Takla Makan Desert

Dust storm in Taklamakan from space, June 25, 2005

The Taklamakan (also Taklimakan) is China's largest desert, and is considered to be the second largest shifting sand desert in the entire world. Lying in the large Tarim basin of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang in northwest China, the desert wasteland extends for over 123,550 square miles. The constantly shifting sands and extreme weather conditions of the region has earned the desert the forbodinng nickname of "The Sea of Death". While the nickname for the desert reflects the harsh conditions of life on the sand, more accurate entymological traces of the name translate Takla Makan as something closer to "unreturnable".

Geography

The Takla Makan is distinguished by its constantly moving sand dunes, some of which reach heights of over 109 yards high. In extremely rare cases, sand dunes in the Takla Makan have been measured at over 328 yards. However, the smaller dunes are far more common as the constant winds in the desert keep the sand moving. Some estimates state that the dunes can move as much as 164 yards each year. While the perpetual movement of the sand contributes to its wild and untameable beauty, the constant movement hinders vegetation growth and threatens local populations. Particularly threatened are the rare oases in the Takla Makan, who are constantly in danger of being consumed by the shifting sands. In recent years a movement has been undertaken by the Chinese government to plant a series of wind resistent plants in areas of high erosion. The planting had slightly improved the livlihood of surrounding population, however, their long term effects remain to be seen.

While the man made windbreaks in the area may prove slightly beneficial, much of the harsh conditions in the area are simply a result of natural geographic features. The Takla Makan lies with a large desert basin, fringed on all sides by protective mountain rages. The mountain ring, formed by the Tian mountains to the north, the Kunlun mountains to the southwest and the Altun mountains in the south, forms a wind tunnel where the winds cannot easily escape the desert.

As is common in all desert environments, water is scarce. The only river that flows into the Takla Mahan are the White Jade River and the Yarkant River, neither of which carry enough to support the population. Hikers and other visitors in the region are often persuaded from crossing the desert due to the sheer amounts of water that must be carried in order to stay alive. If travelers are lucky, however, they can avoid extreme drought by moving between the desert oases towns of Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khotan (Hetian) in the South-West, Kuqa and Turfan in the North, and Loulan and Dunhuang in the East.

History

The archeological treasures found in its sand buried ruins point to Tocharian, early Hellenistic, and Indian/Buddhistic influences. Its treasures and dangers have been vividly described by Aurel Stein, Sven Hedin, Albert von Le Coq, and Paul Pelliot. More recently, Antonio Graceffo crossed the desert and wrote about his experiences.

Numerous mummies, some 4000 years old, have been found in the region. They show the wide range of peoples who have passed through. Many of the mummies appear European and may have been members of the Tocharians, who spoke Tocharian, an Indo-European language.

Later, the Taklamakan was inhabited by Turkic peoples. Starting with the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese periodically extended their control to the oasis cities of the Taklamakan in order to control the important silk route trade across Central Asia. Periods of Chinese rule were interspersed with rule by Turkic and Mongol and Tibetan peoples. The present population consists largely of Turkic Uyghur and Kazakh people in the countryside, while the population of the larger cities is predominantly Han Chinese.

Sources and Further Reading

• Jarring, Gunnar. 1997. The toponym Takla-makan Turkic Languages. Vol. 1.
• Hopkirk, Peter. 1984. Foreign devils on the Silk Road: the search for the lost cities and treasures of Chinese Central Asia. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 0870234358 and ISBN 9780870234354
• Hopkirk, Peter. 1994. The great game: the struggle for empire in central Asia. Kodansha globe. New York: Kodansha International. ISBN 1568360223 and ISBN 9781568360225
• Graceffo, Antonio. 2005. The desert of death on three wheels. Columbus, Ohio: Gom Press. ISBN 1932966374 and ISBN 9781932966374
• Tourism in the Takla Makan Retrieved October 22, 2007.
• Encyclopedia Britannica Retrieved October 22, 2007.

See also

• Tarim mummies
• List of deserts by area

External links

• Graceffo, Antonio. Taklamakan Desert. Escape Artist. Retrieved April 28, 2007.
• Satellite Images from China. China Profile. Retrieved April 28, 2007.
• Bezlova, Antoaneta. November 8, 2006. Taklamakan - Desert With No Ocean Underground, Inter Press Service News Agency. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
• Takla Makan Desert, TravelChinaGuide. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
• Wang Binghua. April 1996. The Most Important Findings of Niya in Taklamakan, Silk Road Foundation. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
• The Takla Makan Mummies, NOVA, PBS Online. Retrieved June 18, 2007.
• Reid, Howard. January 20, 1998. Mysterious Mummies of China, NOVA, PBS Online. Retrieved June 18, 2007.

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