meeting place where not only goods, but technologies, philosophies, and religions were transmitted from one culture to another. For other uses, see Silk Road (disambiguation). ... Tibet (older spelling Thibet; Tibetan: བོད་, Bod, pronounced pö in Lhasa dialect; Chinese: 西藏, Pinyin: XÄ«zàng or Chinese: 藏区, Pinyin: ZàngqÅ« [the two names are used with different connotations; see Name section below]) is a region in Central Asia and the home of the Tibetan people. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Khotan, from the traditional time of its founding during the reign of the great Indian emperor Aśoka Maurya (c. 269 to 231 B.C.) until the Muslim conquest c. 1006 A.D., had a tempestuous history and suffered many invasions. For much of this period it was a key entry point for Indian trade and culture into the Tarim basin and became an important and influential centre of Buddhist learning and culture in its own right. Emperor Ashoka (a possible picturisation) Ashoka the Great (Devanagari: अशोक; IAST transliteration: ) was the emperor of the Mauryan Empire from 273 BCE to 232 BCE. After a number of military conquests, Ashoka reigned over most of South Asia and beyond, from present-day Afghanistan to Bengal and as far south as... Taklamakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by...

Khotan was also the source of most of the early nephrite jade used in China. For several hundred years, until they were defeated by the Xiongnu in 176 BCE, the trade of Khotanese jade into China was controlled by the nomadic Yuezhi. There is also a community named Actinolite,_Ontario in Canada. ... A selection of antique, hand-crafted Chinese jadeite jade buttons Jade An ornamental stone, jade is a name applied to two different silicate minerals. ... A Xiongnu belt buckle. ... The migrations of the Yuezhi through Central Asia, from around 176 to 30 BCE. Yuezhi (Chinese:月氏, also 月支, Wade-Giles: Yüeh-Chih) or Da Yuezhi (Chinese:大月氏, also 大月支, Great Yuezhi) is the Chinese name for an ancient Central Asian people. ...

The early history and long lost language of the ancient kingdom of Khotan have been gradually pieced together by the diligent efforts of a remarkable assembly of adventurers and scholars from many countries.

We are fortunate in now having a relative abundance of information on Khotan readily available for study. The main historical sources are to be found in the Chinese histories (particularly detailed during the Han and early Tang dynasties), the accounts of several Chinese pilgrim monks, a few Buddhist histories of Khotan that have survived in Tibetan, and a large number of documents in Khotanese and other languages discovered, for the most part, early this century at various sites in the Tarim basin and from the hidden library at the “Caves of the Thousand Buddhas” near Dunhuang. // Han in China Chinese (æ¼¢), an abbreviation or adjectival modifier for things Chinese. ... Tang could refer to: Tang Dynasty of China Tang (Shang dynasty ruler) Transliteration of Chinese family names such as 唐,湯,鄧,é‚“,滕 Tang Clan of Hong Kong, the first inhabitants to leave China and settle in Hong Kong. ... Tibetan can refer to: A place or item from Tibet. ... Taklamakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. ... Location of Dunhuang Dunhuang (Chinese: 敦煌, pinyin: DÅ«nhuáng; 40°6′ N 94°39′ E) is a city in Gansu province, China. ...

• Hill, John E. 1988. “Notes on the Dating of Khotanese History.” Indo-Iranian Journal 31 (1988), pp. 179-190.
• Hill, John E. 2003. "Annotated Translation of the Chapter on the Western Regions according to the Hou Hanshu." 2nd Draft Edition. [1]
• Hill, John E. 2004. The Peoples of the West from the Weilue 魏略 by Yu Huan 魚豢: A Third Century Chinese Account Composed between 239 and 265 CE. Draft annotated English translation. [2]
• Hulsewé, A. F. P. and Loewe, M. A. N. 1979. China in Central Asia: The Early Stage 125 BC – AD 23: an annotated translation of chapters 61 and 96 of the History of the Former Han Dynasty. E. J. Brill, Leiden.
• Legge, James 1886. A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms: Being an account by the Chinese Monk Fa-Hien of his travels in India and Ceylon (A.D. 399-414) in search of the Buddhist Books of Discipline. Oxford, Clarendon Press. Reprint: New York, Paragon Book Reprint Corp. 1965.
• Mallory, J. P. and Mair, Victor H. 2000. The Tarim Mummies: Ancient China and the Mystery of the Earliest Peoples from the West. Thames & Hudson. London. 2000.
• Montell, Gösta, Sven Hedin’s Archaeological Collections from Khotan: Terra-cottas from Yotkan and Dandan-Uiliq, The Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities 7 (1936), pp. 145-221.
• Montell, Gösta, Sven Hedin’s Archaeological Collections from Khotan II (appendix by Helmer Smith (pp. 101-102)), The Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities 10 (1938), pp. 83-113.
• Puri, B. N. Buddhism in Central Asia, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited, Delhi, 1987. (2000 reprint).
• Stein, Aurel M. 1907. Ancient Khotan: Detailed report of archaeological explorations in Chinese Turkestan, 2 vols. Clarendon Press. Oxford. [3]
• Stein, Aurel M. 1921. Serindia: Detailed report of explorations in Central Asia and westernmost China, 5 vols. London & Oxford. Clarendon Press. Reprint: Delhi. Motilal Banarsidass. 1980. [4]
• Watters, Thomas 1904-1905. On Yuan Chwang’s Travels in India. London. Royal Asiatic Society. Reprint: Delhi. Mushiram Manoharlal. 1973.
• Yu, Taishan. 2004. A History of the Relationships between the Western and Eastern Han, Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Western Regions. Sino-Platonic Papers No. 131 March, 2004. Dept. of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania.

Additional links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Khotan

• Silk Road Seattle (The Silk Road Seattle website contains many useful resources including a number of full-text historical works)
• [5] (A site devoted to the Buddhism of Khotan with a copy of Sir Aurel Stein's map of the Tarim Basin and Khotan region)