The name "Kirgizjangal" references the nearby historically infamous location of "Kirghiz Jangal" (), which literally means "Kirghiz jungle" or "Kirghiz thicket." Located about to the west, it was a location best avoided by caravan traders between the Indian subcontinent and Tarim Basin (southern Xinjiang). Prior to the Qing dynasty conquest of Xinjiang, the area was inhabited by Kirghiz nomads. The Kirghiz from the region were known to be bandits. They would rob caravans and sell its crew into slavery in Badakhshan. When the Qing dynasty first took control of the region in the late 1700s, they expelled the Kirghiz from the area. However, when the Qing control of region weakened during the Taiping Rebellion and Dungan Revolt in 1850s-1870s, the Kirghiz returned. This along with the economic impacts of those rebellions led to reduction in trade along the caravan route between the Indian subcontinent and Tarim Basin.