ScriptLookup

Tibetan

བོད་སྐད་
bo 1.2M speakers

Tibetan (བོད་སྐད་) is a Sino-Tibetan language with approximately 1.2M speakers speakers. It is written using the Tibetan script. Its BCP 47 language code is bo.

Tibetan (བོད་སྐད་, Bod skad) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken primarily in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, as well as in neighboring regions of India, Nepal, and Bhutan. The literary form of Tibetan, based on Classical Tibetan, is the liturgical language of Tibetan Buddhism.

Tibetan is written in the Tibetan script, an abugida created in the 7th century CE to translate Buddhist texts from Sanskrit. The script uses a complex stacking system for consonant clusters. Tibetan is divided into many dialects, among which Central Tibetan (Lhasa dialect) is most widely understood.

Writing Systems Used for Tibetan

Tibetan
བོད་ཡིག
Primary
བོད་སྐད།
LTR Tibt

Frequently Asked Questions

What alphabet or script does Tibetan use?
Tibetan is written using the Tibetan script (ISO 15924 code: Tibt). Tibetan is written left-to-right.
What direction is Tibetan written?
Tibetan is written Left-to-right. Text runs from left to right, the same direction as most European languages.
How many people speak Tibetan?
Tibetan has approximately 1.2M speakers speakers worldwide. It is a member of the Sino-Tibetan language family.
What language family does Tibetan belong to?
Tibetan belongs to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It is written with the Tibetan script.
What is the language code for Tibetan?
The BCP 47 language code for Tibetan is "bo". This code is used in software, web standards (the HTML lang attribute), and internationalization contexts.

Language Facts

BCP 47 Code
bo
ISO 639-3
bod
Status
living
Speakers
1.2M speakers
Language Family
Sino-Tibetan
Scripts
1
Primary Script
Tibetan

Other Tibetan Languages

Dzongkha tsj

Data sourced from Unicode CLDR and ISO 639-3. Last updated April 20, 2026.