Yume or Yümé, also spelt Yümai (), is a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

in the Lhuntse County in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

region of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. Yume is on the bank of the Yume Chu river, a tributary of the

Subansiri River The Subansiri River; is a trans- Himalayan river and a tributary of the Brahmaputra River that flows through Tibet's Lhünzê County, Shannan Prefecture and the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. The Subansiri is long, with a draina ...

, which it joins the China–India border close to

Taksing Taksing is a village and headquarters of an eponymous Circle in the Upper Subansiri district, Arunachal Pradesh, India. The region of Taksing is populated by Tagin people. The village is on the bank of the Subansiri River, shortly after the r ...

. The township is part of the

Tsari Dakpa Sheri (, ), explained as "Pure Crystal Mountain" and also known as Tsari, is a mountain in the eponymously named Tsari region in Lhöntse County of Tibet's Shannan Prefecture. The mountain is considered sacred for Tibetans and the pilgrima ...

district, considered holy by Tibetans.

Location and significance

Yume is on the bank of Yume Chu river, a short tributary of the

, which it joins near Tibet's border with India's

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

. Yume is in the western section of the Buddhist holy ground of

centred at the

Dakpa Sheri Dakpa Sheri (, ), explained as "Pure Crystal Mountain" and also known as Tsari, is a mountain in the eponymously named Tsari region in Lhöntse County of Tibet's Shannan Prefecture. The mountain is considered sacred for Tibetans and the pilgrima ...

mountain. The 12-yearly ''rongkor'' (ravine circuit) pilgrimage around the Tsari mountain passed through Yume, after passing through

Migyitun Migyitun (), also called Tsari or Zhari (), is a town in the Lhöntse County of Tibet's Shannan Prefecture. It is on the banks of the Tsari Chu river close to the McMahon Line, the ''de facto'' border with India's Arunachal Pradesh. It is also ...

Gelensiniak Gelensiniak, or ''Geling Sinyik'', is a village in the Limeking Circle of the Upper Subansiri district in Arunachal Pradesh, India, close to the region's border with Tibet. The Gelen Vinayak BhatDespite Modi-Xi bonhomie, China moves into Arunac ...

and

, to finish at Chösam. The last ''rongkor'' pilgrimage was held in 1956, after which the Sino-Indian border conflict put a stop to the practice. Tibetologist

Claude Arpi Claude Arpi is French-born author, journalist, historian and tibetologist born in 1949 in Angoulême who lives in Auroville, India. He is the author of several books including ''The Fate of Tibet: When Big Insects Eat Small Insects'', and severa ...

has called for India and China to cooperate to bring about a resumption of the pilgrimage.

Development

Yume is in a wet Himalayan border region uncharacteristic of the dry Tibetan plateau. With the shutting down of the Tsari pilgrimage, the population of Yume seems to have dwindled. In 2011, it was reported that Yume had only nine households, and described as China's smallest township. China has funded development of the region by building roads, mobile telephone networks, a power grid and a medical centre. Its current population is said to be 300, probably including Chinese staff and settlers.

Transportation

Yume Highway connects the town of Chösam with Yume, and runs almost till the end of the township, barring the uncertain China-India border region. Chösam is on

China National Highway 219 China National Highway 219 (G219; Chinese: ''Guódào219'') is a highway which runs along the entire western and southern border of the People's Republic of China, from Kom-Kanas Mongolian ethnic township in Xinjiang to Dongxing in Guangxi. At ...

, connecting to other major towns of the region such as

Sangnag Chöling Sangnag Chöling (, ), is a township in Lhünzê County in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It lies northwest of Yümai in the Char Chu rivervalley. It contains a historic Buddhist monastery. See also *List of towns and villages in Tibet ...

, Charme, Doyul, Lung and Chayul.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yume Populated places in Shannan, Tibet