The greater Turkistan is subdivided into West ( former Soviet Union countries ) and East Turkistan (administered as the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region by the PRC.
Chinese Turkistan/Uyghuristan was twice independent in modern times (1933-34 and 1944-49) and today there is a strong sentiment for the independent East Turkistan again.
Uyghurs are a Turkic people and follow Islam as their religion. Uyghurs in Xinjiang number 8.346.000 and constitute 45.2% of the total population of the region.