Ladakh (Lad)
Lad: ལ་དྭགས la’dwags
‘Land of (High) Passes’.
From Lad/Tib: la-dvags, ‘land of passes’.
Previously part of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh is now a Union Territory.
Ladakh is the highest plateau in India with much of it being over 3,000 m. It used to be India’s link to the main Central Asian trading routes, including the Silk Road.
It is nicknamed ‘Little Tibet’: 40% of its population is Tibetan Buddhist, and the language, culture and landscape is reminiscent of its larger cousin.
Ladakh was divided between India and Pakistan following Independence in 1947, and was further split following a Chinese incursion in 1962.
