Tibet

About Tibet

Tibet (Tibetan: བོད་; Wylie: bod ; IPA: pʰø̀ʔ; Chinese: 西藏) is a plateau region in Asia, north of the Himalayas, and the home to the indigenous Tibetan people and its related ethnic groups. With an average elevation of 4,900 metres (16,000 ft), it is the highest region on Earth and has in recent decades increasingly been referred to as the "Roof of the World". Before Tibet got into the limelight, the term Roof of the World was applied to the Pamirs.

In the history of Tibet, it has been an independent country, divided into different kingdoms and states, and a part of China each for a certain amount of time. Today it is part of the People's Republic of China (PRC) while a small part, according to the government of the People's Republic of China, the government of the Republic of China is controlled by India. Currently, the PRC government and the Government of Tibet in Exile still disagree over when Tibet became a part of China, and whether the incorporation into China of Tibet is legitimate according to international law (see Tibetan sovereignty debate). Since what constitutes Tibet is a matter of much debate (see map, right) neither its size nor population are simple matters of fact, due to various entities claiming differing parts of the area as a Tibetan region.

A unified Tibet first came into being under Songtsän Gampo in the seventh century. A government headed by the Dalai Lamas, a line of spiritual leaders, nominally ruled a large portion of the Tibetan region at various times from the 1640s until its incorporation into the government of PRC in the 1950s. During most of this period, the Tibetan administration was subordinate to the Chinese empire of the Qing China. After the fall of Qing, the Dalai Lama proclaimed Tibet independence in 1913, however, it was not accepted by the successor state of Qing, the newly founded Republic of China. Furthermore, Tibet was not recognized by any country as a de jure independent nation. As a measure of the power that regents must have wielded, it is important to note that only three of the fourteen Dalai Lamas have actually ruled Tibet; regents ruled during 77 percent of the period from 1751 until 1960. After the Chinese Civil War, the PRC began asserting control of Tibet with its 1950 invasion. The Communist Party of China gained control of Central and Western Tibet (Tibetan area ruled by the Dalai Lama) after a decisive military victory at Chamdo in 1950. The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959.