The Tibetan people are indigenous to Tibet and surrounding regions stretching from Central Asia inside the North and West to Myanmar and China within the East. Recent genetic studies indicate that the ancestors of the Tibetan people diverged from the ancestors of the Han Chinese about 5,,000–6,000 years ago, and migrated south and west into the Himalayas, mingling with another populace institution from Central Asia before spreading over Tibet. Spoken Tibetan, generally labeled as a Tibeto-Burman language, has 3 essential local dialects: Central Tibetan, Kang and Amdo.
The Government of Tibet in Exile claims that the number of Tibetans has fallen from 6.3 million to 5.4 million on the grounds that 1959. According to the Chinese census conducted in 2000, there are 2,616,300 people in Tibet.
It is usually agreed that Tibetans share a massive genetic background with Mongols, although different theories claim them to be Chinese. Some anthropologists have described an Indo-Scythian element, and others a Southeast Asian issue; both are credible given Tibet's geographic location.