Social classes of Tibet
Encyclopedia
There were three main social groups in Tibet
prior to 1959, namely ordinary laypeople (mi ser in Tibetan), lay nobility
(sger pa), and monk
s. The ordinary layperson could be further classified as a peasant farmer (shing-pa) or nomadic pastoralist (trokpa).
The Tsang (17th century) and Dalai Lama (Ganden Podrang) law codes distinguished three social divisions: high, medium and low, each in turn was divided into three classes, to give nine classes in all. Social status was a formal classification, mostly hereditary and had legal consequences: for example the compensation to be paid for the killing of a member of these classes varied from 5 (for the lowest) to 200 'sung' for the second highest, the members of the noble families.
Nobles, government officials and monks of pure conduct were in the high division, only - probably - the Dalai Lama was in the very highest class. The middle division contained a large portion of the population and ranged from minor government officials, to taxpayer and landholding peasants, to landless peasants. Movement between classes was possible in the middle division. The lower division contained ragyabpa ('untouchables') of different types: e.g. blacksmith
s and butchers. The very lowest class contained executioners, and (in the Tsang code) bachelors and hermaphrodites.
Anthropologists have presented different taxonomies for the middle social division, in part because they studied specific regions of Tibet and the terms were not universal. Both Melvyn Goldstein
and Geoff Childs however classified the population into three main types:
In the middle group, the taxpaying families could be quite wealthy. Depending upon the district, each category had different responsibilities in terms of tax and labor. Membership to each of these classes was primarily hereditary
; the linkage between subjects and their estate and overlord was similarly transmitted through parallel descent. The taxpayer class, although numerically smallest among the three subclasses, occupied a superior position in terms of political and economic status.
There were "a small group of about 30 higher status families" and "120 to 170 lower or 'common' aristocratic families".
. Monk officials were usually drawn from Lhasa middle classes, the families of existing monk officials, or were the second sons of the aristocracy. They were usually monks in name only, one night spent in a monastery being sufficient to qualify as a monk for this purpose.
. In Goldstein's review of the Gyantse district he found that a taxpayer family typically owned from 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) to 300 acres (1.2 km²) of land each. Their primary civil responsibility was to pay tax
es (tre-ba and khral-pa means "taxpayer"), and to supply corvée
services that included both human and animal labor to their district authority. They had a comfortable standard of living. They also frequently practiced polyandry
in marriage and other practices to maintain a single marriage per generation and avoid parceling land holdings.
and decided inheritance. Compared to the taxpayer families the householders, however, had lighter tax obligations and only human labor corvée
obligations to their district authorities. These obligations, unlike the taxpayer family obligations, fell only on the individual and not on his family.
land from taxpayer families and as payment take on work for those families. Like the householders the landless peasants also used resources in their own individual capacity which were non-heritable.
The relative freedom of the mi-bo status was usually purchased by an annual fee to the estate to which the mi-bo belonged. The fee could be raised if the mi-bo prospered, and the lord could still exact special corvée labor, e.g. for a special event.
The status could be revoked at the will of the estate owner. The offspring of the mi-bo did not automatically inherit the status of 'mi-bo', they did inherit the status of 'mi-ser', and could be indentured to service in their earlier teens, or would have to pay their own mi-bo fee.
was in the highest untouchable class, and was not regarded as being as defiled as an executioner, who was in the lowest.
They were regarded as both polluted and polluting, membership of the caste was hereditary, and escape from the untouchable status was not possible.
American sinologist A. Tom Grunfeld
cites Chinese sources asserting that slavery existed in old Tibet.. He cites evidence that slaves existed, usually as private household servants, while not strictly adhering to the number of 5% of the population as suggested by Chinese authorities.
Grunfeld also quotes Sir Charles Bell, a British colonial official in India and a Tibet scholar, as acknowledging the existence of slaves in the form of small children being stolen or bought from their parents, too poor to support them, to be brought up and kept or sold as slaves. Grunfeld omits Bell's elaboration that in 1905, there were "a dozen or two" of these, and that it was "a very mild form of slavery". Accounts from other Westerners who visited Tibet later, suggest that the 13th Dalai Lama eliminated this practice altogether in his reforms.
