Turkestan

Turkestan,^[a] also spelled Turkistan,^[b] is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and East Turkestan (Xinjiang).^[1][2] The region is located in the northwest of modern day China and to the northwest of its borders, and extends directly to the east of the Caspian Sea. Turkestan is primarily inhabited by Turkic peoples, as well as Russian and Tajik-Persian minorities. Turkestan is subdivided into Afghan Turkestan, Russian Turkestan, and East Turkistan (the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China).^[3]

Throughout history, the region has been exposed to the invasion of several different groups and kingdoms, including the Huns, the Imperial China, Arab Caliphate, the Hellenistic Macedonian Empire, the Achaemenid Empire, various Turkic forces and the Mongol Empire. The Qara Khitai also briefly controlled the majority of Turkestan's land.

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