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Turpan[toor´pAn´] Pronunciation Key or Turfan[toor´fAn´] Pronunciation Key, town and oasis (1994 est. pop. 64,300), in the Turpan depression (c.5,000 sq mi/12,950 sq km), E Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. It is an agricultural center producing cotton and cotton textiles, silk, wheat, grapes, dried fruit, and wine. Oil is in the area. Turpan is the chief town of the Turpan depression, the lowest point (505 ft/154 m below sea level) in China. The depression was the center (A.D. 200–400) of a flourishing civilization in which Indian and Persian elements were combined. This civilization was later absorbed by the Uigurs, who had their capital there (9th–13th cent.). Archaeological finds made in the early 20th cent. include much Nestorian literature and the bulk of the extant Manichaean literature.
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