Tromzikhang (

Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken diale ...

: ཁྲོམ་གཟིགས་ཁང་།; Wylie: ) is a historic building in

Barkhor The Pargor Subdistrict, traditionally known as the Barkhor (; ), is an area of narrow streets and a public square located around Jokhang, Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet, China. The Barkhor is a popular devotional c ...

Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Region in Southwest China. The inner urban area of Lhas ...

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

, China. It is located northwest of

Jokhang The Jokhang (, ), also known as the Qoikang Monastery, Jokang, Jokhang Temple, Jokhang Monastery and Zuglagkang ( or Tsuklakang), is a Buddhist temple in Barkhor Square in Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Tibetans, ...

temple at the corner of the left side of Barkhor Tromshung Jang (street). It was demolished in the 1990s except for the magnificent facade. Today Tromzikhang is a notable market in Lhasa and a housing complex.

History

It was built in around 1700 on

Tromshung Jang and was once a government building for officials such as the

Amban Amban (Manchu and Mongol: ''Amban'', Tibetan: ་''am ben'', , Uighur:''am ben'') is a Manchu language term meaning "high official", corresponding to a number of different official titles in the imperial government of Qing China. For instanc ...

s, representatives of the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

emperor. It was built under the command of the

6th Dalai Lama Tsangyang Gyatso (; born 1 March 1683, died after 1706) was the 6th Dalai Lama. He was an unconventional Dalai Lama that preferred the lifestyle of a crazy wisdom yogi to that of an ordained monk. His regent was killed before he was kidnapped ...

(1683–1706) and is sometimes referred to as the 6th Dalai Lama's Palace. A widening of the Barkhor over a length of some 80 metres forms the space of the Barkor Tromshung Jang. The Tromzikhang was built on the sunny northern side of the Barkor Tromshung Jang (North Barkhor Square). The surviving, but still splendid, symmetrical, three-storied façade runs the whole length of this side of the square. Where Ramoche Lam (Barkhor Changtrom Sanlan) enters the Barkhor from the north there used to be a large

stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as '' śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circumam ...

and

mani wall Mani stones are stone plates, rocks or pebbles inscribed with the six-syllabled mantra of Avalokiteshvara (''Om mani padme hum'', hence the name ''mani stone''), as a form of prayer in Tibetan Buddhism. The term mani stone may also be used to ...

, now both completely demolished. It was 40 metres at its widest and 20 metres at its narrowest. Between 1938 and 1949, Tromzikhang was used as a Republican School, with a staff of Chinese, Hui and Tibetan teachers. It was built primarily for the local Chinese population of merchants with a number of staff from the Chinese Mission.

Phuntsok Wangyal Phüntsok Wangyal Goranangpa (2 January 1922 – 30 March 2014), also known as Phüntsog Wangyal, Bapa Phüntsok Wangyal or Phünwang, was a Tibetan politician. A major figure in modern Sino-Tibetan relations, he is best known for being the fou ...

, a progressive pro-

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

Tibetan from Batang who founded the

Tibetan Communist Party The Tibetan Communist Party was a small communist party in the Tibet, which functioned in secrecy under various names. The group was founded by Phuntsok Wangyal and Ngawang Kesang in 1943. It emerged from a group called the Tibetan Democrati ...

, also taught there for some time. The school taught pupils such as Gyalo Dondrup, the eldest brother of the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...

as well as Nepalese and Muslim minorities living in Lhasa. The school was closed down in 1949 when the Chinese Mission was expelled from Tibet.

Architecture

The building is characterized by its length; it has a 63-metre (207 ft) facade. The red "Pembe" stripe, located at the roof level, is used to signify that the residence was intended to be used by an incarnated

lama Lama (; "chief") is a title for a teacher of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term ''guru'', meaning "heavy one", endowed with qualities the student will eventually embody. The Tibetan word "lama" means "hig ...

. The interior of the complex was demolished in 1997–1998 by the Chinese government. Nevertheless, the Barkor Street facade was retained during the redevelopments, and the area is now a housing complex and notable market.

Market

Today Tromzikhang market sells items such as

yak butter Yak butter (also known as "Dri Butter" or "Su oil" bo, འབྲི་མར།, zh, 酥油) is butter made from the milk of the domestic yak (''Bos grunniens''). Many herder communities in China, India, Mongolia, Nepal, Gilgit-Baltistan Pakist ...

, cheese, tea, noodles, vegetables and candy. A July 1994 study revealed that some 70% of traders at the market are Chinese. Nearby is Tromzikhang Bus Station and a mosque and a small 15th century building housing a two-story image of the Maitreya, named the Jamkhang. Tromzikhang and the mosque were badly affected by the anti-government protests in 2008.

Notes

References

*Larsen, Knud and Sinding-Larsen, Amund (2001). ''The Lhasa Atlas: Traditional Tibetan Architecture and Townscape''. Thomas & Hudson Ltd. . {{coord, 29, 39, 13.26, N, 91, 07, 58.6, E, region:CN_type:landmark, display=title Buildings and structures completed in 1700 Buildings and structures in Lhasa 1700 establishments in Asia