Bhotiya
Encyclopedia
The Bhotiya are groups of ethno-linguistically Tibetan people
living in the trans-Himalayan region that divides India
from the People's Republic of China
, and were originally a hill tribe. Their name, Bhotiya, derives from the word Bod (Bodyul), which is the Classical Tibetan
name for Tibet. The language of Bhotiyas people is Boti.
The Bhotiya are closely related to the Sikkimese
Bhutia
, the main ethno-linguistic group of Northern Sikkim that speaks the Sikkimese (Bhutia) language
. They are also closely related to the Uttarakhand Bhotiya
, several groups in the upper Himalayan valleys of the Kumaon
and Garhwal
of Uttarakhand
Himalayas. These include the Shaukas of Kumaon
and Tolchhas and Marchhas of Garhwal
. The Bhotiya are also related to the Ngalop
, the main ethno-linguistic group of Bhutan speaking Dzongkha, as well as several dispersed groups in Nepal
and adjacent areas of India
including Tibetans proper, Sherpa
, and many others.
s are region's autochthonous inhabitants.
The Bot people are also spread over the India
n states of Jammu and Kashmir
, Ladakh
, Arunachal Pradesh
, Himachal Pradesh
, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh
, West Bengal
, Sikkim
, and Tripura
. They have Mongoloid Features as Himalayan People have the Mongloid feature mainly known as Hilly people or Pahari, and those living in Uttarakhand
are generally referred to as Uttarakhand Bhotia, Bhutia and Bhotia are all same meaning of different terminology as bhot, more commonly Bhutia means the related people of Sikkim
. In Uttar Pradesh
, Bots are found in the Bahraich
, Gonda
, Lakhimpur, and Kheri Districts. The Bot are divided into six sub-groups, the Bhot, Bhotia, Bhutia, Tibbeti (Sikkim & Arunachal) Butt, Buttola.
In Jammu, Himachal-Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal-Pradesh, etc. Bots have scheduled tribe status, unlike other states of India. In Uttarkhand, Bhotia are scheduled tribe under {Schedule caste order 1950, the constitutional Scheduled tribe (Uttar Pradesh)1967 SC/ST}. As Uttarakhand was former Uttar- Pradesh.
The Indian constitution
recognizes them as Bhotia, It is believed that Bot people are "Raghuvanshi Rajput,". As they prefer to be called as Thakurs or Rajwanshi. Its said that Bots emigrated into north Oudh in the period of Nawab
Asaf-Ud-Dowlah
(1775-1797).
, to whom goats are sacrificed. Young pigs are also used occasionally used to her. The worshipers make the sacrifice and consume the meat themselves. They observed the usual festivals. On the barsiti flaws, on the fifteenth of jeth, women worship a banyan tree by walking round it and tying a thread round the trunk. This they do to increase the life of their husbands. Women fast on tija or third day of bhaddon. At the godiya on the fifth of thik, they worship the dragon Nag Devta, and girls other to Devi
and Mahadeva
. They eat the goats, sheep, hare, water bird, and fish. They will not eat monkey, cow, owl, crocodile, lizard, rat, or other vermin. Liquors are forbidden, bhang
and ganja
are used.
Most Bhotiya marriages are celebrated with Hindu wedding
s, when the bride palanquin arrives at the house of her husband god are worship and then she is admitted into the house. Some rice, silver or gold is put in the hands of bridegroom, which he passes on to the bride. She places them in winnowing fan, and makes them over a present to the wife of the barber. This ceremony known as "karj bharna." A man may have three wives and no more. The first wife is the head wife, and she received by inheritance a share one tenth excess of that given to the other wives.
The Bhotiya have distinctive funerary traditions. Those who die of chlorea, of snakebites, and young children are buried; others are cremated. There is no fixed bunal-ground, and no ceremonies are performed at time of burial. Richer people keep the ashes for lowal to some several stream, while others bury them. After the mation a stalk of kusa grass is fixed in the ground near a tank of water and sesamum
is poured upon it for ten days so as to continued it into a refuge for the spirit until the rides are completed.
Tibetan people
The Tibetan people are an ethnic group that is native to Tibet, which is mostly in the People's Republic of China. They number 5.4 million and are the 10th largest ethnic group in the country. Significant Tibetan minorities also live in India, Nepal, and Bhutan...
living in the trans-Himalayan region that divides India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
from the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, and were originally a hill tribe. Their name, Bhotiya, derives from the word Bod (Bodyul), which is the Classical Tibetan
Classical Tibetan
Classical Tibetan refers to the language of any text written in Tibetan after the Old Tibetan period and before the modern period, but in particular refers to the language of early canonical texts translated from other languages, especially Sanskrit...
name for Tibet. The language of Bhotiyas people is Boti.
