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Aku Tongmi
Dasho Aku Tongmi was a Bhutanese military officer, musician, and cultural figure who composed the music for Bhutan's national anthem, Druk Tsendhen ("The Thunder Dragon Kingdom"),…
Asha Kama Wangdi
Asha Kama Wangdi (born 1958, Punakha) is widely regarded as the founding father of contemporary art in Bhutan. Trained in both traditional thangka painting and Western art at the K…
Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck
Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck (born 10 June 1955) is a Queen Mother of Bhutan and the first wife of the fourth King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck. She is an acclaimed author, philanthropis…
Ashi Kesang Choden Wangchuck
Ashi Kesang Choden Wangchuck (born 21 May 1930) is the Gyalyum (Royal Grandmother) of Bhutan, widow of the Third Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, mother of the Fourth King Jigme…
Ashi Phuntsho Choden (Royal Grandmother)
Ashi Phuntsho Choden Wangchuck (1911-2003) was the senior queen of the second Druk Gyalpo Jigme Wangchuck and mother of the third king Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, holding the title of R…
Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck
Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck (born 11 May 1963) is a Queen Mother (Gyalyum) of Bhutan and the fourth and youngest of the four queens of the Fourth Druk Gyalpo, King Jigme Singye Wa…
Ashi Tshering Pem Wangchuck
Ashi Tshering Pem Wangchuck (born 22 December 1957) is a Queen Mother (Gyalyum) of Bhutan and the second of the four queens of the Fourth Druk Gyalpo, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck.…
Ashi Tshering Yangdon Wangchuck
Ashi Tshering Yangdon Wangchuck (born 21 June 1959) is a Queen Mother (Gyalyum) of Bhutan and the third of the four queens of the Fourth Druk Gyalpo, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck. S…
Ashi Tsundue Lhamo
Ashi Tsundue Lhamo (also known as Lemo) was a consort of Gongsar Ugyen Wangchuck, the first King of Bhutan, and is historically significant as the mother of Jigme Wangchuck, the Se…
Aup Dawpey and Aum Sedy
Aup Dawpey (Dawa Peljor, also known as Ap Dawpel; died 2020s, aged 91) and Aum Sedy are among the most distinguished traditional musicians of Bhutan. Aup Dawpey, from Talo Nubgang…
Balaram Poudyal
Balaram Poudyal (born 10 October 1952) is a Bhutanese political activist who has served as chairman of the Bhutan Peoples' Party and vice-chairman of the National Front for Democra…
Batoo Tshering
Lieutenant General Batoo Tshering is the Chief Operations Officer of the Royal Bhutan Army, appointed in November 2005. He commanded the Dewathang sector during Operation All Clear…
Bhim Subba
Bhim Subba is a former Director General of the Department of Power in the Royal Government of Bhutan and the author of Himalayan Waters (2001), a study of water resources and hydro…
Bhutanese Nurses in the US Healthcare System
Bhutanese nurses — both refugees resettled in the United States and professionals emigrating from Bhutan itself — occupy a dual position in global healthcare: they relieve workforc…
Bhutanese Social Media Influencers
A growing cohort of Bhutanese content creators has built substantial audiences on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, navigating technical barriers such as limited monetisati…
Bhutanese Taekwondo
Taekwondo is one of the most widely practised competitive sports in Bhutan, governed by the Bhutan Taekwondo Federation since 1985 and represented at multiple Youth Olympic Games a…
Bhutanese-Americans in Local Politics
Less than two decades after the first Bhutanese refugees arrived in the United States, community members have won election to city councils, state legislatures, and other public of…
Bhuwan Gautam
Bhuwan Gautam (DrPH) is a Bhutanese-American public health researcher, community leader, and refugee advocate based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. A former Bhutanese refugee who spen…
Bhuwan Pyakurel
