People and Culture
The people of Ladakh are hardy and tough, similar to pastoral mountain folk, yet they are kind, charming and friendly. Ladakhis are known for their hospitable, joyous and friendly nature. Mons and Brogpas were said to be first inhabitants of the region. These Indo-Aryan people make up a very small percentage of the modern Ladakhi population.
Mongolian Tibetan stocks form the majority of Ladakh’s current population.
From the Changthang plateau in the east to the Nurba valley in the north, central Ladakh to Zankar and Purig valleys in Kargil district are inhabited by people of Tibetan origin.
Several valleys to the east of the region in and around Kargil town are home to several thousand “Dards”, who are of Indo-Aryan descent. There is a sizeable community in Leh, said to be the result of inter-marriage between locals, Kashmiris and central Asian merchants. There are numerous mosques belonging to Shia and Sunnis sects of Islam.
Buddhism is said to have reached Tibet from India via Ladakh in the seventh and eighth century. Buddhist scholars from Texilla and Tibet had to pass through Ladakh. Ladakhis played an important role in the spread of Buddhism in Tibet as well as the revival of Buddhism after Tibet’s “dark Age” when the anti –Buddhist King Lang Darma destroyed Buddhism inside Tibet.
Some of the greatest translators such as Legpay Shesrab and Rinchen Zangpo were from the Ladakh region. Today in Ladakh, everywhere you look, Buddhist icons such as Mani-walls, prayer flags, stupas and monasteries are commonplace. One of the main attraction for tourists and visitors in Ladakh is the Buddhist culture. Gonpas or monasteries in their thousands dot the hilltops throughout the region, with prayer flags fluttering in the wind.
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