The Bhotiya are closely related to the Sikkimese
Sikkimese people
Sikkimese people inhabit the Indian state of Sikkim. The indigenous peoples of Sikkim consist of the Lepcha, Limbu, migrating from Tibet, Bhutias, descendants of Buddhists who arrived from Nepal in 15th century, who migrated from the Kham district of Tibet in the 14th century, and Nepali,...
Bhutia
Bhutia
The Bhutia are ethnic Tibetans who speak Sikkimese, a Tibetan dialect fairly mutually intelligible to standard Tibetan. In 2001, the Bhutia numbered around 70,300...
, the main ethno-linguistic group of Northern Sikkim that speaks the Sikkimese (Bhutia) language
Sikkimese language
The Sikkimese language, also called Sikkimese Tibetan, Bhutia, Dranjongke , Dranjoke, Denjongka, Denzongpeke, and Denzongke, belongs to the Southern Tibetan language family. It is spoken by the Bhutia nationality in Sikkim...
. They are also closely related to the Uttarakhand Bhotiya
Uttarakhand Bhotiya
Uttarakhand Bhotiya are an ethno-linguistic group of people resided in the upper Himalayan valleys of the Kumaon and Garhwal of Uttarakhand Himalayas. These include the Shaukas of Kumaon and Tolchhas and Marchhas of Garhwal. Their name, Bhotiya, derives from the word Bod , which is the Classical...
, several groups in the upper Himalayan valleys of the Kumaon
Kumaon Division
For Kumaoni/Kumauni People see Kumauni PeopleKumaon or Kumaun is one of the two regions and administrative divisions of Uttarakhand, a mountainous state of northern India, the other being Garhwal. It includes the districts of Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh, and Udham Singh Nagar...
and Garhwal
Garhwal Division
Garhwal is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by...
of Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...
Himalayas. These include the Shaukas of Kumaon
Kumaon Division
For Kumaoni/Kumauni People see Kumauni PeopleKumaon or Kumaun is one of the two regions and administrative divisions of Uttarakhand, a mountainous state of northern India, the other being Garhwal. It includes the districts of Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh, and Udham Singh Nagar...
and Tolchhas and Marchhas of Garhwal
Garhwal Division
Garhwal is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by...
. The Bhotiya are also related to the Ngalop
Ngalop
The Ngalop are people of Tibetan origin who migrated to Bhutan as early as the ninth century. For this reason, they are often referred to in literature as "Bhote"...
, the main ethno-linguistic group of Bhutan speaking Dzongkha, as well as several dispersed groups in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
and adjacent areas of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
including Tibetans proper, Sherpa
Sherpa people
The Sherpa are an ethnic group from the most mountainous region of Nepal, high in the Himalayas. Sherpas migrated from the Kham region in eastern Tibet to Nepal within the last 300–400 years.The initial mountainous migration from Tibet was a search for beyul...
, and many others.
Population
The Bhotiya live in much of the northern and eastern regions of Nepal, where they and other Tibetan peopleTibetan people
The Tibetan people are an ethnic group that is native to Tibet, which is mostly in the People's Republic of China. They number 5.4 million and are the 10th largest ethnic group in the country. Significant Tibetan minorities also live in India, Nepal, and Bhutan...
s are region's autochthonous inhabitants.
The Bot people are also spread over the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n states of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
, Ladakh
Ladakh
Ladakh is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of the Republic of India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent...
, Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India, located in the far northeast. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south, and shares international borders with Burma in the east, Bhutan in the west, and the People's Republic of China in the north. The majority of the territory is claimed by...
, Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, Sikkim
Sikkim
Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayan mountains...
, and Tripura
Tripura
Tripura is a state in North-East India, with an area of . It is the third smallest state of India, according to area. Tripura is surrounded by Bangladesh on the north, south, and west. The Indian states of Assam and Mizoram lie to the east. The capital is Agartala and the main languages spoken are...
. They have Mongoloid Features as Himalayan People have the Mongloid feature mainly known as Hilly people or Pahari, and those living in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...
are generally referred to as Uttarakhand Bhotia, Bhutia and Bhotia are all same meaning of different terminology as bhot, more commonly Bhutia means the related people of Sikkim
Sikkim
Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayan mountains...
. In Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, Bots are found in the Bahraich
Bahraich
Bahraich is a city and a municipal board in Bahraich district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Located on the Saryu River, a tributary of river Ghaghra, Bahraich is 125 km north-east of Lucknow, the state capital. The towns of Barabanki, Gonda, Balrampur, Lakhimpur and Sitapur share...
