The Chinese Tatar people form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China and their number is close to 5,000 as of 2000.

Distribution:

Most of Chinese Tatar people live in Yining, Tacheng and Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Language:

The Tatar language belongs to the Turkic language family of the Altaic language system. Because the Tatar people mix freely in Xinjiang with the Uygur and the Kazak people, the three languages have had strong effects on one another, and have produced various local dialects. The Tatars' written language is based on Arabic letters.