Understanding and Clarifying the term ‘Bhutia’

This study closely explores to understand and clarify the term ‘Bhutia’. Bhutias are given the status of Scheduled Tribe in India. Scheduled Tribes in India have emanated from five language families: Andamanese, Austro-Asiatic, Dravidian, Indo-Aryan and Tibeto-Burman (Linton, 1936, p. 231). The Bhutias form the fifth group and are mostly found in the Indian Himalayan Region. There are around 200,000 Bhutia population known by different names in India. The nomenclature they carry are Bhotia, Bhutia, Bhote, Bhuti, Buddha who are migrated from Tibet or are the descendants of the migrated Tibetans in India. In India, Bhutia is an assortment of different tribes descended from migrated Tibetans like: Ladaki Bhutias, Arunachali Bhutias, Bhutanese Bhutias (Dukpa or Drukpas), the Sikkimese Bhutias (Denzongpa or Lho-po, the term ‘Lhopo’refers to Bhutias who migrated from southern Tibet and has Tibetan ancestry). The study also presents a detailed insight on the Bhutias of Sikkim. It appears that the Bhutias, though different nomenclature, have a resemblance and close similarities in their socio-cultural system, religion, traditions, practices, customs and costumes.