Kashgar has been an important trading center since the days of the Silk Road, and still is today. The road from Eastern and Central China branches out to both the north and south of the Taklamakan Desert, and Kashgar is where the two branches meet again in the western part of the desert. The local population is a mixture of Uyghurs, Han Chinese, Kyrgyz, Tajiks and Uzbeks, boasting a colorful ethnic variety. Ancient history records show that as early as the Qin (221-206 BC) and the Han (206 BC-220 AD) dynasties, Kashgar started dealings with the merchants from inner China.