 At the time of the Qing conquest in 1759, Dzungaria was inhabited by steppe dwelling, nomadic Dzungar people, Oirat Mongols who practiced Tibetan Buddhism.The Tarim Basin was inhabited by sedentary, oasis dwelling, Turkic-speaking Muslim farmers, now known as the Uyghur people.The two regions were governed as separate circuits until Xinjiang was made into a single province in 1884.