Dah Hanu Explained

Dah Hanu
Settlement Type:Twin Villages
Pushpin Map:India Ladakh#India
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Ladakh, India
Coordinates:34.6°N 76.5°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:India
Subdivision Type1:Union Territory
Subdivision Name1:Ladakh
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Name2:Leh
Subdivision Type3:Tehsil
Subdivision Name3:Khalsi[1]
Seat Type:Panchayat
Unit Pref:Metric
Population As Of:2011
Population Total:1816
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone1:IST
Utc Offset1:+5:30

Dah (also known as Dha) and Hanu are two villages of the Brokpa of the Leh District of the Indian union territory of Ladakh.[2] [3] Until 2010, these were the only two villages where tourists were allowed to visit out of a number of Brokpa villages.

The two villages situated in the Dha Hanu valley, also known as Aryan valley, about 163 km northwest of Leh in Ladakh. Being at a lower altitude, Dha and Hanu is warmer than Leh, allowing for the cultivation of wine-grapes and cherries as well as apricots and walnuts.

The Brokpa people of Dah Hanu are nominally Buddhist but also worship their own animist pantheon of gods. They converted to Buddhism in the mid-nineteenth century.[4] They have an Indo-European appearance in contrast to the predominant Tibeto-Mongol inhabitants of most of Ladakh.[5] According to popular belief, the Brokpas were part of the army of Alexander the Great and came to the region over two thousand years ago[6] [7]

"Some households still practice polyandry...it is the groom who pays the bride price. Women have rights of divorce."[8]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Villages | District Leh, Union Territory of Ladakh | India. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20190629222248/https://leh.nic.in/about-district/administrative-setup/village/. 2019-06-29. live.
  2. Web site: In Pictures: The last Aryans . 2023-01-26 . www.aljazeera.com . en . They live in the villages of Dha and Hanu (commonly called as Dhahanu)..
  3. Book: Jina, Prem Singh . Cultural Heritage of Ladakh Himalaya . 2009 . Gyan Publishing House . 978-81-7835-745-4 . 53–176 . en.
  4. Nicolaus. Peter. 2015. Residues of Ancient Beliefs among the Shin in the Gilgit-Division and Western Ladakh. en. Iran & the Caucasus. 19. 3. 201–264. 10.1163/1573384X-20150302. 43899199. 1609-8498.
  5. Web site: Dha Hanu route intro. en. www.himalayabybike.com. 2015-09-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20170822100621/http://www.himalayabybike.com/Himalaya_by_Bike/Dha_Hanu_route_intro.html. 22 August 2017. dead.
  6. Web site: Dha-Hanu in Ladakh Dha-Hanu Tour Dha-Hanu Map Dha-Hanu Weather Dha-Hanu Photos Travel.india.com . 2022-11-27 . www.india.com . en.
  7. Web site: In Pictures: The last Aryans . 2022-11-27 . www.aljazeera.com . en.
  8. Web site: The Sunday Tribune - Spectrum. en. www.tribuneindia.com. 2015-09-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20041110222809/http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20041107/spectrum/main1.htm. 2004-11-10. live.