Bhuwan Pyakurel is the first Bhutanese American to be elected to public office in the United States, winning a seat on the Reynoldsburg, Ohio city council in November 2019. A forme…
Brigadier Chabda Namgyal
Brigadier Chabda Namgyal was a senior officer in the Royal Bhutan Army who was convicted and executed for his role in the assassination of Prime Minister Jigme Palden Dorji on 5 Ap…
Chencho Dorji (Actor)
Chencho Dorji is a Bhutanese actor, director, and producer who has appeared in over 60 Bhutanese films. A five-time winner of the Bhutan National Film Awards for Best Actor, he ser…
Chencho Gyeltshen
Chencho Gyeltshen (born 10 May 1996), nicknamed the "Bhutanese Ronaldo" and "CG7," is a Bhutanese professional footballer who plays as a forward. He is the all-time leading goalsco…
Contemporary Religious Leaders in Bhutan
Bhutan's contemporary religious landscape is shaped by the Je Khenpo, the country's chief abbot, and by internationally recognised Buddhist teachers such as Dzongsar Jamyang Khyent…
Crown Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck
Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck (born 5 February 2016) is the Crown Prince and heir apparent to the throne of Bhutan. As the eldest son of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Queen Jet…
D.N. Dhungyel
Lyonpo D.N. Dhungyel (born 1 January 1966) is a Bhutanese politician serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade since January 2024. A member of the People's Demo…
Dago Tshering
Lyonpo Dago Tshering is a Bhutanese politician who served as Deputy Minister of Home Affairs (c. 1989-1991), Minister of Home Affairs (1991-1998), and Ambassador to Japan (1999-200…
Damchae Dem
Damchae Dem is the founder of Pelden Enterprise Limited — Bhutan's first steel manufacturer — and of the Bhutan Association of Women Entrepreneurs (BAOWE). Her trajectory from pove…
Dasho Arun Kapur
Dasho Arun Kapur is an Indian-born educationist who founded the Druk Gyalpo’s Institute in Paro and developed the Bhutan Baccalaureate. A board member of Gelephu Mindfulness City,…
Dasho Karma Ura
Dasho Karma Ura is a Bhutanese scholar, author, painter, and historian who serves as president of the Centre for Bhutan Studies and Gross National Happiness Research. He is the pri…
Dasho Paljor J. Dorji
Dasho Paljor Jigme Dorji (commonly known as Dasho Benji) is a Bhutanese environmentalist, jurist, and diplomat who founded the Royal Society for the Protection of Nature (RSPN) in…
Dasho Shingkhar Lam
Dasho Shingkhar Lam Kunzang Wangchuk (1928 -- 16 October 2014) was a Bhutanese statesman, artist, and religious figure who served as Speaker of the Gyelyong Tshogdu (National Assem…
Dechen Roder
Dechen Roder (born 1980) is a Bhutanese filmmaker, founder of Dakinny Productions, and co-founder of the Beskop Tshechu Film Festival. She directed "Honeygiver Among the Dogs" (201…
Dechen Wangmo
Dasho Dechen Wangmo is a Bhutanese politician and public health professional who served as Minister for Health from 2018 to 2023, making her the only female cabinet minister in Bhu…
Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche
Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (1910-1991) was one of the most revered Vajrayana Buddhist masters of the twentieth century, a scholar, poet, tertön, and teacher who became the foremost Bu…
Dimple Thapa
Lyonpo Dimple Thapa is a Bhutanese politician and former forestry officer serving as the Minister of Education and Skills Development since January 2024. She is the only female min…
Dinesh Kumar Dhakal
Dinesh Kumar Dhakal (born 1996) is a Bhutanese sprinter who holds the national record in the 100 metres at 11.64 seconds. He represented Bhutan at the 2019 World Athletics Champion…
Dolop Droep Namgay
Venerable Dorji Lopen Dolop Droep Namgay of Talo, Punakha, was a Bhutanese religious scholar and senior monastic official who wrote the lyrics to Druk Tsendhen, Bhutan's national a…
Dorji Choden
Aum Dorji Choden (born 1960) is a Bhutanese engineer, public servant, and politician who holds the distinction of being both the first female engineer and the first female cabinet…
