People or range · Self-governing peoples of The Tarim, the Uyghurs and Xia · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Lop people

East of Charklik the Tarim river ends in the shifting marshes and salt flats of Lop Nur.

A few people live there on fish and reeds, herd, hunt wild camels and guide the caravans on the desert crossing to Dunhuang. The old kingdoms of Kroraina (Loulan) and Shanshan are long gone, and the Tibetan-era fort of Miran is a ruin. What is known of the people comes from later travellers: Marco Polo (about 1273) names a town and desert of Lop, and Stein in 1906 found a thin scattered population of Lopliks round Charklik (Wikipedia).

For 1200 nothing is recorded: no chief, tribute or enemy. The nearest Muslim prince is the khan of Khotan, the nearest imperial power the Tangut at Shazhou (Dunhuang) at the far end of the road, and neither is shown to rule them.

Who holds it

Title
Headmen of the fishing and herding groups of Lop; none named
Since
not pinned
Born
not known
Family
Not known. Later travellers describe a small, scattered people (Polo c. 1273; Stein in 1906: the Lopliks).
Confidence
low

Read: Wikipedia 'Charklik (ancient settlement)', 'Shanshan', 'Loulan Kingdom', 'Miran (Xinjiang)'. Nothing for 1200.

Overlord

None shown. Khotan by claim; the Tangut at Shazhou for the road's far end.

What it holds

  • The Lop Nur marshes, reeds and fisheries
  • Wild camels, game and salt of the desert edge
  • The guiding of caravans on the Lop desert crossing to Dunhuang

How it was acquired

Not recorded.

Allies and rivals

West: Charklik and Cherchen, Khotan beyond. East: the Tangut empire's Shazhou (txi sheet) and the Altyn Tagh herders to the south.

How things stand that morning

Not recorded.

Wealth

Fish, reeds, game, salt and guiding fees. No figures.

Military

None recorded.

Threats

  • Drought; the shifting of the Tarim's lower course and the marshes
  • Thirst on the desert crossing

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: No source for 1200; later travellers and archaeology only.

On the map: The lake's position in 1200 is not known; the Tarim has shifted its lower bed more than once. The east edge meets the Tangut ground of the txi sheet in the Kumtag desert; the exact line is not known.

Sources and studies

  1. Wikipedia, 'Charklik (ancient settlement)'
  2. Wikipedia, 'Shanshan'
  3. Wikipedia, 'Loulan Kingdom'
  4. Wikipedia, 'Miran (Xinjiang)'
  5. Marco Polo, Travels (c. 1298), chapters on Kashgar, Yarkand, Khotan, Pein, Charchan and Lop; recalled, not rechecked here

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.