Historical human activities accelerated climate-driven desertification in China's Mu Us Desert.

•We revealed human–nature interactions during a 1128-year historical period.•Qin and Han: farming boom in an ecologically favorable environment.•Era of disunity: HAS exodus and grazing increase in regional desertification.•Sui and Tang: increasing population and livestock with continuing land degradation.•Human activities accelerated climate-driven desertification in the Mu Us Desert.