Uyghur

(Older Spelling) Ui·ghur,

[wee-goor]

noun

plural

Uyghurs ,

plural

Uyghur .

1. a member of a predominantly Muslim Turkic-speaking people, dominant in Mongolia and eastern Turkestan from the 8th to 12th centuries a.d., and now living in northwestern China, mainly in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

2. the Turkic language of the Uyghurs.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Uyghurs or their language.

Other Word Forms

• Uyghurian adjective
• Uyghuric adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Uyghur¹

First recorded in 1840–45; from Uyghur; a self-designation of the Uyghur people

Example Sentences

The crackdown on Christians fits a broader pattern that in recent years has included the persecution of Tibetan Buddhists, Uyghur Muslims, and members of smaller groups such as Falun Gong.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In Xinjiang, around a million Uyghur Muslims have been detained in “re-education” camps, as is well documented.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Beijing has been accused for years of repressing the Muslim Uyghur minority in the province, which borders Kazakhstan.

Read more on Barron's

An unverified video posted on Instagram showed around 30 people gathered on Thursday in an area of the Almaty region that has a large Uyghur population.

Read more on Barron's

China was seeking to halt research by Laura Murphy, professor of human rights and contemporary slavery at Sheffield Hallam, into allegations Uyghur Muslims in the north-western region of Xinjiang were subject to forced labour.

Read more on BBC