Tibetan

American  

[ti-bet-n] / tɪˈbɛt n /

Or Thibetan

adjective

1. of or relating to Tibet, its inhabitants, or their language.

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noun

1. a member of the people native to or inhabiting Tibet.

2. the Sino-Tibetan language of Tibet, especially in its standard literary form.

Tibetan British  

/ tɪˈbɛtən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Tibet, its people, or their language

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noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Tibet

2. the language of Tibet, belonging to the Sino-Tibetan family

Etymology

Origin of Tibetan

First recorded in 1740–50; Tibet + -an

Example Sentences

Earlier research showed that animals living on the Tibetan Plateau, which has an average elevation of 14,700 feet, carry a mutation in a gene known as Retsat.

From Science Daily • Apr. 15, 2026

Authorities also sent Tibetan children to state-run boarding schools at ever-younger ages, educating them predominantly in Mandarin and inculcating Chinese culture.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026

Like previous uprisings, this too was crushed - Beijing says 22 people died, but Tibetan groups in exile estimate it was around 200.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

Expanding seismic networks, especially in remote regions like the Tibetan Plateau north of the Himalayas, would probably reveal more mantle quakes.

From Science Daily • Feb. 20, 2026

Beidleman knew they were on the eastern, Tibetan side of the Col and that the tents lay somewhere to the west.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer