Tibet Language

Tibet was isolated with the outside world due to its remote location. Gradually, Tibetans people created their own language during the development of their society. The Tibet language is regarded as one branch of Sino-Tibetan language family.

Tibetan language also consists of different dialects, like Weizang, Khams and Amdo. For political reasons, the dialects of central Tibet (including Lhasa), Khams, and Amdo in China are considered dialects of a single Tibetan language, while Dzongkha, Sikkimese, Sherpa, and Ladakhi are generally considered to be separate languages, although their speakers may consider themselves to be ethnically Tibetan.

With thirty consonants, four vowels, five inverted letters, the standard form of written Tibetan is based on Classical Tibetan and is highly conservative. However, this does not reflect linguistic reality: Dzongkha and Sherpa, for example, are closer to Lhasa Tibetan than Khams or Amdo are. Tibetan words also can be divided into nine types including nouns, verbs, numerals, adjectives, pronouns, conjunctions, adverbs, auxiliary words and exclamations. Sentences are written from right to the left. With two major written scripts namely the regular script and the cursive hand, Tibetan language is widely used in all areas inhabited by Tibetans.

The Tibetan languages are spoken by approximately 6 million people. Lhasa Tibetan is spoken by approximately 150,000 exile speakers who have moved from modern-day Tibet to India and other countries. Tibetan is also spoken by groups of ethnic minorities in Tibet who have lived in close proximity to Tibetans for centuries. It is Tibetan language that helps Tibetan people to retain their rich and profound cultures.

The followings are the pronunciations of some useful Tibetan words and sentences that may help you make simple conversations with local Tibetans when you are travelling in Tibet.