Study results in this paper have indicated that the Holocene climate in Xinjiang, Northwestern China hasbeen alternating between wet and dry conditions, and was punctuated with a series of abrupt climate shifts. A sedimentcore taken from Barkol Lake in the northern Xinjiang of Northwest China was analyzed at 1 cm interval for grain-sizedistribution. Abrupt climate shifts revealed by the grain-size proxy occurred at ca 1.4, 3.0, 4.3, 5.6, 8.0 cal kyr B.P.,which were well correlated to both the abrupt shifts recorded in the North Atlantic Ocean (NAO) and the Holocene seasurface temperature (SST) cooling events in the Arabian Ocean. The correlation indicated that the climatic changes inthe extreme arid Northwest China were associated with the NAO, probably via the North Atlantic Oscillation-affectedwesterly winds. The strength and position of westerly winds probably modulated the Siberian-Mongolian high-pressure system (winter monsoon), and played an important role in climate change of Northwest China. Moreover, anevident drought interval during the middle Holocene was also revealed by grain-size proxy.