- Wade-Giles romanization:
- Ho-t’ien
- Conventional:
- Khotan
Hotan
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Where is Hotan located in China?
Hotan is an oasis town in the southwestern part of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, in far western China. It functions as a county-level city and serves as the administrative center for the Hotan prefecture, overseeing a series of counties situated along the southern edge of the Takla Makan Desert.
The Hotan oasis, the largest in the region, includes Karakax to the northwest and Luopu to the east. It is sustained by the Karakax and Yurungkax rivers, which originate in the high Kunlun Mountains to the south. These rivers merge in the northern part of the oasis to create the Hotan River, which flows into the desert to the north.
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What is Hotan known for?
Hotan, an oasis town in China's Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, is known for several things. It has a long history as a major commercial center on the Silk Road, connecting China to the West and India. The town is also an agricultural hub, producing grains, cotton, and fruits, and boasts a well-established textile industry that produces silk and cotton fabrics. Hotan is particularly famous throughout East Asia as the major source of jade and for its metalwork and jewelry.
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What is the climate like in Hotan?
Hotan, China, an oasis town on the southern edge of the Takla Makan Desert, experiences significant temperature variations. The Karakax and Yurungkax rivers, sourced from the Kunlun Mountains, irrigate the oasis, with maximum flow in summer and near-dry conditions for much of the year. The rivers penetrate far into the desert, but only the Hotan River occasionally reaches the Tarim River in the summer.
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What are some important industries or products in Hotan?
Hotan, an oasis town in China's Xinjiang region, is known for its long-established, carefully irrigated cultivation. Major agricultural products include corn, wheat, rice, millet, cotton, and various fruits like mulberries.
Hotan has a well-established textile industry that produces silk and cotton fabrics. The area is also known for its fine wool, which is used to make carpets and felt goods. In addition, Hotan is a source for alluvial gold and is famous throughout East Asia as a major source of jade. The area is also known for its metalwork and jewelry.
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What cultures and people live in Hotan?
Hotan, an oasis town in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, has a rich history shaped by diverse cultures. Originally inhabited by an Aryan people known as the Vijaya, who spoke an Indo-European language and were influenced by northern India and Afghanistan, Hotan was a major commercial hub and a key point for the spread of Buddhism to northern China. In the 10th century, Kashgar conquered Hotan, and in the 12th century, the Xi Xia dynasty took over. The Mongols overran the area in 1219. Today, Hotan has a well-established textile industry and is known for its jade, metalwork, and jewelry.
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How has Hotan’s history along the Silk Road influenced its development?
Hotan's location on the Silk Road significantly shaped its development as a major commercial hub and a key point for the spread of Buddhism to northern China. Serving as an important post between China, the West, and India, Hotan became renowned for its fine fabrics and agricultural wealth.
The city's cultural landscape was influenced by the interaction of Buddhism with various traditions, including shamanism and Zoroastrianism. Hotan was also known for its rugs, combining Chinese details with Central Asian designs. Despite periods of Chinese control, Tibetan disputes, and Mongol conquest, Hotan maintained its importance as a trading center until the incursions of Islam and the decline of the Tang dynasty.
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Hotan, oasis town, southwestern Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, far western China. Hotan forms a county-level city and is the administrative centre of the Hotan prefecture (diqu), which administers a string of counties based on the oases along the southern edge of the Takla Makan Desert.
The oasis of Hotan, the largest of these, includes Karakax (Moyu), to the northwest, and Luopu (Lop), to the east. The oasis is watered by the Karakax (Kalakashi) and Yurungkax (Yulongkashi) rivers, which flow from the high Kunlun Mountains to the south. They join in the north of the oasis to form the Hotan (Khotan) River, which discharges into the desert to the north. The rivers have their maximum flow during summer and are almost dry for much of the year.
Hotan first came into contact with China during the Han dynasty (206 bce–220 ce). During the Xi (Western) Han (206 bce–25 ce), the explorer Zhang Qian twice served as an envoy to the western region (139 and 119 bce), and on his second mission he sent his deputy to Yutian (present-day Hotan). During the expeditions of the Dong (Eastern) Han (25–220 ce) into Central Asia, led by the general Ban Chao, Hotan was conquered for a time in the late 1st century ce. In those early times the area was inhabited by an Aryan people known to the Chinese as the Vijaya, who spoke an Indo-European language and were much influenced by the culture of northern India and Afghanistan. Their kingdom represented an important post on the Silk Road from China to the West (via the Pamirs) and also to India. It was both a major commercial centre and one of the principal places through which Buddhism reached northern China. The Chinese again took Hotan when the expansionist policy of the Tang dynasty (618–907) took Chinese armies into the Tarim Basin in the 630s. Disputed by the Tibetans from the south for a while, the Tang government established the government general of Bisha (the Chinese transcription for Vijaya) there. This was destroyed at the time of the Chinese retreat from Central Asia after their defeat by the Arabs on the Talas River (now in Kazakhstan) in 752.
In the 10th century Hotan was conquered by the neighbouring oasis-state of Kashgar (Kashi), part of the Uighur empire, and in the 12th century it was taken by the Xi Xia dynasty (Tangut peoples). In 1219 it was overrun by the Mongols. It was already famous in China in the 8th century for its fine fabrics and its sophistication, and, when the Venetian traveler Marco Polo visited it in 1274, he noted its importance as a trading centre and its agricultural wealth, particularly its fine cotton. Restored to Chinese control in the mid-18th century, Hotan played a major part in the Muslim Rebellion against the Chinese beginning in 1862 and was one of the last places to be recaptured by Chinese forces in 1878.
The oasis is a long-established centre of carefully irrigated cultivation. Corn (maize), wheat, rice, and millet are the staple grains. Cotton is intensively grown, and the area produces much fruit, including mulberries. It has a well-established textile industry, producing silks and cotton fabrics. Local herds produce fine wool that is used for making carpets and felt goods. The area is a source for a limited amount of alluvial gold and is famous throughout East Asia as the major source of jade. It is also famous for its metalwork and jewelry. Highways connect Hotan to Anxi (in Gansu province) on the east and to Kashgar on the west. There is air service between Hotan and Ürümqi, the capital of Xinjiang. Pop. (2000) 101,750.