Kashi, also known as Kashgar in the Uygur language, was called Shule, Renru and Shufu in ancient times. Located in the middle of the Kashi Oasis in the west part of South Xinjiang, Kashi City occupies a total area of 965,000 square kilometers and has a total population of more than 220,000, of whom nearly 180,000 are urban residents.
More than 2,100 years ago, Kashi was already the junction of the south and north routes on the ancient Silk Road in China and one of the transport hubs and ports of the country in cultural and economic exchanges between China and the West countries. For more than 2,000 years, Kashi has been a famous political, economic, cultural and transportation center in the south side of the Tianshan Mountain.
Kashi is located at the central area of the Asia-Europe Continent and in the middle reaches of the Kizil River. With a maximum altitude of 1,502 meters and the minimum altitude of 1,264 meters, Kashi is in the temperate zone of continental climate, with few rainfall and distinctive four seasons. The annual average temperature in Kashi is 11.7˘J. January is the coldest month in a year, with an average temperature of minus 6.5˘J and July is the hottest month, with an average temperature of 25.9˘J. Frost-free period in Kashi is 215 days, average annual sunshine time reaches 2,822 hours and average annual precipitation is 62.7 millimeters, with mostly northwest winds.
Kashi City is one of the oldest and most fertile oasis in the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang. With good weather and distinctive four seasons, Kashi is praised as ˇ§a land of melons and fruitsˇ¨, abundant with fruits such as melons, watermelon, grapes, and guava, etc.
With beautiful natural sceneries and rich cultural relics and historic sites, Kashi enjoys rich folk custom and is the most important tourism destination in South Xinjiang. In this area, famous tourist spots include the Pamir Plateau, the Yarkant River, the Mount Chogori ˇV the second highest peak in the world, the Tomb of Xiangfei (Fragrant Concubine) ˇV a large-type Islamic architecture, the Id Kah Mosque ˇV the largest Muslim mosque in Xinjiang, the Taklamakan Desert known as the ˇ§death seaˇ¨, the Mount Mutag Ata known as the father of glaciers, the thousand-year-old Moer Buddha Pagoda and the Taxkorgan stone town.
