Tibet
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Pronunciation: enpr: tĭ-bĕt'
enpr: tə-bĕt'
ipa: /tɪˈbɛt/
ipa: /təˈbɛt/
rhymes: -ɛt
Forms: form: Thibet
form: Tebet
form: Tibat
form: Tobbat
form: Tibbet
Etymology: Of unclear origin, but probably from Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅 (Töpüt) ('hilly, mountainous place') via Classical Persian تبت (tabbat, tubbat). In one proposed etymology the ultimate origin is Tibetan བོད (Bod), used in the compound name sTod-bod (pronounced Tö-pöt), meaning “Upper Tibet”. In another proposal, the name comes via Mongolian Töpüt from an alteration of Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇 (töpü, “height, summit”). Bialek instead derives the name from Old Tibetan དཔོན (dpon, “leader, ruler”), with addition of the Old Turkic plural suffix -𐱅 (-t²) and a epenthetic vowel to break up the non-Turkic initial consonant cluster [tp]; according to her, Middle Chinese 吐蕃 (thu^X bjon) comes from the same source.
Senses: examples: text: The Province of Xenſi extends to the Kingdom of Preſter John. Caſcar and Thebet, which the Chineſes in a general Name call Sifan it is a large Province, and is divided into eight Counties, having one hundred and eighty Cities: Sigan is the Metropolis of the whole, ſeated on the River Guei, in a moſt pleaſant and delightful place, of a noble Proſpect, and good Trade.
ref: [1693, Robert Morden, “Of China”, in Geography Rectified; or a Description of the World, 3rd edition, page 439:
text: A giant rally on Formosa reflects the worldwide concern for Tibet's heroic rebels. Speaking to sixty-thousand people in Taipei, President Chiang Kai-shek says Tibet's resistance foreshadows a vast anti-communist uprising on the mainland of China.
ref: 1959 February 4, Peter Roberts, 0:00 from the start, in Formosa Rallies In Support Of Tibet Rebels (1959), British Pathé:
synonyms: Tibetan Plateau
Tibet Plateau
glosses: A geographic region in Central Asia (mostly in China), the homeland of the Tibetan people, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau.
examples: text: The estimated population of the Chinese Empire (exclusive of Tibet) is given, on the basis of this census, as 329,542,000, while the population of Tibet is estimated at 1,500,000.
ref: 1922, Bertrand Russell, The Problem of China, London: George Allen & Unwin, →OCLC, →OL, page 33:
text: Third, we should open up two new international broadcasting stations—Radio Free China and Radio Free Tibet— to provide these nations with independent information and commentary.[...]The people of Tibet represent a separate case. Conquered by the Chinese in 1950, occupied brutally by troops who killed thousands, desecrated local cultural and religious sites, and denied reasonable demands for autonomy, Tibetans have elicited much sympathy but little support from the outside world. The outrage over the brutal killings of peaceful demonstrators in Lhasa in March 1989 quickly faded after the massacres in Beijing in June. While there is a limit to what we can do, we should do more than we have done. In addition to raising the issue of Tibet in bilateral talks, we should establish Radio Free Tibet so that its people, though isolated, will no longer feel abandoned.
ref: 1992, Richard Nixon, “The Pacific Triangle”, in Seize the Moment, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, pages 179–180:
text: I also supported more political freedom in China, and had recently invited the Dalai Lama and Hong Kong human rights activist Martin Lee to the White House to highlight my support for the cultural and religious integrity of Tibet and for maintaining Hong Kong's democracy now that the UK had restored it to China.
ref: 2005, Bill Clinton, My Life, volume II, New York: Vintage Books, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 387:
synonyms: The Hermit Kingdom
Hermit Kingdom
glosses: A former country in East Asia that existed from 1912 until its annexation by China in 1951.
synonyms: Tibet Autonomous Region
Xizang
glosses: An autonomous region of China. Official name: Tibet Autonomous Region. Capital: Lhasa.
Derived terms: Greater Tibet
Inner Tibet
Outer Tibet
South Tibet
Tibetan
Tibetan Empire
Tibetan Plateau
Tibet Autonomous Region
Tibetic
Tibetology
Related terms: Countries and territories of the world