The Chagatai Khanate (1225-1370)

Before his death Genghis Khan divided the empire among his sons. His second son Chagatai received Zhetysu (Semirechye), East Turkestan and Transoxiana. The first centre of the khanate was Almaliq in the Ili valley.

The ruling house was Mongol, but most of the population came from Turkic tribes, and the dynasty soon became Turkic itself. Kebek Khan (1318-1326) moved the centre to Transoxiana, built a palace at Qarshi and reformed the coinage: silver coins struck in his name were known as "kebeki" for a long time. Tarmashirin Khan (1331-1334) converted to Islam.

In the mid-14th century the khanate split in two. Moghulistan arose in the east, while in Transoxiana power passed to Turkic emirs. In 1370 one of them, Timur, became master of the region. The literary language of Navai and Babur in the Timurid age is still known as Chagatai Turkic.