Dah (also known as Dha) and

Hanu The Hanwoo ( ko, 한우), also Hanu or Korean Native, is a breed of small cattle native to Korea. It was formerly used as a draught animal, but this use has almost disappeared. It is now raised mainly for meat. It is one of four indigenous Korea ...

are two villages of the

Brokpa The Brokpa (), sometimes referred to as Minaro, are a small ethnic group mostly found in the union territory of Ladakh, India around the villages of Dha and Hanu. Some of the community are also located across the Line of Control in Baltista ...

of the

Leh District Leh district is a district in the union territory of Ladakh, India. With an area of 45,110 ''km'2'', it is the second largest district in the country smaller only to Kutch. It is bounded on the north by Gilgit-Baltistan's Kharmang and Gha ...

of the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n union territory of

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu and ...

. Until 2010, these were the only two villages where tourists were allowed to visit out of a number of Brokpa villages. However, The Dha hanu region is also used for the all four villages of Brokpa that is Aryan valley. Dha and Hanu are two villages situated in the Dhahanu valley, about 163 km northwest of

Leh Leh () ( lbj, ) is the joint capital and largest city of Ladakh, a union territory of India. Leh, located in the Leh district, was also the historical capital of the Kingdom of Ladakh, the seat of which was in the Leh Palace, the former res ...

. 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

Dard people The Dardic languages (also Dardu or Pisaca) or Hindu-Kush Indo-Aryan languages, are a group of several Indo-Aryan languages spoken in northern Pakistan, northwestern India and parts of northeastern Afghanistan. The term "Dardic" is stated to b ...

of Dah Hanu are nominally

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

but also worship their own animist pantheon of gods. They converted to Buddhism in the mid-nineteenth century. They have an

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutch ...

appearance in contrast to the predominant Tibeto-Mongol inhabitants of most of

. 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 "Some households still practice

polyandry Polyandry (; ) is a form of polygamy in which a woman takes two or more husbands at the same time. Polyandry is contrasted with polygyny, involving one male and two or more females. If a marriage involves a plural number of "husbands and wives" ...

...it is the groom who pays the bride price. Women have rights of divorce."

References

Villages in Khalsi tehsil {{Ladakh-geo-stub