Bhutan (boo-TAHN), kingdom (17,954 sq mi/46,501 sq km; 1991 estimated population 600,000; 2004 estimated population high 2,185,569, low 810,000), in the E Himalayas, bordered S and E by the Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh; N by the Tibet region of China; and W by the Indian state of Sikkim; (cap.) Thimphu; 27°30'N 91°00'E.
The country is roughly 93 mi/150 km N-S and 186 mi/300 km E-W; 26°40'N 88°45'E–28°15'N 92°10'E. It is divided into twenty administrative districts (called dzongkhags): Gasa, Thimphu, Paro, Ha, Samtse, Chhukha, Dagana, Punakha, Wangdue Phodrang, Trongsa, Tsirang, Sarpang, Zhemgang, Bumthang, Lhuntse, Mongar, Pemagatshel, Samdrup Jongkhar, Trashigang, and Yangtse. Major towns include Geylegphug, Jakar, Paro, Phuntsholing, Samdrup Jongkhar, Trashigang, Trongsa, and Wangdue Phodrang.
Geography
Bhutan is one of the least populated countries in S Asia. This landlocked, inaccessible kingdom on the S slopes of the Himalayas is blocked by the Himalayan hills and thick forest growth in the S from West Bengal and Assam. The terrain, among the world’s most rugged, ranges from near sea-level plains in the S, to interior valleys of over 6,562 ft/2,000 m, to the Great Himalaya, which rise in the N to Jumolhari (24,003 ft/7,316 m), Bhutan’s best-known peak. Perpetually snow-covered, the Great Himalayas are uninhabited and unused save for seasonal movement of yak herders. Due to the extreme differences in terrain, the climate also varies. The S part of the country is generally hot and humid, while the N border region remains cold and wintry most of the year. Thunderstorms and torrential rains are common in much of the country; average rainfall is 200 in/508 cm–250 in/635 cm on the S plains, though higher areas get much less. The S plains region has tall grass and bamboo, and few people live here because of heavy rainfall and malarial swamps (formerly known as the Duars Plain). Settlements often cluster around a dzong, or fortress-like monastery. Most Bhutanese are farmers or animal herders and live in small river valleys. Most of the towns and villages are located in the temperate zone stretching across the middle of Bhutan from Paro (W) to Trashigang (E). Places are connected by a network of single-lane roads built in the 1960s; the roads frequently wash out during monsoon season (June–September). There are no domestic air connections, but there is an international airport at Paro. Bhutan is drained by several rivers rising in the Himalayas and flowing into India, including the Amo Chu, Mangde Chu, Punatsang Chu, and Wang Chu systems. Roughly 70% of the country is covered by mixed deciduous and coniferous trees, and a wide variety of flowers and rare plants grow here. Local fauna include bear, deer, antelope, wild boar, tiger, red panda, and a number of rare species, such as golden langur, snow leopard, and black-necked crane. Land suitable for agriculture is limited due to the steep terrain and altitude—according to government estimates, less than 10% is under cultivation. Most farming activity takes place in the valleys, such as the Paro.
Economy
The chief occupations are small-scale subsistence farming (producing rice, corn, barley, wheat, and potatoes), the growing of agricultural products for export, and the raising of yaks, cattle, sheep, pigs, and tanguns, a sturdy breed of pony valued in mountain transportation. Cement, chemicals, metal, wood, and leather products, textiles, and handicrafts are important products. Limestone is quarried and dolomite and coal are mined, but hydroelectric power is a most important resource, some electricity being exported to India. The country’s main exports are cardamom, potatoes, apples, oranges, and other crops; timber is also a significant source of income. Fuels, grain, machine parts, and vehicles are the major imports. Tourism is a significant though restricted activity, and it is the country’s largest source of foreign exchange.
Population
At the beginning of the 17th century, Ngawang Namgyel (1594–1652) began the unification of the country. He established the system that evolved into a theocracy in which the Shabdrung (also known as the Dharma Raja, the “King of Religion”) delegated his secular powers to a regent called the Druk Desi (sometimes referred to as the Deb Raja). Most Bhutanese people practice Buddhism, which was introduced in the 7th century A.D., but many residents of the S regions (Nepalese immigrants) are Hindus. Although its early history is vague, there is evidence that Bhutan was inhabited as early as 4,000 years ago, and it seems to have existed as a political entity for many centuries. A variety of ethnic groups speaking diverse languages and dialects inhabit Bhutan. Four major groups account for over five-sixths; of the population, and three of these groups speak languages of the Tibeto-Burman family, a branch of the broad Sino-Tibetan superfamily. The Ngalong of W Bhutan speak dialects similar to Tibetan or “Central Bodish.” A polished version of the language, called Dzongkha, became the official national language in the 1960s. The people in the center of the country speak a form of “East Bodish” that is unintelligible to the Ngalong. One of the major dialects of the central region is spoken by the people of the Bumthang district and is called Bumtanka. A homogenous group in the E, centered in Trashigang, speaks Scharshopka, a language unclassified within Tibeto-Burman and not understood by any other group. In the S, Nepalese immigrants to Bhutan speak Nepali, an Indo-Aryan language unrelated to the Tibeto-Burman family.
History to 1900
For much of the 18th and 19th centuries, even the Druk Desi held little real power, as the provincial governors (penlops) were quite strong and the individual valleys fiercely independent. In 1720, the Chinese invaded Tibet and claimed suzerainty over Bhutan. Friction between Bhutan and the NE Indian state of Kuch Bihar led to a British incursion into Bhutan in 1772; but the Panchen lama of Tibet interceded with the governor-general of British India and improved relations somewhat. In 1774, a British mission arrived in Bhutan to promote trade with India, but tensions between the 2 countries continued. In 1864 the British occupied part of S Bhutan known as the Duars, which was formally annexed after a war in 1865.
History 1900 to Present
In 1907, the Panlop of Trongsa, Sir Ugyen Wangchuk (1862–1926), supported by the British, became the first hereditary monarch of Bhutan. Beginning with a treaty signed in 1910, Britain took control of Bhutan’s foreign affairs; after India won independence in the late 1940s, India made an agreement with Britain that allowed it to assume that role. After Chinese Communist forces occupied Tibet in 1950, Bhutan became a point of contest between China and India. As a result, India closed the Bhutanese-Tibetan border, built roads to facilitate military travel through the countryside, and later sponsored a small Bhutanese army. The kingdom’s admission to the UN in 1971 was seen as strengthening its sovereignty, but India continues to maintain its influence over its diplomatic activities. Bhutan’s third hereditary ruler, King Jigme Dorji Wangchuk (reigned 1953–1972), modernized Bhutanese society by abolishing slavery and the caste system, emancipating women, opening the nation to the international community, and starting a secular educational system. In 1985, Bhutan was a founding member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Since 1972 King Jigme Singye Wangchuck has ruled. In 2004 Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba became Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
