Turkestan

thumb|right|The West Turkestan region is noted on this 1914 map as simply "Turkestan" Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan, is a historical name for the region of Asia lying between the Caspian Sea to the west, Siberia to the north, the Gobi Desert to the east, and Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tibet to the south. Turkestan is primarily inhabited by Turkic peoples, as well as Russian and Tajik-Persian minorities. It is subdivided into West Turkestan, which historically belonged to the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, and East Turkestan (identified either with the Tarim Basin/Southern Xinjiang or with Xinjiang as a whole), which forms part of China.

Throughout history, the region has been exposed to the invasion of several different groups and kingdoms, including the Huns, Hepthalites, Bactrians, Imperial China, Arab Caliphate, Hellenistic Macedonian Empire, Achaemenid Empire, as well as various Turkic states and the Mongol Empire. The Qara Khitai also briefly controlled a significant bulk of Turkestan.