An Early History of the Mon Region (India) and its Relationship with Tibet and Bhutan

Book excerpt: This book-a contribution towards South and Inner Asian Studies, focuses on the socio-political history of the Mon region (Mon yul), comprising Tawang and West Kameng districts in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, India. While exploring the historical developments of the region within Tibet and Bhutan during the 16th and 17th centuries, this book examines how the region, also known simply as Mon, was incorporated into Tibet via an edict issued in 1681 and the subsequent reiterating edict in 1731 by the Lhasa's Tibetan Government. The book also provides an analysis of the term Mon, its etymology and not least its usage on a broader scale. The monograph is based on critical textual research, investigating Tibetan legal documents and the historical texts including auto-/biographies. A number of those sources are presented along with their annotated translations and the facsimile editions. The detailed study of the region is essential and timely. It is not only offering a historical overview of the region but also a wider context and background for understanding the current Sino-Indian border relations. That relation is very much concentrated on this historical Indo-Tibetan border region. Lobsang Tenpa (Ph.D.) is a post-doctoral researcher and visiting fellow at the Center for Development Studies, Shimla, India. His research focuses on the socio-cultural history of the Tibeto-Himalayan region in the framework of mowdern South and Inner Asian Studies.