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Tajiks in China
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Tajiks in China
In China, the terms "Tajik" and "Tajik nationality" (Chinese: 塔吉克族; pinyin: Tǎjíkèzú) encompass three distinct ethnic subgroups: the Sarikolis, Wakhis, and Tor Tajiks. The Sarikolis and Wakhis are ethnic Pamiris who live in the Pamir Mountains of Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County, in Kashgar Prefecture, Xinjiang. The Tor Tajiks are ethnic Tajiks who reside in the village of Tor, also in Kashgar Prefecture. The Tajik nationality is one of 56 nationalities or ethnicities officially recognized by the Chinese government.
Despite their name, the majority of Tajiks in China are not ethnic Tajiks but ethnic Pamiris, a different Iranian ethnic group who speak the Eastern Iranian Pamiri languages.
Early 20th-century CE travelers to the region referred to the group as "Mountain Tajiks", or by the Turkic exonym "Ghalcha". Sarikoli- and Wakhi-speaking Tajiks were also referred to as "Sarikolis" and "Wakhis", respectively.
The Pamiri peoples are believed to be the descendants of the Saka-Scythians who inhabited modern-day Xinjiang. The Pamiri languages are descended from various Scythian languages.
The town of Tashkurgan was the capital of the Sarikol Kingdom (色勒庫爾) in the Pamir Mountains.
Xinjiang and its eastern Iranian-speaking peoples underwent gradual Turkification following the region's conquests and settlements by Turkic peoples such as the Uyghurs and Qarakhanids. By the Mongol period, most of these eastern Iranian peoples had assimilated into the Turkic community. The Tajiks claim to be descended from the remaining eastern Iranians who still resided in the Pamir Mountains of Xinjiang. This claim is supported by medieval Chinese literature, documents and modern archaeological evidence.
According to oral tradition, Nasir Khusraw led a mission to the region with four of his disciples: Sayyid Hassan Zarrabi, Sayyid Surab Wali, Sayyid Jalal Bukhari, and Jahan Malikshah. Khusraw purportedly told some of his disciples to settle down in the area to continue to aid and preach to the local converts about Ismailism. Many contemporary pirs (holy men) claim descent from these early disciples.
The Tajiks were administered by the Qing under a system of Begs (chiefs) like the rest of Xinjiang. The Qing claimed suzerainty over the Taghdumbash Pamir in the southwest of Xinjiang, but permitted the Mir of Hunza to administer the region in return for their tributes. The Hunzas were tributaries and allies to Qing China, acknowledging China as suzerain from 1761 onward.
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Tajiks in China
In China, the terms "Tajik" and "Tajik nationality" (Chinese: 塔吉克族; pinyin: Tǎjíkèzú) encompass three distinct ethnic subgroups: the Sarikolis, Wakhis, and Tor Tajiks. The Sarikolis and Wakhis are ethnic Pamiris who live in the Pamir Mountains of Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County, in Kashgar Prefecture, Xinjiang. The Tor Tajiks are ethnic Tajiks who reside in the village of Tor, also in Kashgar Prefecture. The Tajik nationality is one of 56 nationalities or ethnicities officially recognized by the Chinese government.
Despite their name, the majority of Tajiks in China are not ethnic Tajiks but ethnic Pamiris, a different Iranian ethnic group who speak the Eastern Iranian Pamiri languages.
Early 20th-century CE travelers to the region referred to the group as "Mountain Tajiks", or by the Turkic exonym "Ghalcha". Sarikoli- and Wakhi-speaking Tajiks were also referred to as "Sarikolis" and "Wakhis", respectively.
The Pamiri peoples are believed to be the descendants of the Saka-Scythians who inhabited modern-day Xinjiang. The Pamiri languages are descended from various Scythian languages.
The town of Tashkurgan was the capital of the Sarikol Kingdom (色勒庫爾) in the Pamir Mountains.
Xinjiang and its eastern Iranian-speaking peoples underwent gradual Turkification following the region's conquests and settlements by Turkic peoples such as the Uyghurs and Qarakhanids. By the Mongol period, most of these eastern Iranian peoples had assimilated into the Turkic community. The Tajiks claim to be descended from the remaining eastern Iranians who still resided in the Pamir Mountains of Xinjiang. This claim is supported by medieval Chinese literature, documents and modern archaeological evidence.
According to oral tradition, Nasir Khusraw led a mission to the region with four of his disciples: Sayyid Hassan Zarrabi, Sayyid Surab Wali, Sayyid Jalal Bukhari, and Jahan Malikshah. Khusraw purportedly told some of his disciples to settle down in the area to continue to aid and preach to the local converts about Ismailism. Many contemporary pirs (holy men) claim descent from these early disciples.
The Tajiks were administered by the Qing under a system of Begs (chiefs) like the rest of Xinjiang. The Qing claimed suzerainty over the Taghdumbash Pamir in the southwest of Xinjiang, but permitted the Mir of Hunza to administer the region in return for their tributes. The Hunzas were tributaries and allies to Qing China, acknowledging China as suzerain from 1761 onward.
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