Abstract
Marriage customs in Tibetan cultural areas of mTsho sngon (Qinghai) Province of the People’s Republic of China have been changing dramatically in recent decades, due to economic, social and cultural factors. They have also been greatly affected by the introduction of modern education for segments of the population. There is a danger that many of the traditional marriage customs may eventually disappear. The aim of this study is to provide both a systematic description of the different components contextualizing the wedding ritual in Gling rgya, a village in Reb gong, northeast of Tibet, and how it is changing in modern times, and a comparison between traditional and modern weddings. In order to contextualize the wedding ritual and how it has changed, the present thesis also describes the broader socio-cultural and economic factors, the impact of local education, as well as religious effects.
Weddings in Gling rgya village are similar to weddings in the wider Reb gong county, and therefore, although there is some local variation, my case study of one village can be considered to be generally representative for the entire area.