The Tibetan minority

The Tibetans with a population of 5,416,021 mostly live in the Tibet Autonomous Region. There are also Tibetan communities in Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. The areas where Tibetans live in compact community are mostly highlands and mountainous country studded with snow-capped peaks, one rising higher than the other.
Mt. Qomolangma on the Sino-Nepalese border is 8,848 meters above sea level, the highest in the world. The Tibetan areas are crisscrossed by rivers and dotted with lakes.

Animal husbandry is the main occupation in Tibet where there are vast expanses of grasslands and rich sources of water. The Tibetan sheep, goat, yak and pien cattle are native to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The yak is a big and long-haired animal, capable of with-standing harsh weather and carrying heavy loads. Known as the "Boat on the Plateau," the yak is a major means of transport as well as a source of meat. The pien cattle, a crossbreed of bull and yak, is the best draught animal and milk producer. In farming, the fast ripening and cold- and drought-resistant qingke, a kind of highland barley, is the main crop. Other crops include wheat, pea, buckwheat and broad bean. In the warmer places in the river valleys, there are rape, potato, turnip, apple and walnut. People also grow rice and cotton in river valleys in southern Tibet where the weather is very warm.
The dense forests in the Tibetan areas provide shelter for many precious animals such as sunbird, vulture, giant panda, golden-haired monkey, black leaf monkey, bear and ermine. The forests also produce precious medicines such as bear's gallbladder, musk, pilose antler, caterpillar fungus, snow lotus and glossy ganoderma.
These areas are also richly endowed with hydro-power and mineral resources. There are enormous amounts of hydropower and terrestrial heat for generating electricity, and huge reserves of natural gas, copper, iron, coal, mica and sulfur. The landlocked lakes abound in borax, salt, mirabilite and natural soda. Oilfields have been found in recent years in the Qaidam basin in Qinghai and the northern Tibet Plateau.

Music
Tibetan music often involves chanting in Tibetan or Sanskrit, as an integral part of the religion. These chants are complex, often recitations of sacred texts or in celebration of various festivals. Yang chanting, performed without metrical timing, is accompanied by resonant drums and low, sustained syllables.
Secular Tibetan music has been promoted by organizations like the Dalai Lama's Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts. This organization specialized in the lhamo, an operatic style, before branching out into other styles, including dance music like toeshey and nangma. Nangma is especially popular in the karaoke bars of the urban center of Tibet, Lhasa. Another form of popular music is the classical gar style, which is performed at rituals and ceremonies. Lu are a type of songs that feature glottal vibrations and high pitches. There are also epic bards who sing of Tibet's national hero Gesar.
Singing and dancing are a big part of tibetan cultures.

Traditional dress
Owing to the differences in natural conditions and working and living styles of various places in addition to the factors of economic and cultural exchanges, Tibetan costume and ornaments are really rich and colorful. The structure of costume, ornaments and way to wear them all show strong local features.
Both men and women like wearing silver ornaments.
The most striking feature of Tibetan costume and ornaments is its large variety, including silk robes, sleeveless robes, jackets, waistbands, hats, boots, aprons, hairdos and ornaments on the head and on the body. In terms of quality, the robes can be divided into brocade robe, silk robe, embroidered silk robe, jacquard leather robe, leather robe with fancy lace, leather robe with plain lace, leather robe with leopard skin lace, animal skin robe, pulu robe, lined woolen robe and cotton cloth robe.

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Religion
The Tibetan people are very faithful: Their oldest religion is Bon, after that the Buddhism has been spread. Nowadays, most of the people in Tibet are Lamaists. This religion is a blend of the Bon and the Buddhism. Religion is almost the most important thing in the life of the Tibetan people.
Bon is the oldest religion in Tibet, often seen as the original religion of Tibet. About the bon-religion and it's beginning isn't known much. Bon and the Buddhism are very close connected to each other. The Bon is influenced by the Buddhism and the Buddhism is influenced by the Bon religion.
The typical Tibetan flags on hills are to control the spirits in the mountains. They are from the Bon. The mills containing mantra's are from the Buddhism. So the 2 religions live together in peace and respect each other.
The tibetan minority is also famous for its strange custom in funeral. Thinking that the soul belongs after a personns dies, they usually put the body on a platform outdoors, spray on it and wait the condors to come to eat the body. In this way, they believe the soul goes up to the sky.

Script and language
The Tibetan language belongs to the Tibetan sub-branch of the Tibetan-Myanmese language branch of the Chinese-Tibetan language family. According to geographical divisions, it has three major local dialects: Weizang, Kang and Amdo. The Tibetan script, an alphabetic system of writing, was created in the early 7th century. With four vowels and 30 consonants, it is used in all areas inhabited by Tibetans.