Bhotiya

/ˈboʊtiə/ noun

Definition

An alternative spelling of bhotia; a Himalayan ethnic group or their language from the Tibet-India border region.

Etymology

Variant spelling of bhotia, with -ya as an alternate suffix form. Both spellings refer to the same Tibeto-Burman speaking peoples of the high Himalayas.

Kelly Says

The spelling variations bhotia/bhotiya show how colonial British administrators phonetically spelled South Asian words differently—there was no standardized system, which is why the same ethnic groups got multiple official spellings in historical records.

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