Taklamakan

American  

[tah-kluh-muh-kahn] / ˌtɑ klə məˈkɑn /

Or Taklimakan

noun

1. a desert in south central Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, in China. About 125,000 sq. mi. (323,750 sq. km).

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Etymology

Origin of Taklamakan

First recorded in 1895–1900; of uncertain origin: perhaps from Turkic taqlar makan “place of ruins”; perhaps from Uyghur Takla, from Persian tark “to abandon” + Persian makan “place”; some Chinese scholars connect Taklamakan and Tocharian ( def. )

Example Sentences

China's nuclear weapon tests usually take place domestically and it previously test-fired ICBMs west into the Taklamakan Desert in the Xinjiang region.

From BBC • Sep. 25, 2024

Among the most well-preserved are the Tarim mummies of Xinjiang, China, who were buried in boat-shaped coffins up to 4,000 years ago in the Taklamakan Desert.

From National Geographic • Aug. 7, 2023

More than 2,000 years ago, Bronze Age inhabitants buried mummies in the Taklamakan, according to a French-funded excavation.

From Washington Times • Oct. 17, 2021

Desert mummies span the globe, from caves in Nevada to ancient Egypt to the Taklamakan desert in China.

From The Verge • Jun. 13, 2017

The Taklamakan and its buried cities gave way to the western high plateaus where the ground hardened into clay, and gorges had been cut into the rock shelves.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri