The People and Culture of Bhutan
Bhutan is comprised of a mosaic of different peoples who continue to live in
valleys isolated from one another and the outside world by formidable mountain
passes. Differing ethnic groups are also distributed according to the varying
environments. It is possible to divide Bhutan's population into three broad
ethnic groups, though the distinctions blur in places.
Southern Bhutan is inhabited mainly by Nepalese farmers who arrived in
the country at the end of the 19th century. They brought the Hindu religion
with them as well as the Nepalese language, which is still spoken today over
much of Southern Bhutan. There is not the same mingling of Buddhism and Hinduism
as is apparent in Nepal, and the two tend to keep apart.
The Central Himalayan region is the home of the Drukpa people, who are
of Mongoloid origin. Most breed cattle or cultivate the land, and their dwellings
are spread over a wide area.
The Northern Himalayan Zone, over 3,000 meters (9,000 feet), is the haunt
of semi nomadic yak herdsmen. They spend most of the year in their black yak
hair tents, but also possess dry-stone walled houses, where they spend the coldest
months of the year and which are used to store their goods. Additives to a diet
composed mainly of yak milk, cheese, butter and meat are barley and winter wheat,
plus a few root vegetables grown in small fields.
Believed to be the earliest inhabitants of Bhutan, the Sharchops are of Indo-Mongolian
type, though their exact origin is unknown (Tibet being the most likely source).
At present, they live mainly in the east of Bhutan.
World Heritages Sites of Bhutan
• Swayambhu
• Bouddha
• Bhaktapur
• Changunarayan
• Pashupatinath
• Kathmandu Durbar Square
• Patan Durbar Square
• Lumbini
a) Everest National Park (1148 kms)
b) Royal Chitwan National Park (932 sq. kms) |
