History of District Lahaul-Spiti - Himachal Pradesh General Knowledge

In our previous posts, we talked about History of District Sirmaur, History of District Solan, History of District Kinnaur and History of Shimla.

In this post, we discuss briefly about the history and the culture of Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh.

Kindly point out the mistakes ,if any, in the comment section.

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History of Lahaul-Spiti:

Tibet- Ladakhi Mughal war was fought in A.D 1681- A.D 1683.

Gondhla fort was built by Mann Singh.

In A.D. 1695, Raja Udai Singh (A.D. 1690-1720) of Chamba renamed Murgul as Udaipur.

Andrew Wilson, a European traveler called Lahaul ‘a valley of glaciers’ in 1873 A.D.

Mr. Cunningham visited Lahaul in 1839 A.D.

Zorawar Singh was the Governor of Ladakh.

In 1960 A.D., the government of Punjab converted Lahaul-Spiti into a district with headquarter at Keylong. In 1966 A.D., it was transferred to the state of Himachal Pradesh.

‘Dugpo’ is a ladies gown in Lahaul-Spiti.

The most popular tribal deities in Lahaul-Spiti are ‘Gyepang’ and ‘Dabla’.

The monasteries in the Lahaul region are Khardong, Shashur Gemur and Guru Ghantal. ‘Gompa’ is the synonym of Monastery.

There are three monasteries in Spiti region. They are Tabo, Kee and Dhankar.

Three different types of marriage systems are prevalent in Lahaul. The first one is ‘Tebagston or Mothe biah’ (arranged marriage). The second is ‘Kowanchi Biah’ (arranged but performed very briefly). The third and the last one is ‘Kunmaibagstan or Kuchi Biah’ (marriage by elopement).

Two types of marriage system are prevalent in Spiti region. The first one is arranged marriage and the second one is ‘Khandum’ (choice is made against the wishes of their parents).

‘Kuphachacha’ or ‘Tshud-Thwagsti’ is a ritual performed in the case of divorce in Lahaul-Spiti, simple woolen thread is tied to the little finger of both the companions is pulled apart in presence of some elder person and this decides the issue.

Other important information about district Lahaul-Spiti:

Headquarter: Keylong

Altitude: 3165 meters

Languages spoken: Bhoti, Manchat, Gaheri and Changsa.

The district Lahaul-Spiti lies between 31°44’55” and 32°59’57” North latitude and 76°46’29” and 78°41’34” East longitude.

The Lahaul has three prominent valleys. They are ‘Chandra Valley’ or ‘Rangoli Valley’, ‘Bhaga Valley’ or ‘Gara Valley’ and ‘Chandra Bhaga Valley’ or ‘Pattan Valley’.

Chandra Bhaga valley is also called as ‘orchard and granary of Lahaul-Spiti’.

‘Khoksar’ is the first village of Lahaul valley.

The prominent passes in the Lahaul-Spiti district are Rohtang Pass, Kukti Pass, Baralacha Pass, Kunzum Pass, Banghal Pass, and Shing-dkon Pass.

Spiti has four distinct regions. They are Sham Region, Pin Region, Bhar Region and Tud Region. Sham is the lower region of Spiti. This region is situated on both sides of River Spiti between its confluence with River Lingti and its junction with Pare.

River Spiti rises from the slopes of Kunzum La.

Famous fairs celebrated in the Lahaul-Spiti district are Ladarch fair (annual fair held at Kibber in the month of July), Sissu fair, Phagli or Kun fair (Pattan valley), Pon fair (Pattan valley).

Read this book for thorough information of Lahaul.

Lahaul a tribal habitat of Himachal Pradesh