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The majority of Tibet's
population of 1,890,000 are Tibetans. Tibet is
so thinly populated that it averages out 1.6 8
persons per square kilometer. About 90% of the
people live on a mix of farming and husbandry.
Farmers live in the valleys of Tsangpo River (Brahmapotra)
and its major tributaries Kyichu and
Nuuang-chu. This area produces barely, wheat,
peas and rape-seed. |
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The great northern grassland
which occupies a good half of Tibet is the
home of nomads, yaks and sheep. Nomads have no
fixed abodes, and keep roaming along fine
pastures together with all their belongings,
tents and Livestock. The remaining population,
approximately 10%, live in towns earning their
living mainly on business and handicrafts.
Many are also factory workers and government
officials. |
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 Ideology
of people in this land differs greatly from
any other nationality both in China and in the
rest of the world. Religion means almost
everything. Many live for the next life,
rather than for the present. They accumulate
deeds of virtue and pray for their final
liberation and enlightenment. The lips and
hands of elder Tibetans are never still,
either busied in murmuring the six syllable
mantric prayer, "OM Ma Ni Pad Me Hum" ("Hail
to the Jewel in the Lotus") or in rotating
prayer wheels or counting prayer beads. Pious
pilgrims from every corner of Tibet gather
every day at the Jokhang Temple and Bharkor
offering donations and praying with their
heart and soul for all living beings.
Frequent visitors to Tibet can determine which
region a local person comes from by judging
their costumes and their dialects. Locals from
agricultural regions dress in woolen,
home-woven gowns, and those from the
grasslands are clad in sheepskin. Men from
Chamdo wear huge tassels of black or red silk,
while Lhasa residents are more stylish and
modern, often wearing Western clothes. There
are a wide variety of dialects in the Tibetan
language, but they can mainly be categorized
into four: Lhasa, Tsang (Shigatse and Gyantse),
Chamdo and Amdo. |
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