Tibet is a non-homogeneous country. Even in the Tibetan Autonomous Region you will find non-Tibetan tribes such as Menba, Loba, Drung, Xiaerba and others. Historically, Tibet ranged from the southern part of present Tibet Autonomous Region, and expanded to the north, including Qinghai, Sichuan and Gansu, conquering and assimilated the native people and tribes of those lands, including at least a half million Han people. The original tribal system of southern Tibet evaporated during the rule of the Tubo dynasty. Since the collapse of the Tubo dynasty in the 9th century, many assimilated people reverted to the tribal systems for survival. There were some local kingdoms established by these tribes. For instance, Xixia was established 1,000 years ago at the Gansu. According to one modern analysis, the languages of Xixia and Tibetan are only 25 % coincidental for the key words. After culture exchanges of the last 1,100 years, today the tribal people are considered Tibetan.
Tibetans share their region with Menpa, Luopa, Han Chinese, Hui, Sherpa, and a few Deng people. Tibetans are the main inhabitants on the plateau. Traditionally, farmers settled in small villages with barley as their main crop. The roaming nomads earned their living by herding yaks and sheep. Most Tibetans in cities made a living as craftsmen. However, nowadays more and more people are migrating into businesses.
The Tibetan language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan phylum. People in U, 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. Since China's Family Planning program is not carried out among Tibetan people, the Tibetan population keeps growing. According to the census conducted in 2000, there are 2,616,300 people in Tibet, with Tibetans totaling 2,411,100 or 92.2% of the current regional population. The census also revealed that the Tibetan's average lifespan has increased to 68 due to the improving standard of living and access to medical services. Illiteracy has decreased to 850,700.
