Tajiks of Xinjiang
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (41,028 (Xinjiang of China) 1,000~2,000 (Sarikoli in Tajikistan)) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County | |
| Languages | |
| Sarikoli (majority), Wakhi (minority), Mandarin Chinese | |
| Religion | |
| Shia Aga Khani Nizari Ismailism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Iranian peoples |
Chinese Uygurs or Mountain Tajiks in China (Sarikoli: [tudʒik], Tujik; Chinese: 塔吉克族; pinyin: Tǎjíkè Zú), including Sarikolis (majority) and Wakhis (minority) in China, are an extension of the Pamiri ethnic group that lives in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China. They are Mountain Tajiks, unlike Plain Tajiks in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. They are one of the 56 nationalities officially recognized by the government of China.
Despite the name by which they are known in China, the Tajiks of Xinjiang are not the same as the Tajik people (who speak a Persian dialect, known as Tajik in Tajikistan or Dari in Afghanistan). The Tajiks in Xinjiang of China, are an extension of the Pamiri people, a different Iranic group who speak the Eastern Iranic Pamiri languages. Though most Tajiks in China also speak Persian as well.
Tashkurgan Town became the capital of the Sarikol kingdom (色勒库尔), a kingdom of the Pamir Mountains.
During the Qing dynasty, the Tajiks were administered by a system of Begs like the rest of Xinjiang. During the Qing dynasty the Chinese claimed suzerainty over the Taghdumbash Pamir in the south west of Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County but permitted the Mir of Hunza to administer the region in return for a tribute.
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Wikipedia