, Gonda
Gonda District
Gonda is one of the districts of Uttar Pradesh, India. Gonda is the district headquarters, and also the administrative centre for the Devipatan Division....
, Lakhimpur, and Kheri Districts. The Bot are divided into six sub-groups, the Bhot, Bhotia, Bhutia, Tibbeti (Sikkim & Arunachal) Butt, Buttola.
In Jammu, Himachal-Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal-Pradesh, etc. Bots have scheduled tribe status, unlike other states of India. In Uttarkhand, Bhotia are scheduled tribe under {Schedule caste order 1950, the constitutional Scheduled tribe (Uttar Pradesh)1967 SC/ST}. As Uttarakhand was former Uttar- Pradesh.
The Indian constitution
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishes the structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions, and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens...
recognizes them as Bhotia, It is believed that Bot people are "Raghuvanshi Rajput,". As they prefer to be called as Thakurs or Rajwanshi. Its said that Bots emigrated into north Oudh in the period of Nawab
Nawab
A Nawab or Nawaab is an honorific title given to Muslim rulers of princely states in South Asia. It is the Muslim equivalent of the term "maharaja" that was granted to Hindu rulers....
Asaf-Ud-Dowlah
Asaf-Ud-Dowlah
Asaf-Ud-Daula was the nawab wazir of Oudh from 26 January 1775 to 21 September 1797, and the son of Shuja-ud-Dowlah, his mother and grandmother being the begums of Oudh, whose spoliation formed one of the chief counts in the charges against Warren Hastings.-Life:A contemporary chronicler describes...
(1775-1797).
Religion
The Bhotiya employ Brahmans or lamas as priests. Some are Buddhist and some are Hindus in religion practice. where as the word Bhotiya has been derived from the word bhot meaning Buddha. Their chief object of worship is DeviDevi
Devī is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism, its related masculine term is deva. Devi is synonymous with Shakti, the female aspect of the divine, as conceptualized by the Shakta tradition of Hinduism. She is the female counterpart without whom the male aspect, which represents...
, to whom goats are sacrificed. Young pigs are also used occasionally used to her. The worshipers make the sacrifice and consume the meat themselves. They observed the usual festivals. On the barsiti flaws, on the fifteenth of jeth, women worship a banyan tree by walking round it and tying a thread round the trunk. This they do to increase the life of their husbands. Women fast on tija or third day of bhaddon. At the godiya on the fifth of thik, they worship the dragon Nag Devta, and girls other to Devi
Devi
Devī is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism, its related masculine term is deva. Devi is synonymous with Shakti, the female aspect of the divine, as conceptualized by the Shakta tradition of Hinduism. She is the female counterpart without whom the male aspect, which represents...
and Mahadeva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
. They eat the goats, sheep, hare, water bird, and fish. They will not eat monkey, cow, owl, crocodile, lizard, rat, or other vermin. Liquors are forbidden, bhang
Bhang
Bhang is a preparation from the leaves and flowers of the female cannabis plant, smoked or consumed as a beverage in the Indian subcontinent.- India:...
and ganja
Ganja
Ganja is Azerbaijan's second-largest city with a population of around 313,300. It was named Yelizavetpol in the Russian Empire period. The city regained its original name—Ganja—from 1920–1935 during the first part of its incorporation into the Soviet Union. However, its name was changed again and...
are used.
Most Bhotiya marriages are celebrated with Hindu wedding
Hindu wedding
Hindu wedding is thought to be the bringing of two people who are said to be compatible. Hindu wedding ceremonies are traditionally conducted at least partially in Sanskrit, the language of most holy Hindu ceremonies. The local language of the people involved is also used since most Hindus do not...
s, when the bride palanquin arrives at the house of her husband god are worship and then she is admitted into the house. Some rice, silver or gold is put in the hands of bridegroom, which he passes on to the bride. She places them in winnowing fan, and makes them over a present to the wife of the barber. This ceremony known as "karj bharna." A man may have three wives and no more. The first wife is the head wife, and she received by inheritance a share one tenth excess of that given to the other wives.
The Bhotiya have distinctive funerary traditions. Those who die of chlorea, of snakebites, and young children are buried; others are cremated. There is no fixed bunal-ground, and no ceremonies are performed at time of burial. Richer people keep the ashes for lowal to some several stream, while others bury them. After the mation a stalk of kusa grass is fixed in the ground near a tank of water and sesamum
Sesamum
Sesamum is a genus of approximately 20 species in the flowering plant family Pedaliaceae. The plants are annual or perennial herbs with edible seeds. The best-known member of the genus is sesame, Sesamum indicum , the source of sesame seeds. The species are primarily African, with some species...
is poured upon it for ten days so as to continued it into a refuge for the spirit until the rides are completed.