Kuqa, Xinjiang

Kuqa (/ˈkuːtʃə/ KOO-chə) is a county-level city in Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang, China. It is located in the center of Xinjiang, where the northern limit of the Tarim Basin meets the southern foot of the Tian Shan mountains. The area was once the site of the ancient Buddhist kingdom of Kucha, an important Central Asian state during the height of the Silk Road. The Uyghur-majority city is known for its Buddhist caves and temple ruins which predate the arrival of Islam.

History

The archaeological excavation of Neolithic cultural sites, such as the Haradun site[zh] (Chinese: 龟兹故城), indicates that ancient human activity occurred in the area of present-day city as early as 12,000 years ago.

According to the Book of Han (completed in 111 CE), Kucha was the largest of the "Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Western Regions", with a population of 81,317, including 21,076 persons able to bear arms.

In 630, Xuanzang, a well-known Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveller and translator, visited Kucha during the early Tang dynasty.

In the book Hudud al-'Alam, written in 982 by an unknown Arab or Persian writer and presented to Abu'l Haret Muhammad of Guzgan (present-day northern Afghanistan), the following is written regarding Kucha:

"Kucha is located on the Chinese border and belongs to China, but the indigenous people, Dokuzoguzes, at times are engaged in raids and looting. This city has many advantages."

Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat, a military general, in his book Tarikh-i-Rashidi used the name Kūsān for Kucha.

Mahmud Kashgari, in his Compendium of Turkic Languages (Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk), wrote the following about Kucha: "It is one of the cities built by Zülqarnayin" (Alexander the Great). He also wrote that Kucha was a Uyghur town.

In 1758, the Qing dynasty took control of the area, and the Chinese transliteration Kuche (庫車) was made the name of the area. Kucha was made a county in 1913, within the fourth district[specify] of Xinjiang Province. In 1930, Xinjiang was partitioned into 12 districts to establish Tokesu County.[clarification needed]

On 20 December 2019, Kuqa County was disestablished and Kuqa City was created in its place.

Climate

Geography

Kuqa is located at the southern periphery of the Tian Shan range, the northern portion of the Tarim Basin, and the centre of Xinjiang. It occupies part of the northeastern portion of Aksu Prefecture, bordering Xinhe County and Xayar County, as well as Luntai County and Heiing County in the Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture.

The city has a continental desert climate (Köppen BWk), with an average annual precipitation of 74.6 millimetres (2.94 in), a majority of which occurs in summer. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −7.2 °C (19.0 °F) in January to 25.3 °C (77.5 °F) in July, and the annual mean is 11.29 °C (52.3 °F). The frost-free period lasts for 266 days on average. With monthly per cent possible sunshine ranging from 54% in March to 69% in September and October, sunshine is abundant and the city receives 2,712 hours of bright sunshine annually.

Administrative divisions

Kuqa has 4 subdistricts, 8 towns, 6 townships, and 1 other area[specify] under its administration:

Economy

Agricultural products include wheat, corn, rice, cotton as well as pears, apricots, melons, grapes, pomegranates, and figs. Specialty products include Sanbei sheep (三北羊) lambskin, white apricots, and thin-shelled walnuts. Mineral resources include oil and coal. Industries include coal mining, tractor manufacturing and repair, construction and processing for non-staple foods.

In 1885, there was about 99,200 acres (654,476 mu) of cultivated land in what is now Kuqa City.

Demographics

Uyghurs constitute a supermajority of Kuqa's population, while the Han Chinese form a significant minority. In 1999, 89.93% of the population of Kuqa County was Uyghur and 9.49% was Han Chinese. The ethnic composition was almost the same in 2015, with 440,125 of the 492,535 residents (89.3%) of Kuqa being Uyghur, 49,021 (9.9%) Han Chinese, and 3,389 from other ethnic groups.

Transportation

Kuqa is served by China National Highway 217, China National Highway 314, the Southern Xinjiang Railway and Kuqa Qiuci Airport.

Kuqa Town

Kuqa is also the name of the central town (Chinese: 库车镇), located in the easternmost area of Kuqa City. It is the second largest town of Aksu Prefecture. It has an area of 14,528.74 square meters and a population of 470,600 people, composed of fourteen ethnic groups, including Uyghurs, Han, Hui, and Mongols. Kuqa is a thriving town of oil and natural gas development in the Tarim Basin, as well as tourism, as it was once the site of the ancient Buddhist kingdom of Kucha.[citation needed] Tourist attractions include the Kumtura Caves, Subashi Temple Ruins, and Kizilgaha Caves.

Notable people

• Qurban Mamut, former editor-in-chief of the official Xinjiang Cultural Journal (《新疆文化》) and detainee in the Xinjiang internment camps

Historical maps

• Map including Kuqa (labeled as K'U-CH'E (KUCHA)) and surrounding region from the International Map of the World (AMS, 1950)
• Map including Kuqa (labeled as Kuga/ Kuche/ Kuqaxian) (DMA, 1981)
• From the Operational Navigation Chart; map including Kuqa (K'u-ch'e) (DMA, 1985)
• Kucha in the Kushan Empire under Kanishka the Great

Notes

External links