Mazar Pass

Mazar Pass (Chinese: 麻扎达坂; pinyin: Mázhā dábǎn), also called Sailyak Pass^[2](Chinese: 赛力亚克达坂; pinyin: Sàilìyàkè Dábǎn)^[3] is a long mountain pass with numerous hairpin turns along China National Highway 219 (G219), the highway connecting Xinjiang and Tibet. The mountain pass crosses the Kunlun Mountains. It is between the villages of Kudi and Mazar in Kargilik County in southwestern Xinjiang. Western sources often refer to it as Chiragsaldi Pass.^[4][5]

Mazar Pass (Sailiyake Pass)
Chiragsaldi Pass
(top) southbound view (bottom) northbound view
Elevation	4,969 m (16,302 ft)[1]
Length	40 kilometres (25 mi)[1]
Traversed by	G219
Location	Kargilik County, Xinjiang, China
Range	Kunlun Mountains
Coordinates	36.579°N 77.0035°E / 36.579; 77.0035
Mazar Pass (Sailiyake Pass)

Mazar Pass
Traditional Chinese	麻扎達坂
Simplified Chinese	麻扎达坂
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Mázhā dábǎn
Alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	賽力亞克達坂
Simplified Chinese	赛力亚克达坂
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Sàilìyàkè Dábǎn

The pass is located 240 kilometres (150 mi) from the northern terminus of the G219 highway.^[6] At about 40 kilometres (25 mi) long, it is the longest mountain pass on the Xinjiang-Tibet highway.^[6][1] The highway was first completed in 1957, and fully asphalted in 2013.^[5]

The small village to the south Mazar was so named because it was the site of two Uyghur mazars. The village contains a Chinese army service station.^[6] In recent decades, it also serves as a truck stop for the G219 highway and stop for expeditions en route to K2.^[4][7]

Chiragsaldi Pass was the name used by British explorers during the late 1800s, likewise, Mazar village which at the time was only a caravan campsite was referred to as Chiragsaldi.^[8] This name means "the lamp brew out" referencing the windiness of the campsite.^[9] French army map from early 1900s showed Chiragsaldi Pass (Tchirak-Soldi) and Sailyak Pass (Sarrakh) were different mountain passes, one going west and other going east from the same valley.^[10]