Dorji Penjore
Dorji Penjore is a Bhutanese anthropologist, folklorist, and researcher who has been a prominent advocate for the development of archaeology in Bhutan. His paper "Digging the Past"…
Dr Tobgyel
Dr Tobgyel was Bhutan's first modern physician and the country's first MBBS-qualified doctor. Trained at the Jalpaiguri Jackson Medical School, he completed his MBBS in 1954 and re…
Drukpa Kunley (The Divine Madman)
Drukpa Kunley (1455–1529), known as "The Divine Madman" (Kuenkhen Drukpa Kunley), was an unconventional Tibetan Buddhist saint of the Drukpa Kagyu lineage whose outrageous behaviou…
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche (Khyentse Norbu)
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche (born 1961), also known by his filmmaker name Khyentse Norbu, is a Tibetan Buddhist lama, author, and filmmaker born in eastern Bhutan. He is rec…
Environmental Activists in Bhutan
Bhutan's constitutional commitment to maintaining 60 per cent forest cover underpins a tradition of environmental activism expressed through conservation NGOs, individual campaigne…
Françoise Pommaret
Françoise Pommaret (born 1954) is a French ethno-historian and Tibetologist who has worked in Bhutan since 1981. A Director of Research Emeritus at the CNRS and professor at the Ro…
Gangteng Tulku Rinpoche (9th)
The 9th Gangteng Tulku Rinpoche, Kunzang Rigdzin Pema Namgyal (born 1955), is the supreme head of the Nyingma lineage in Bhutan and a recognized Dzogchen master. As the ninth succe…
Gyalse Tenzin Rabgye
Gyalse Tenzin Rabgye (1638–1696) was the fourth Druk Desi (secular ruler) of Bhutan, serving from 1680 to 1694. A protégé of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, he is celebrated for foundin…
Hari Prasad Adhikari
Dr. Hari Prasad Adhikari (born 1963, Sarpang, Bhutan) is a retired professor of Comparative Religious Philosophy at Sampurnananda Sanskrit University in Varanasi, India. A pioneeri…
Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk
Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk (born 1982) is a Bhutanese actor, filmmaker, and climate activist. He is best known internationally for portraying the young Dalai Lama in the 1997 Hollywo…
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (1929–1972), the third King of Bhutan, is known as the "Father of Modern Bhutan." He abolished serfdom, established the National Assembly, joined the United N…
Jigme Drukpa
Jigme Drukpa (born 1969 in Wongchelo, Pema Gatshel) is a Bhutanese musician, singer of zhungdra and boedra folk songs, and the country's first formally trained ethnomusicologist. H…
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (born 1980) is the fifth and current Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King) of Bhutan, having ascended the throne in 2006 following the voluntary abdication of hi…
Jigme Namgyal
Jigme Namgyal (c. 1825–1881) was the 52nd Druk Desi and Penlop of Trongsa, known as "the Black Regent" for his dark complexion and fierce temperament. The father of Ugyen Wangchuck…
Jigme Palden Dorji
Jigme Palden Dorji (14 December 1919 - 6 April 1964) was the first Prime Minister (Lyonchen) of Bhutan, serving from 1952 until his assassination in 1964. As brother-in-law to the…
Jigme Thinley
Jigme Yoser Thinley (born 1952) served as the first democratically elected Prime Minister of Bhutan from 2008 to 2013. A champion of Gross National Happiness on the world stage, he…
Jigmi Yoezer Thinley
Lyonpo Jigmi Yoezer Thinley (born 9 September 1952) is a Bhutanese politician and former civil servant who served as the country's first democratically elected Prime Minister from…
John Ardussi
John Andrew Ardussi (born c. 1944) is an American scholar specialising in Bhutanese history, architecture, and the classical Tibetan language. He holds a PhD from the Australian Na…
John Claude White
John Claude White (1853–1918) was a British engineer and political officer who served as the first British Political Officer in Sikkim from 1889 to 1908, with concurrent responsibi…
