China's Tibetan population and population in Tibet.

This article addresses the Tibetan population distribution in Tibet and neighboring provinces of China. Tibet is one of China's autonomous regions that is ethnic-inhabited. In 1994 there were 2.36 million people living in Tibet, most of whom were of Tibetan nationality. The total Tibetan population living in China numbered 4,593,072 people, who lived mostly in Tibet, Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu, and Yunnan, in descending order of population size. The Tibetan population in 1953 numbered 2,775,622. The total increase during 1975-90 was 65.48% and the annual growth rate was 13.71%. The annual growth rate among Tibetans during 1982-90 was 21.79% in Tibet, 20.88% in Sichuan, 24.10% in Qinghai, 23.58% in Gansu, and 18.79% in Yunnan. The regional distribution of Tibetans and the ratio of Tibetan population to Han population was highest in Tibet Autonomous Region (a ratio of 25.94:1), followed by Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai (30.52:1). Other Tibet concentrations of population were in Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai (8.71:1), Hunagnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai (5.78:1), and Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan (3.53:1). The population size of Tibetans living in Tibetan prefectures of neighboring provinces was higher than in Tibet in 1990. The rapid growth of the Tibetan population is attributed to the end to the serf system and the improvement in living conditions.