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
prior to 1959, namely ordinary laypeople (mi ser in Tibetan), lay nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
(sger pa), and monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s. The ordinary layperson could be further classified as a peasant farmer (shing-pa) or nomadic pastoralist (trokpa).
The Tsang (17th century) and Dalai Lama (Ganden Podrang) law codes distinguished three social divisions: high, medium and low, each in turn was divided into three classes, to give nine classes in all. Social status was a formal classification, mostly hereditary and had legal consequences: for example the compensation to be paid for the killing of a member of these classes varied from 5 (for the lowest) to 200 'sung' for the second highest, the members of the noble families.
Nobles, government officials and monks of pure conduct were in the high division, only - probably - the Dalai Lama was in the very highest class. The middle division contained a large portion of the population and ranged from minor government officials, to taxpayer and landholding peasants, to landless peasants. Movement between classes was possible in the middle division. The lower division contained ragyabpa ('untouchables') of different types: e.g. blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
s and butchers. The very lowest class contained executioners, and (in the Tsang code) bachelors and hermaphrodites.
Anthropologists have presented different taxonomies for the middle social division, in part because they studied specific regions of Tibet and the terms were not universal. Both Melvyn Goldstein
Melvyn Goldstein
Melvyn C. Goldstein is a US-American anthropologist and Tibet scholar. His research focuses on Tibetan society, history and contemporary politics, population studies, polyandry, studies in cultural and development ecology, economic change and cross-cultural gerontology.-Personal...
and Geoff Childs however classified the population into three main types:
- taxpayer families (tre-ba or khral-pa)
- householders (du-jong or dud-chung-ba)
- landless peasants (mi-bo)
In the middle group, the taxpaying families could be quite wealthy. Depending upon the district, each category had different responsibilities in terms of tax and labor. Membership to each of these classes was primarily hereditary
Heredity
Heredity is the passing of traits to offspring . This is the process by which an offspring cell or organism acquires or becomes predisposed to the characteristics of its parent cell or organism. Through heredity, variations exhibited by individuals can accumulate and cause some species to evolve...
; the linkage between subjects and their estate and overlord was similarly transmitted through parallel descent. The taxpayer class, although numerically smallest among the three subclasses, occupied a superior position in terms of political and economic status.
The Higher Division
The highest of the high class was empty, or only contained possibly the Dalai LamaThe Nobility
The middle class of the high division - the highest attainable in practice - was headed by the hereditary nobility. Yabshi were thought to be descendants of the Dalai Lamas, depon were descendants of the ancient royal families, midak were on a slightly lower level..There were "a small group of about 30 higher status families" and "120 to 170 lower or 'common' aristocratic families".
High Government and Monk Officials
High government officials were appointed from the aristocracyAristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
. Monk officials were usually drawn from Lhasa middle classes, the families of existing monk officials, or were the second sons of the aristocracy. They were usually monks in name only, one night spent in a monastery being sufficient to qualify as a monk for this purpose.
Taxpayer families
The treba (also tralpa or khral-pa) taxpayers lived in "corporate family units" that hereditarily owned estates leased from their district authority, complete with land titlesTitle (property)
Title is a legal term for a bundle of rights in a piece of property in which a party may own either a legal interest or an equitable interest. The rights in the bundle may be separated and held by different parties. It may also refer to a formal document that serves as evidence of ownership...
. In Goldstein's review of the Gyantse district he found that a taxpayer family typically owned from 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) to 300 acres (1.2 km²) of land each. Their primary civil responsibility was to pay tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es (tre-ba and khral-pa means "taxpayer"), and to supply corvée
Corvée
Corvée is unfree labour, often unpaid, that is required of people of lower social standing and imposed on them by the state or a superior . The corvée was the earliest and most widespread form of taxation, which can be traced back to the beginning of civilization...
services that included both human and animal labor to their district authority. They had a comfortable standard of living. They also frequently practiced polyandry
Polyandry in Tibet
Polyandry is a form of polygamy whereby a woman has several husbands. In Tibet those husbands are often brothers, which is why it is most commonly called "Fraternal Polyandry". Concern over the delicate question of which children are fathered by which brother falls on the wife alone...
in marriage and other practices to maintain a single marriage per generation and avoid parceling land holdings.
