The county seat is in Ruoqiang Town. This is the location which less-detailed maps will label as "Ruoqiang". It lies at an altitude of 848 metres (2,782 ft).
History
The ancient settlement of Charklik was located in what is today Ruoqiang County.
The county was established in 1902 as 婼羌 (Ruòqiāng, "recalcitrant Qiang"). In 1959, the less-offensive written form of "若羌" ("like the Qiang") was adopted.[5] The Uyghur name of the county, "Çakilik", is transliterated in Chinese as "卡克里克" (Qiǎkèlǐkè).
On July 24, 2015, Tieganlike was changed from a township to a town.[9]
The populated areas are located mostly along the northern foothills of the Altyn-Tagh mountain range. North of this strip of irrigated agricultural settlement is the Taklamakan Desert, south, the Altyn-Tagh and Kunlun Mountains.
The well known Lop Lake, these days usually dry, is located in the northeastern part of the county - the section officially known as Luobu Po Town (罗布泊镇), i.e., Lop Lake Town.
The southern part of the county (administratively, Qimantag Township (祁曼塔格乡)), is mountainous. The highest point in Qinghai, Bukadaban Feng, is located on the border of Qinghai and Ruoqiang County. The high plateau between the Altyn-Tagh and the main Kunlun range (which includes the Ulugh Muztagh) is known as the Kumkol Basin: an endorheic basin, where several saline lakes are found. Part of Altun Shan National Nature Reserve is located in Qimantag Township, in southern Ruoqiang County.
Ruoqiang has a cold desert climate (Köppen climate classificationBWk) with extreme seasonal variation in temperature. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −7.4 °C (18.7 °F) in January to 27.5 °C (81.5 °F), and the annual mean is 11.7 °C (53.1 °F). Precipitation totals only 29 millimetres (1.1 in) annually, and mostly falls in summer. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 63% in March to 82% in October, the area receives close to 3,100 hours of bright sunshine annually.
Map including Ruoqiang (labeled as Ruoqiang (Jo-ch'iang)) and surrounding region (DMA, 1980)[b]
Map including Charkhlik (CIA, 1950)
Map including Ruoqiang (labeled as ERH-CH'IANG (CHARKHLIK) (JO-CH'IANG)) (1971)
Economy
As of 1885[update], there was about 2,740 acres (18,113 mu) of cultivated land in Qakilik.[19]
Demographics
As of 2015, 18,983 (55.8%) of the 34,020 residents of the county were Han Chinese, 13,328 (39.2%) were Uyghur and 1,709 were from other ethnic groups.[20]
As of 2005[update], the county had a population of 31,877, of which 18,957 (59.5%) were of Han ethnicity, while Uyghurs numbered 11,761 (36.9%).[5]
As of 1999, 58.72% of the population of the county was Han Chinese and 38.2% of the population was Uyghur.[21]
As of 1997, several township-level divisions had a majority or plurality of Uyghur residents including Wutamu Township (62.3%), Tieganlike Township (61.3%), Ruoqiang Town (57.9%), and Waxxari (Washixia) Township (43.9%).[22]
The proportion of nationalities in Ruoqiang (Qakilik) County, 2018
^From map: "The representation of international boundaries is not necessarily authoritative."
References
^ ab若羌县历史沿革 [Ruoqiang County Historical Development] (in Simplified Chinese). XZQH.org. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2019. 2003年，若羌县总面积199222平方千米，{...}2010年第六次人口普查，若羌县常住总人口35580人，其中：若羌镇9872人，依吞布拉克镇800人，罗布泊镇1713人，铁干里克乡5156人，吾塔木乡4082人，瓦石峡乡5886人，铁木里克乡457人，祁曼塔格乡14人，兵团三十六团7600人。2012年，自治区政府（新政函[2012]131号）批复同意撤销瓦石峡乡，设立瓦石峡镇。调整后，全县辖4个镇、4个乡。
^1997年若羌县行政区划 [1997 Ruoqiang County Administrative Divisions]. XZQH.org. 13 December 2010. Retrieved 4 April 2020. 人口2.8万，有维吾尔、汉、回、东乡等11个民族，其中维吾尔族占38.4％，汉族占56％，辖2镇3乡，
^关于同意若羌县铁干里克乡撤乡设镇的批复(新政函【2015】182号). 新疆民政 (in Simplified Chinese). 30 July 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2019. 2015年7月24日，自治区人民政府同意撤销若羌县铁干里克乡建制，设立铁干里克镇，其行政区域界线、政府驻地及隶属关系不变。
^行政区划. 若羌县人民政府网站 (in Chinese). Retrieved 2 December 2019. 全县共有4乡4镇，25个行政村、8个社区 若羌镇{...}依吞布拉克镇{...}罗布泊镇{...}铁干里克乡{...}吾塔木乡{...}瓦石峡镇{...}铁木里克乡{...}祁曼塔格乡{...}
^2018年统计用区划代码和城乡划分代码：若羌县 [2018 Statistical Area Numbers and Rural-Urban Area Numbers: Ruoqiang County] (in Simplified Chinese). National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China. 2018. Retrieved 3 December 2019. 统计用区划代码 名称 652824100000 若羌镇 652824101000 依吞布拉克镇 652824102000 罗布泊镇 652824103000 瓦石峡镇 652824104000 铁干里克镇 652824201000 吾塔木乡 652824203000 铁木里克乡 652824204000 祁曼塔克乡 652824501000 兵团三十六团
^ abXie Yuzhong 解玉忠 (2003). 地名中的新疆 (in Simplified Chinese). Ürümqi: 新疆人民出版社. p. 145. ISBN7-228-08004-1. 依吞布拉克 Yetimbulak {...} 瓦石峡 Waxxari {...}
^3-7 各地、州、市、县(市)分民族人口数 (in Simplified Chinese). شىنجاڭ ئۇيغۇر ئاپتونوم رايونى新疆维吾尔自治区统计局 Statistic Bureau of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. 15 March 2017. Archived from the original on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
^1997年若羌县行政区划 [1997 Qakilik County Administrative Divisions]. XZQH.org (in Simplified Chinese).
^3-7 各地、州、市、县(市)分民族人口数 [3-7 Population by Nationality by Prefecture, State, City and County (City)]. tjj.xinjiang.gov.cn (in Chinese). Statistical Bureau of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. 2020-06-10. Archived from the original on 2020-11-01. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
^和田至若羌铁路将开工建设 (Construction of the Hotan-Ruopqiang Railway will begin), 2017-05-10
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![Map including Ruoqiang (labeled as Ruoqiang (Jo-ch'iang)) and surrounding region (DMA, 1980)[b]](/en/File:Operational_Navigation_Chart_G-7,_6th_edition.jpg)
