| Tibet (older spelling Thibet; Tibetan: | | | | holiest centre |
| ??; Wylie: Bod; Lhasa dialect IPA: | | | | The Potala Palace in Lhasa is Tibet's |
| [p?o`?]; Simplified and Traditional | | | | holiest centre |
| Chinese: ??, Hanyu Pinyin: Xizang; also | | | | Name |
| referred to as ?? (Simplified Chinese), | | | | In Tibetan |
| ?? (Traditional Chinese), Zangqu (Hanyu | | | | Tibetans call their homeland Bod ( ??), |
| Pinyin), see Name section below) is a | | | | pronounced pö in Lhasa dialect. It is |
| plateau region in Central Asia and the | | | | first attested in the geography of |
| indigeneous home to the Tibetan people. | | | | Ptolemy as ß???? (batai) (Beckwith, C. |
| With an average elevation of 4,900 m | | | | U. of Indiana Diss. 1977). Tibetans |
| (16,000 ft), it is the highest region on | | | | refer to Tibet as a "fatherland" |
| Earth and is commonly referred to as the | | | | (Tibetan: ??????; Wylie: pha-yul), |
| "Roof of the World". | | | | whereas "motherland" (Tibetan: ??????; |
| Existing as a seperate nation for | | | | Wylie: ma-yul) is a neologism introduced |
| centuries, Tibet is today administered | | | | in the 1960s to refer to China. |
| mostly under the People's Republic of | | | | In Chinese |
| China. Tibet is also officially claimed | | | | The modern Chinese name for Tibet, ?? |
| by the Republic of China (Taiwan). | | | | (Xizang), is a phonetic transliteration |
| However in the Tibetan sovereignty | | | | derived from the region called Tsang |
| debate, the Chinese government and the | | | | (western Ü-Tsang). The name originated |
| Government of Tibet in Exile have | | | | during the Qing Dynasty of China, ca. |
| disagreed over the legitimacy of Tibet | | | | 1700. It can be broken down into "xi" ? |
| becoming a part of China since 1959, and | | | | (literally "west"), and "zang" ? |
| whether this incorporation into the | | | | (literally "Buddhist scripture" or |
| Chinese homelands was legitimate. | | | | "storage"). The term can be interpreted |
| The Tibetan Empire came into existence | | | | as either "Buddhist scripture of the |
| in the seventh century when Emperor | | | | west" or "western storage." The |
| Songtsän Gampo united many areas and | | | | pre-1700s historic Chinese term for |
| tribes of the region. Since the early | | | | Tibet was ?? (Tufan, Medieval Chinese |
| 1600s a lineage of allegedly reborn | | | | pronuncation: /t'obw?n/), which comes |
| (tulku) magistrates, known as the Dalai | | | | from the Turkish word for "heights" and |
| Lamas have administrated Tibet, and the | | | | is also the origin of the English term |
| fourteen Dali Lama's are beleived to be | | | | "Tibet." |
| the incarnations of Avalokiteśvara | | | | The government of the People's Republic |
| ("Chenrezig" [spyan ras gzigs] in | | | | of China equates Tibet with the Tibet |
| Tibetan), the bodhisattva of compassion. | | | | Autonomous Region (TAR). As such, the |
| Between the 17th century and 1959, the | | | | name "Xizang" is equated with the TAR. |
| Dalai Lama was the head of the Tibetan | | | | In order to refer non-TAR Tibetan areas, |
| government, administering religious and | | | | or to all of cultural Tibet, the term ?? |
| adminstrative authourity over a large | | | | Zangqu (literally, "ethnic Tibetan |
| portion of the country from the | | | | areas") is used. However, |
| traditional capital Lhasa, regarded as | | | | Chinese-language versions of pro-Tibetan |
| Tibet's holiest city. | | | | independence websites, such as the Free |
| When the Government of Tibet in Exile | | | | Tibet Campaign, the Voice of Tibet, and |
| and the Tibetan refugee community | | | | Tibet Net use ?? ("Xizang"), not ?? |