Karma (Bhutanese Archer)
Karma is a Bhutanese archer who became the first athlete from Bhutan to earn an Olympic quota place in archery through competitive qualification. He represented Bhutan at the Olymp…
Karma Phuntsho
Lopon Dr. Karma Phuntsho (born 1968) is a Bhutanese scholar, social entrepreneur, and cultural preservationist. He is the author of The History of Bhutan (2013) and the founder of…
Karma Ura
Dasho Karma Ura is a Bhutanese scholar, novelist, painter, and the President of the Centre for Bhutan Studies and Gross National Happiness Research. He is the principal architect o…
Keiji Nishioka
Keiji Nishioka (1933–1992) was a Japanese botanist and agricultural expert who lived and worked in Bhutan for 28 years, from 1964 until his death in 1992. Known as "Dasho" Nishioka…
Kezang Dorji (Rapper)
Kezang Dorji (born 22 October 1989) is a Bhutanese rapper, social activist, and entrepreneur widely regarded as the pioneer of Bhutanese rap music. He was the first Bhutanese solo…
Kheng Sonam Dorji
Kheng Sonam Dorji is a Bhutanese folk musician, drangyen (lute) player and composer who founded the Music of Bhutan Research Centre to document and preserve the country's tradition…
Khyentse Norbu
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche (born 18 June 1961), known on film posters as Khyentse Norbu, is a Bhutanese-born Tibetan Buddhist lama and filmmaker. He is the recognised third…
Kinga Tshering
Bhutanese banker, former CEO of Bank of Bhutan and DHI Infra, and Member of the National Assembly for North Thimphu under Druk Phuensum Tshogpa from 2013 to 2016. He is the founder…
Kinley Dorji
Dasho Kinley Dorji is Bhutan's first professionally trained journalist and the longtime editor-in-chief of Kuensel, the national newspaper. A graduate of Columbia University's jour…
Kinzang Dorji (Prime Minister)
Lyonpo Kinzang Dorji (born 19 February 1951) is a Bhutanese statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of Bhutan: first from August 2002 to August 2003 under the rotating chairma…
Kinzang Lhamo
Kinzang Lhamo is a Bhutanese marathon and ultramarathon runner who represented Bhutan at the 2024 Paris Olympics, becoming the first Bhutanese athlete to complete an Olympic marath…
Kunzang Choden
Kunzang Choden (born 1952) is a Bhutanese writer and folklorist, widely recognized as the first Bhutanese woman to publish a novel in English. Her debut novel The Circle of Karma (…
Lekey Dorji
Lyonpo Lekey Dorji is a Bhutanese politician and technocrat serving as the Minister of Finance since January 2024 in the fourth democratically elected government. A former Minister…
Lila K. Chamlagai
Lila K. Chamlagai is a Bhutanese-American public health scholar, researcher, and community advocate. Born in a Bhutanese refugee camp in Nepal, he is the founder of Helping Hands A…
Lily Wangchuk
Lily Wangchuk (born 15 October 1972) is a Bhutanese politician, diplomat, and author who became the first woman to lead a political party in Bhutan when she was appointed president…
Literary Works of Kunzang Choden
Kunzang Choden (born 1952, Bumthang) is the first Bhutanese woman to write a novel in English. Her debut, The Circle of Karma (2005), has been translated into eight languages; she…
Lotay Tshering
Dr Lotay Tshering (born 1969) is a Bhutanese urologist and politician who served as the third democratically elected Prime Minister of Bhutan from 2018 to 2023, leading the Druk Ny…
Michael Aris
Michael Vaillancourt Aris (1946-1999) was a British historian and scholar of Bhutanese, Tibetan, and Himalayan culture who spent six years as a private tutor to the children of the…
Michael Hutt
Michael James Hutt (born 11 October 1957) is a British academic, Emeritus Professor of Nepali and Himalayan Studies at SOAS University of London, and the author of Unbecoming Citiz…
Namgay Tshering
Lyonpo Namgay Tshering is a Bhutanese politician who served as Finance Minister from November 2018 to January 2024 in the Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa government of Lotay Tshering. A publi…
