Turkestan

or Tur·ki·stan

[ tur-kuh-stan, -stahn, tur-kuh-stan, -stahn ]

noun
  1. a vast region in western and central Asia, east of the Caspian Sea: includes territory in the south central part of Xinjiang province in China (Eastern Turkestan or Chinese Turkestan ), a strip of northern Afghanistan, and the area (Russian Turkestan ) comprising the republics of Kazakhstan, Kirghizia (Kyrgyzstan), Tadzhikistan (Tajikistan), Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Origin of Turkestan

1
First recorded in 1710–20; from Persian Torkestān; literally, “land of the Turks”

Other words from Turkestan

  • Tur·ke·stan·i·an, adjective, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Turkestan in a sentence

  • In the past, it has attempted to pin blame for a number of violent incidents on the East Turkistan Islamic Movement.

    China's Dangerous Delusion | Paul Mooney | July 12, 2009 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • It now really belongs to the small tribe of Turkic origin which, after occupying Turkistan, has spread even into the Crimea.

    The Desert World | Arthur Mangin
  • Nearly every well-to-do establishment in Afghan Turkistan has one or two Hazara slaves.

    The Gates of India | Thomas Holdich
  • Finding himself at the feet of the Governor of Turkistan, his feelings must not have been of the most reassuring nature.

    Some Heroes of Travel | W. H. Davenport Adams
  • The inhabitants of Western Europe can form no conception of the force of the winds in Turkistan.

    Some Heroes of Travel | W. H. Davenport Adams
  • There must be a "pretty considerable deal" of gabble towards the month of November in that English Turkistan.

    The Book of Christmas | Thomas K. Hervey

British Dictionary definitions for Turkestan

Turkestan

Turkistan

/ (ˌtɜːkɪˈstɑːn) /


noun
  1. an extensive region of central Asia between Siberia in the north and Tibet, India, Afghanistan, and Iran in the south: formerly divided into West (Russian) Turkestan (also called Soviet Central Asia), comprising present-day Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan and the S part of Kazakhstan, and East (Chinese) Turkestan, approximating to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012