Drukpa Community

The people of Bhutan are called Drukpas, derived from the name of the country, DRUK YUL, land of the Thunder Dragon. The Drukpas consist of a variety of ethnicity who are mainly categorized into three broad ethnic groups.

The Sharchops are believed to be the earliest inhabitants of Bhutan. Apparently Indo-Mongoloid in origin, the question of their exact origin or how they reached Bhutan, remains unsolved. Today the Sharchops live largely in the eastern regions. The second group, known as the Ngalops, are the descendants of Tibetan immigrants who migrated to Bhutan since the ninth century onwards, settling primarily in the west. The third section of the population are the nepalese, who began to settle in the south towards the end of the nineteenth century.

Rugged, mountainous terrain and extremes of climate have made the Bhutanese a hardy, well-built people, accustomed to hard work. Despite the strong martial spirit which has enabled them to retain their national independence and sovereignty over the centuries, they are peaceful and fun-loving.

As much as 85% of Bhutan's population live on subsistence farming, scattered throughout the countryside in sparsely populated villages across rugged mountainous terrain. In the lower valleys rice remains the staple diet whereas maize, wheat, buckwheat are more common in higher valleys. The people farm on narrow terraces cut into the slopes of the mountains. Topography largely determines the settlement patterns.

Eco-resorts
Tinchuley(Darj)
Rocky Island(Sams)
Karmi Firm (Darj)
Mt. Narsing(Sik)
Rinchenpong(Sik)
Martham(Sik)

Ecotourism Destinations
Chilapata
Kalijhora
Lava
Latpanchar
Lepchajagat
Loleygaon
Pedong
Rongo
Samsing
Tinchuley

The People
Drukpa
Bhutia
Rajbansi
Lepcha
Mech
Rabha
Sherpa
Nepali

Our Eco Projects
Background
Objectives
Stakeholders
Activities
Locations

Eco Resources
What is eco-tourism
Our Charter
Important links