There are more than ten ethnic groups in Tibet, including Tibetan, Mongolian, Nu, Drung, Moinba, Lhoba, Hui, Naxi, Deng and Sherpa.
Among them, Tibetans are the dominant inhabitants of Tibet, accounting for 92.2 percent of the local population. Han Chinese is the second largest population in Tibet. Most of them are cadres and technicians dispatched to Tibet to help its development. Most of the Hui People now living in Tibet are those who immigrated there from other provinces during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), mainly engaged in business, handicraft industry and butchering.

The Tibetan ethnic group of China is noted for its diligence, bravery, optimistic and long history, adept in singing and dancing. Tibetans live mainly in Tibet and also in some areas of Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan provinces. They have their own language and written script. The Tibetan language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan phylum. People in Tsang, Kham, and Chamdo speak different dialects.

Most Tibetans are devout Buddhists while a few believe in the old Bon. Islam and Catholicism also have a few followers in Lhasa and Yanjing respectively. You will witness a number of religions practice prevailing in the region as the majority of the population is the firm follower of Buddhism. Tibet has the largest number of monks in the world with almost 1/3 of the population being a monk. They are considered to be the ultimate followers of Buddhism. Even you will feel internally rejuvenated by finding the people so optimistic and so proud of their beliefs and religion.

The ancestors of the present Tibetans lived on both sides of Tsangpo River and mainly earned their livelihood from cultivation of barely, wheat and peas. There is also nomadic population in Tibet that keeps moving from one place to other herding their yaks and sheep. But slowly more and more people are moving towards cities for better education and job. Most Tibetans in cities made a living as craftsmen.

Their staple food is barley flour, and they like to drink butter tea, milk tea, barley wine, and eat beef and mutton. They do not eat odd-toed mammals. In ancient times Tibetan people buried their dead. Now they perform cremation, exposure burial and water burial.