KHAMS

also called Mdo-stod, one of three regions into which the area of Central Asia inhabited by Tibetans is traditionally divided. During the 7th to 9th century AD, the central Tibetan kingdom was extended until it reached the Tarim Basin on the north, China on the east, India and Nepal on the south, and Kashmir on the west. The newly added dominions to the east and northeast were called Mdo-Khams. The Khams region extended from between northern Tibet near the town of Sog (So-hsien) and the upper reaches of the Huang Ho (Yellow River) southeastward into what is now the western part of Szechwan province, China. In the reign of the Manchu emperor Yung-cheng (172235), the area east of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River was taken under Chinese administration, though it was not incorporated into the Chinese provincial system. In 1928 the northwestern part of the Khams region was incorporated into the Chinese provincial system as part of Tsinghai province. The southeastern part of the Khams region long remained in dispute between Tibet and China. In 1956 the disputed area of Khams east of the Yangtze was incorporated into Szechwan province as the Kan-tzu Tibetan autonomous chou (district). Khams is the most fertile and populous of the traditional Tibetan regions.