Xinjiang, conventional Sinkiang, in full Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, officially Xinjiang Uygur Zizhiqu, Chinese (Pinyin) Xinjiang Weiwu’er Zizhiqu or (Wade-Giles romanization) Hsin-chiang Wei-wu-erh Tzu-chih-ch’ü, Uygur also spelled Uyghur or Uighur, autonomous region of China, occupying the northwestern corner of the country. It is bordered by the Chinese provinces of Qinghai and Gansu to the east, the Tibet Autonomous Region to the south, Afghanistan and the disputed territory of Kashmir to the southwest, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the west, Kazakhstan to the northwest, Russia to the north, and Mongolia to the northeast. It is China’s largest political unit. Its capital