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The people In
Bhutan, everyone seems to wear a smile. Perhaps this is due to their Buddhist
faith, or maybe their sense of contentment is due to their self-sufficient
lifestyle. Whatever the reason, the Bhutanese project an apparent inner
happiness that travellers will remember long after their visit. Broadly,
the Bhutanese fall into three ethnic groups - the Sharchops, who live
mostly in the eastern region; the Ngalops, who live in the western part
of the country; and the people of Nepalese origin, who live in the south.
The way of life
Most of the population of Bhutan continues to live as it has for centuries
- in small, isolated farms and hamlets, surrounded by terraced fields
of rice, maize, buckwheat and wheat. Higher up, many of the people still
live in tents woven from yak-hair, spending at least part of the year
on the alpine pastures among their grazing livestock. Both farmers and
herdsmen are very dependent on nature, and they have necessarily a hardy
and self-reliant outlook on life. With the recent opening of roads within
Bhutan, small towns have grown up in places, and there have been changes
to the way of life of a tiny percentage of the people.
One trait which is common to all Bhutanese
is hospitality. Custom dictates that simple hospitality is extended to
any and all guests, even perfect strangers.
Dzongkha Language
Dzongkha, "the language of the dzongs", is one of the Tibetan family of
languages. Originally only spoken in western Bhutan, Dzongkha is now the
Bhutanese national language, and is taught in schools throughout the kingdom.
The written form of the language was only devised a little over 30 years
ago, and is based on Classical Tibetan (known as Choekey in Bhutan) which
has prevailed as a religious language throughout a vast geographical area
(Tibet, Nepal, Ladakh, Sikkim, Mongolia and Bhutan) since as long ago
as the eighth century.
National Dress
It is rare to see Western dress in Bhutan. Men still wear the traditional,
knee length, hand-woven robe called a "gho." Women wear a longer,
ankle-length robe called a "kira" and this is also made from fine, hand-woven
fabric, with the pattern usually being distinctive to a particular valley
or area.
Arts and crafts
Bhutan has a wealth of hand-crafted artwork, including sculpture, jewellery,
bamboo-work and especially textiles. The tradition of the artisan is carried
down from father to son, mother to daughter, and each region has its specialities:
raw silk from eastern Bhutan, brocade from Lhuntshi, woollen goods from
Burnthang,bamboo wares from Khyeng, gold and silver work from Thimphu.
Much of this (with the exception of the jewellery) is the surplus product
of peasant farmers, who are simply making available for sale the articles
that they use in their daily lives. There is little opportunity to bargain,
the items for sale have real value, and prices are quite high. Bhutan
is famous, in particular, for the quality of its textiles.
Architecture
Based on Tibetan architectural style, the houses, religious buildings
and fortresses of Bhutan have a simplicity and proportion that serves
to make them particularly attractive. Constructed of stone (or compressed
earth) and wood, and often whitewashed, Bhutanese buildings are distinctive
from their Tibetan counterparts in that they have a pitched roof, generally
made of wooden slatting which is held down by large stones. Pitched roofs
are an adaptation to the fact that Bhutan experiences a considerable amount
of rain and snow fall. The most impressive manifestation of Bhutanese
architecture is to be found in the many dzongs (fortress-monasteries)
which dot the landscape. These were constructed throughout the kingdom
at strategic points and characteristically contain a community of monks
as well as the administrative offices of the regional government.
Archery
Archery is the national sport of Bhutan, and every village has it own
archery range. High spirited competitions, usually accompanied by a banquet,
are a part of all festive occasions. Using bamboo bows (although modern
compound bows are finding their way into the kingdom) teams of archers
shoot at targets only 30 centimetres in diameter from a distance of 120
metres. Each team has a noisy crowd of supporters who, as well as encouraging
their own side. try to out off the opposition.
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