The Tartars, with a population of 4,127, mainly live in Yining, Tacheng, Altay, and Urumqi of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. A few are distributed in Burqin and Qitai.

In history, the Tartars were called "Dadan", "Tartar" or "Dada". In the mid-15th century, Tartar people established the Kashan Khanate in the area between the Volga River and the Kama River. In the early years of the 20th century, some Kashan people migrated to Xinjiang and later made up a minority group of China.

The Tartar language belongs to the Western Xiong branch of the Turkic group of the Altaic family. Its written form is based on the Arabic letters. As the Tartars have long intermixed with the Uygurs and Kazaks, they gradually adopted their languages.

In history, the Tartars living in cities are good businessmen and some worked in educational enterprises. In the past century, they have made great contribution to the construction of Xinjiang. Today, as the market economy develops, the traditional mercantile people are playing an increasingly important role in society.

The Tartars are Moslems. Their baked cake and pastry are very popular in Xinjiang.