Householders
The householder class (du-jung, dud-chung-ba duiqoin, duiqion, düchung, dudchhung, duigoin or dujung) comprised peasants who held only small plots of land that were legally and literally "individual" possessions. This was different from the taxpayer families who owned land as a familial corporation. Land inheritance rules for the householders were quite different from taxpayer family rules, in that there was no certainty as to whether a plot of land would be inherited by his son. The district authority — either governmental, monastic, or aristocratic — was the ultimate landownerLandlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
and decided inheritance. Compared to the taxpayer families the householders, however, had lighter tax obligations and only human labor corvée
Corvée
Corvée is unfree labour, often unpaid, that is required of people of lower social standing and imposed on them by the state or a superior . The corvée was the earliest and most widespread form of taxation, which can be traced back to the beginning of civilization...
obligations to their district authorities. These obligations, unlike the taxpayer family obligations, fell only on the individual and not on his family.
Human lease peasants
Human lease peasants (mi-bo) did not have heritable rights to land. They were still obligated to their 'owning' estate under their status as mi-ser. In contrast with the taxpayer families and householders, they had the freedom to go wherever they wanted and could engage in trade or crafts. When farming, they might leaseLeasing
Leasing is a process by which a firm can obtain the use of a certain fixed assets for which it must pay a series of contractual, periodic, tax deductible payments....
land from taxpayer families and as payment take on work for those families. Like the householders the landless peasants also used resources in their own individual capacity which were non-heritable.
The relative freedom of the mi-bo status was usually purchased by an annual fee to the estate to which the mi-bo belonged. The fee could be raised if the mi-bo prospered, and the lord could still exact special corvée labor, e.g. for a special event.
The status could be revoked at the will of the estate owner. The offspring of the mi-bo did not automatically inherit the status of 'mi-bo', they did inherit the status of 'mi-ser', and could be indentured to service in their earlier teens, or would have to pay their own mi-bo fee.
Ragyabpa - Untouchables
The ragyabpa or untouchable caste were the lowest level, and they performed the 'unclean' work. This included fishermen, butchers, executioners, corpse disposers, blacksmiths, goldsmiths and prostitutes. Ragyabpa were also divided into three divisions: for instance a goldsmithGoldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Since ancient times the techniques of a goldsmith have evolved very little in order to produce items of jewelry of quality standards. In modern times actual goldsmiths are rare...
was in the highest untouchable class, and was not regarded as being as defiled as an executioner, who was in the lowest.
They were regarded as both polluted and polluting, membership of the caste was hereditary, and escape from the untouchable status was not possible.
Nangzan - Slaves
According to a Chinese source, Nangzan (also nangzen, nangzan, nangsen) in Tibetan history were hereditary household slaves, deprived of any means of production and personal freedom.American sinologist A. Tom Grunfeld
A. Tom Grunfeld
A. Tom Grunfeld is SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor at Empire State College of the State University of New York, specializing in the modern history of east Asia, particularly of China and Tibet....
cites Chinese sources asserting that slavery existed in old Tibet.. He cites evidence that slaves existed, usually as private household servants, while not strictly adhering to the number of 5% of the population as suggested by Chinese authorities.
Grunfeld also quotes Sir Charles Bell, a British colonial official in India and a Tibet scholar, as acknowledging the existence of slaves in the form of small children being stolen or bought from their parents, too poor to support them, to be brought up and kept or sold as slaves. Grunfeld omits Bell's elaboration that in 1905, there were "a dozen or two" of these, and that it was "a very mild form of slavery". Accounts from other Westerners who visited Tibet later, suggest that the 13th Dalai Lama eliminated this practice altogether in his reforms.