Tibetan

A young Tibetan monk in Lhasa. The monastic practice of lamaism is one of meditation, chanting, and recitation. The monks wear traditional simple orange robes and have very few material possessions.

A Mongolian people inhabiting Tibet who practise a form of Mahāyāna Buddhism, introduced in the 7th century. Since China's Cultural Revolution 1966–68, refugee communities have formed in India and Nepal. The Tibetan language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan language family.

Traditionally Tibet supported a large number of monasteries, and lamas (spiritual guides) comprised as much as a quarter of the population. The Tibetans are known for their religious arts and literature, the latter having been written in a script based on northern Gupta. Pre-Buddhist beliefs, Bon, have remained significant. The Chinese have long recognized Tibet's strategic significance and in 1959 they finally annexed this formerly independent kingdom. During the Cultural Revolution many monasteries were destroyed and there was a large influx of Han Chinese into Tibet. Tibet has both sedentary and nomadic populations, and many Tibetans were traditionally involved in trade. The Tibetans herd sheep, goats, yaks, and dzo (half yak, half cow). Barley is the principal crop and roasted barley is combined with butter and tea to make tsampa, the staple food. In addition to monogamous and polygynous unions, the Tibetans traditionally permitted polyandrous marriages, where a wife was often shared by several brothers.