Historical dictionary of Tibet

833 Pages·2012·137.292 MB·English

by  Powers, John, Templeman, David

The historical dictionaries present essential information on a broad range
of subjects, including American and world history, art, business, cities,
countries, cultures, customs, film, global conflicts, international relations,
literature, music, philosophy, religion, sports, and theater. Written by experts,
all contain highly informative introductory essays of the topic and detailed
chronologies that, in some cases, cover vast historical time periods but still
manage to heavily feature more recent events.
Brief A–Z entries describe the main people, events, politics, social issues,
institutions, and policies that make the topic unique, and entries are cross-
referenced for ease of browsing. Extensive bibliographies are divided into
several general subject areas, providing excellent access points for students,
researchers, and anyone wanting to know more. Additionally, maps, pho-
tographs, and appendixes of supplemental information aid high school and
college students doing term papers or introductory research projects. In short,
the historical dictionaries are the perfect starting point for anyone looking to
research in these fields.
HISTORICAL DICTIONARIES OF ASIA, OCEANIA,
AND THE MIDDLE EAST
Jon Woronoff, Series Editor
Guam and Micronesia, by William Wuerch and Dirk Ballendorf. 1994.
Palestine, by Nafez Y. Nazzal and Laila A. Nazzal. 1997.
Lebanon, by As’ad AbuKhalil. 1998.
Azerbaijan, by Tadeusz Swietochowski and Brian C. Collins. 1999.
Papua New Guinea, Second Edition, by Ann Turner. 2001.
North Korea, by Ilpyong J. Kim. 2003.
Cambodia, by Justin Corfield and Laura Summers. 2003.
Iraq, by Edmund A. Ghareeb with the assistance of Beth K. Dougherty.
2004.
Saudi Arabia, Second Edition, by J. E. Peterson. 2003.
Nepal, by Nanda R. Shrestha and Keshav Bhattarai. 2003.
Kyrgyzstan, by Rafis Abazov. 2004.
Syria, Second Edition, by David Commins. 2004.
Indonesia, Second Edition, by Robert Cribb and Audrey Kahin. 2004.
Republic of Korea, Second Edition, by Andrew C. Nahm and James E.
Hoare. 2004.
Turkmenistan, by Rafis Abazov. 2005.
Thailand, Second Edition, by Harold E. Smith, Gayla S. Nieminen, and
May Kyi Win. 2005.
New Zealand, Second Edition, by Keith Jackson and Alan McRobie. 2005.
Vietnam, Third Edition, by Bruce Lockhart and William J. Duiker. 2006.
India, Second Edition, by Surjit Mansingh. 2006.
Burma (Myanmar), by Donald M. Seekins. 2006.
Hong Kong SAR and the Macao SAR, by Ming K. Chan and Shiu-hing Lo.
2006.
Pakistan, Third Edition, by Shahid Javed Burki. 2006.
Iran, Second Edition, by John H. Lorentz. 2007.
People’s Republic of China, Second Edition, by Lawrence R. Sullivan.
2007.
Taiwan (Republic of China), Third Edition, by John F. Copper. 2007.
Australia, Third Edition, by James C. Docherty. 2007.
Gulf Arab States, Second Edition, by Malcolm C. Peck. 2008.
Laos, Third Edition, by Martin Stuart-Fox. 2008.
Israel, Second Edition, by Bernard Reich and David H. Goldberg. 2008.
Brunei Darussalam, Second Edition, by Jatswan S. Sidhu. 2010.
Malaysia, by Ooi Keat Gin. 2009.
Yemen, Second Edition, by Robert D. Burrowes. 2010.
Tajikistan, Second Edition, by Kamoludin Abdullaev and Shahram
Akbarzadeh. 2010.
Mongolia, Third Edition, by Alan J. K. Sanders. 2010.
Bangladesh, Fourth Edition, by Syedur Rahman. 2010.
Historical Dictionary
Polynesia, Third Edition, by Robert D. Craig. 2011.
Singapore, New Edition, by Justin Corfield. 2011.
East Timoor, bfy Gteohffreey C . GUunnn. 20i11t.ed States
Postwar Japan, by William D. Hoover. 2011.
Afghanistan, Fourth Edition, by Ludwig W. Adamec. 2012.
Philippines, TAhird iErdit ioFn, boy Arrtecmioe R . Gauilnlermdo. 20I12t.s
Tibet, by John Powers and David Templeman. 2012.
Antecedents
Edition (when applicable)
Sally Craley
The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Lanham  •  Toronto  •  Plymouth, UK
2011

Historical Dictionary
of Tibet

John Powers
David Templeman
The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Lanham • Toronto • Plymouth, UK
2012
Published by Scarecrow Press, Inc.
A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706
www.rowman.com
10 Thornbury Road, Plymouth PL6 7PP, United Kingdom
Copyright © 2012 by John Powers and David Templeman
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems,
without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote
passages in a review.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Powers, John, 1957–
Historical dictionary of Tibet / John Powers, David Templeman.
p. cm. — (Historical dictionaries of Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8108-6805-2 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8108-7984-3 (ebook)
1. Tibet Autonomous Region (China)—History—Dictionaries. I. Templeman, David.
II. Title.
DS786.P683 2012
951'.5003—dc23 2011046580
™
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Printed in the United States of America
Contents
Editor’s Foreword Jon Woronoff ix
Acknowledgments xi
Reader’s Notes xiii
Glossary xvii
Acronyms and Abbreviations xxi
Maps xxiii
Chronology xxix
Introduction 1
THE DICTIONARY 51
Bibliography 761
About the Authors 793
vii

Editor’s Foreword
If ever there was a place that required a historical dictionary just to be un-
derstood, then that is Tibet. Even today, there are several Tibets. The one we
focus on most is the Tibet Autonomous Region, which, despite its name, is
dominated by the People’s Republic of China, although it does have a gov-
ernment of its own. The population is still largely Tibetan, but with more and
more Han Chinese. There is also the Tibetan diaspora, best known through
the activities of the Dalai Lama and its government in exile. This was founded
by those who rejected Chinese domination and hark back to the earlier Ti-
bet, ruled by successive Dalai Lamas as an independent Buddhist country
(although not widely recognized). But there are also Tibetans living in China
and India and other places, this partially because even further back there was
a Tibetan empire, which managed to conquer and dominate a far larger area,
including parts of China and India. Prior to this, before the rise of the empire,
there were already Tibetans linked only rather tenuously to one another by
language, culture, and especially religion. Any book that wants to do justice
to Tibet must obviously cover all of these various reincarnations, and that is
the primary advantage of this book.
But the Historical Dictionary of Tibet offers other advantages as well. For,
over the centuries, it is not only the state which dominated society but also
religion, and it is quite impossible to make sense of this place if there is not
adequate coverage of many varied aspects of both the new and old Tibets.
This is provided, first, by a chronology of several thousand years, which
readers would actually do well to review and then return to now and then
while reading other entries. The introduction provides an overview which
makes sense of this unusual variety, and it too might be reread on occasion.
But obviously as always the most important section is the dictionary with
numerous entries on specific aspects of society, culture, economy, politics,
and especially religion, which are fundamental. There are also many entries
on the persons who have shaped Tibet, including emperors; dalai lamas; other
religious, political, and military figures; and given its present situation, also
foreigners, some going back to imperial days, others dealing with more recent
Chinese rulers. Finally, last but certainly not least, there is an extensive bibli-
ography directing readers toward other sources of enlightenment.
ix