Ürümqi

Ürümqi is the capital of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the most 'inland' city in the world. It lies in the lofty ice-capped Bogda Peak (part of the Tianshan Range)and vast Salt Lake in the east; in the rolling pine-covered Southern hill, a well-known scenic district, in the south; and in the alternating fields and sand dunes of Zunggar Basin in the northwest. Urumqi  means "A beautiful Pasture land " in ancient Mongolian used by the Junggar tribe. Ürümqi is a multi-national city, where 43 ethnic groups reside. The city's rich cultural diversity is demonstrated by many ethnic minorities in the area. There are two major ethnic groups, the Han Chinese and the Uyghur, Other ethnic groups in Ürümqi include Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Mongols and Hui Muslims. Ürümqi has a long history. The place has been home these ethnic groups for nearly 2,000 years and became a heavily guarded fort in the Han Dynasty. The ancient Chinese Silk Road went through Xinjiang, known at that time as the Western Regions, and made Ürümqi an important stopover.

wikitravel.org/en/Urumqi

July 2009 Ürümqi riots
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2009_%C3%9Cr%C3%BCmqi_riots