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The '''Tibetan''' people are an [[ethnic group]] from [[Tibet]]. They speak the [[Tibetan language]] natively and form one of the [[List of Chinese ethnic groups|56 ethnic groups]] officially recognized by the [[People's Republic of China]] (PRC). According to an official census of [[1959]], the number of ethnic Tibetans in the PRC was 6,330,567 [http://www.tibet.com/WhitePaper/white8.html].  The SIL Ethnologue documents an additional 125,000 Tibetan language speakers living in [[India]], 60,000 in [[Nepal]], and 4,000 in [[Bhutan]].

Tibetans generally observe [[Tibetan Buddhism]] and a close affiliate known as [[B�n]].

It is generally agreed that Tibetans share a considerable genetic background with [[Mongolians]], although other main influences do exist. Some anthropologists have suggested an Indo-[[Scythian]] component, and others a [[Southeast Asian]] component; both are credible given Tibet's geographic location.  (The romantic claim that American [[Hopi]] and Tibetans are close cousins is not likely to find support in genetic studies although strong cultural similarities may be found between the two groups).

Tibetans traditionally explain their own origins as rooted in the marriage of the [[bodhisattva]] [[Chenrezig]] and a mountain ogress.  Tibetans who display compassion, moderation, intelligence, and wisdom are said to take after father, while Tibetans who are "red-faced, fond of sinful pursuits, and very stubborn" are said to take after mother.

Central Tibetans (those living in the districts around [[Lhasa]]) are said to have the most characteristic Tibetan appearance.  The tent-dwelling nomads of the high [[Tibetan plateau]] (known as [[Drokpa]], in [[Wylie transliteration|Tib.]] Hbrog-pa, "steppe-dwellers") and the "Khambas" in Kham are by comparison taller and longer-limbed, with sharper features and more aquiline noses.  Some have suggested they are of [[Scythian]] descent. This type of Tibetan is also said to have been the ruler caste in Tibet.

As one approaches [[China proper]], [[India]] or the border lands generally, fewer of the people are of a pure ethnic type.

[[Image:Rawu5.jpg|left|200px|tibetan woman with light eyes]]
Tibetans typically have light brown skin, black, somewhat wavy or even curly hair, moderately high cheekbones, and brown eyes, although some have very light hazel and green eyes, due to their Mongol heritage. The men typically have full mustaches but sparse beards; traditionally, they pluck out their beards with tweezers. Nomads have long braided hair, the women usually braid their hair in 108 braids. 

Tibetans have a legendary reputation to be able to survive extremes of altitude and  cold, abilities which were no doubt conditioned by the extreme environment of the Tibetan plateau.  Recently scientists have sought to isolate the cultural and genetic factors behind this  adaptibility[http://www.cwru.edu/affil/tibet/HAN.html].  Among their findings: a gene which improves oxygen saturation in [[hemoglobin]], and also a study that found that Tibetan children grow faster than other children to the age of five (presumably as a defense against heat loss since larger bodies have a more favorable surface to volume ratio).  The [http://paleo.sscnet.ucla.edu/TibetGroupPage.html Tibet Paleolithic Project] is studying the [[Stone Age]] colonization of the plateau, hoping to gain insight into human adaptibility in general and the cultural strategies the Tibetans developed as they learned to survive in this harsh environment.

The [[1911 Encyclop�dia Britannica]] reported that "among the customs of the Tibetans, perhaps the most peculiar is [[polyandry]], the brothers in a family having one wife in common. [[Monogamy]], however, seems to be the rule among the pastoral tribes, and [[polygamy]] is not unknown in Tibet, especially in the eastern parts of the country." An article by Melvyn C. Goldstein in the March, 1987 issue of Natural History (the magazine of the [[American Museum of Natural History]]) discusses Tibetan fraternal polyandry and confirms the continuation of this practice into recent times. [http://www.cwru.edu/affil/tibet/family.html]
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==Reference==
*{{1911}}

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====References====
* Adapted from the [[Wikipedia]] article, "Tibetan_people" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibetan_people, used under the [[GNU Free Documentation License]]