| worldwide refer to Tibet, they mean a | | | | ("Zangqu"), to mean historic Tibet. |
| large area that formed the cultural | | | | Some English-speakers reserve "Xizang", |
| entity of Tibet for many centuries, | | | | the Chinese word transliterated into |
| consisting of the traditional provinces | | | | English, for the TAR, to keep the |
| of Amdo, Kham (Khams), and Ü-Tsang | | | | concept distinct from that of historic |
| (Dbus-gtsang), but excluding areas | | | | Tibet. Some pro-independence advocates |
| outside the People's Republic of China's | | | | duplicate the situation into the Chinese |
| administration like the disputed | | | | language, and use ?? (Tufan) or ??? |
| territory Arunachal Pradesh (or South | | | | (Tubote), which are both phonetic |
| Tibet), Sikkim, Bhutan, and Ladakh that | | | | transcriptions of the word "Tibet", to |
| have also formed part of the Tibetan | | | | refer to historic Tibet, this is still |
| cultural sphere. | | | | used for research area and is known and |
| When the People's Republic of China | | | | accepted by most of the Chinese. |
| (PRC) refers to Tibet, it means the | | | | Tibetan monks from Ganden Monastery |
| Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR): a | | | | Tibetan monks from Ganden Monastery |
| province-level entity which, according | | | | The character ? (zang) has been used in |
| to the territorial claims of the PRC, | | | | transcriptions referring to Tsang as |
| includes Arunachal Pradesh or South | | | | early as the Yuan Dynasty, if not |
| Tibet (presently under the | | | | earlier, though the modern term "Xizang" |
| administration of India). India | | | | was devised in the 18th century. The |
| considers Arunachal Pradesh as its | | | | Chinese character ? (Zang) has also been |
| integral part. Sikkim, Bhutan, and | | | | generalized to refer to all of Tibet, |
| Ladakh may also be considered to be | | | | including other concepts related to |
| parts of cultural Greater Tibet in | | | | Tibet such as the Tibetan language (??, |
| addition to Amdo, Kham, and Ü-Tsang. | | | | Zangwén) and the Tibetan people (??, |
| The TAR covers the Dalai Lama's former | | | | Zangzú). The two characters of Xizang |
| domain consisting of Ü-Tsang and | | | | can literally mean "western treasure". |
| western Kham, while Amdo and eastern | | | | (The second character can also mean |
| Kham are now found within the provinces | | | | "storage", though it is pronounced |
| of Qinghai, Gansu, Yunnan, and Sichuan. | | | | differently (cáng) when used for that |
| The difference in definition is a major | | | | meaning.) |
| source of dispute. The distribution of | | | | In English |
| Amdo and eastern Kham into surrounding | | | | The English word Tibet, like the word |
| provinces was initiated by the Yongzheng | | | | for Tibet in most European languages, is |
| Emperor during the eighteenth century | | | | derived from the Arabic word Tubbat.[1] |
| and has been continuously maintained by | | | | This word is derived via Persian from |
| successive Chinese governments. Tibetan | | | | the Turkic word Töbäd (plural of |
| exiles, in turn, consider the | | | | Töbän), meaning "the heights". The |
| maintenance of this arrangement since | | | | word for Tibet in Medieval Chinese, ?? |
| the eighteenth century as part of a | | | | (Pinyin Tufan, often given as Tubo), is |
| divide-and-rule policy. | | | | derived from the same Turkic word. Tufan |
| Tibet has scenic mountainous terrain. | | | | was pronounced /t'o-bw?n/ in Medieval |
| Tibet has scenic mountainous terrain. | | | | times. PRC scholars favor the theory |
| The Potala Palace in Lhasa is Tibet's | | | | that "Tibet" is derived from Tufan. |