Ladakhi people

Ladakh
Region
Taglang La mountain pass in Ladakh
Ladakh (pink) in a map of Jammu and Kashmir
Ladakh District headquarters of Leh District
Coordinates: 34°10′12″N 77°34′48″E / 34.17000°N 77.58000°E / 34.17000; 77.58000Coordinates: 34°10′12″N 77°34′48″E / 34.17000°N 77.58000°E / 34.17000; 77.58000
Country	India
State	Jammu and Kashmir
Area
• Total	86,904 km2 (33,554 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	274,289
• Density	3.2/km2 (8.2/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Ladakhi, Tibetan, Hindi, Balti, Urdu
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Vehicle registration	Leh: JK10; Kargil: JK07
Main cities	Leh, Kargil
Infant mortality rate	19% (1981)
Website	leh.nic.in, kargil.nic.in

Ladakh ("land of high passes") is a region in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir that currently extends from the Kunlun mountain range to the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. It is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Jammu and Kashmir and its culture and history are closely related to that of Tibet. Ladakh is renowned for its remote mountain beauty and culture.

Historically, the region included the Baltistan (Baltiyul) valleys (now mostly in Pakistan), the entire upper Indus Valley, the remote Zanskar, Lahaul and Spiti to the south, much of Ngari including the Rudok region and Guge in the east, Aksai Chin in the northeast (extending to the Kun Lun Mountains), and the Nubra Valley to the north over Khardong La in the Ladakh Range. Contemporary Ladakh borders Tibet to the east, the Lahaul and Spiti regions to the south, the Vale of Kashmir, Jammu and Baltiyul regions to the west, and the southwest corner of Xinjiang across the Karakoram Pass in the far north.