Namgay Zam
Namgay Zam (born 1985) is a Bhutanese journalist, broadcaster, and activist who became the most prominent figure in Bhutan's press freedom debate after a landmark 2016 defamation c…
Namkhai Nyingpo
Namkhai Nyingpo (8th–9th century) was one of the twenty-five principal disciples of Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche), traditionally said to have meditated at Kurjey Lhakhang in Bumtha…
Nawang Norbu
Nawang Norbu, PhD, is a Bhutanese ecologist and conservationist who is the founder and executive director of the Bhutan Ecological Society (BES). He also serves as Centre Director…
Neten Zangmo
Dasho Neten Zangmo (born 1961) is a Bhutanese government official and politician who served as the first chairperson of the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bhutan from 2006 to 2016.…
Notable Bhutanese Football Players
Despite Bhutan's historically low FIFA ranking, individual Bhutanese players — most notably Chencho Gyeltshen, the country's all-time leading goalscorer — have pursued professional…
Om Dhungel
Om Dhungel is a Bhutanese-Australian community leader and author who, after years as a refugee in Nepal, resettled in Blacktown, western Sydney, and became the inaugural president…
Pawo Choyning Dorji
Pawo Choyning Dorji (born 23 June 1983) is a Bhutanese filmmaker, photographer and writer. His directorial debut Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (2019) was the first Bhutanese film…
Pema Chewang
Dasho Pema Chewang (born c. 1967) is a Bhutanese politician and former civil servant who founded the Bhutan Tendrel Party (BTP) in November 2022. He served as Secretary of the Nati…
Pema Gyamtsho
Bhutanese agricultural scientist, former Minister of Agriculture and Forests (2008–2013), former Leader of the Opposition, and Director General of the International Centre for Inte…
Pema Yangzom (Entrepreneur)
Pema Yangzom is a Bhutanese entrepreneur who founded Bhutan Alternatives, the country's first dedicated electronic waste (e-waste) recycling and management business, addressing a g…
Penor Rinpoche
Kyabje Drubwang Pema Norbu Rinpoche (1932–2009) was the eleventh throne-holder of the Palyul lineage of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism and served as the third Supreme Head…
Pinda Rika Dorji
Pinda Rika Dorji (born 1993), known professionally as pindaPanda, is a Bhutanese esports personality, television host, and YouTuber. She is Bhutan's most-followed social media pers…
Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck
Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck (born 16 July 1984) is a Bhutanese prince, the president of the Bhutan Olympic Committee, a member of the International Olympic Committee, and vice pr…
Prince Namgyal Wangchuk
Prince Namgyal Wangchuk (born c. 1955) is a member of the Bhutanese royal family who served as Home Minister from 1985 to 1991. The younger brother of the Fourth King, Jigme Singye…
Princess Ashi Sonam Dechen Wangchuck
Princess Ashi Sonam Dechen Wangchuck (born 5 August 1981) is a Bhutanese princess and the founding president of the Jigme Singye Wangchuck School of Law, Bhutan's first law school.…
Princess Chimi Yangzom Wangchuck
Princess (Ashi) Chimi Yangzom Wangchuck, born 10 January 1980, is a princess of Bhutan and a half-sister of the fifth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. She is the daughte…
Princess Euphelma Choden Wangchuck
Her Royal Highness Ashi Euphelma Choden Wangchuck (born 1993) is a Bhutanese princess, the younger sister of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. She is known for her social welfar…
Queen Jetsun Pema
Jetsun Pema Wangchuck (born 4 June 1990) is the Queen consort of Bhutan as the wife of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the fifth Druk Gyalpo. She is the youngest queen consort…
R.B. Basnet
Ram Bahadur Basnet (21 June 1948 – 18 August 2007), commonly known as R.B. Basnet, was a Bhutanese civil servant turned exile politician. He served in senior positions in the Royal…
Ratan Gazmere
Ratan Gazmere is a Bhutanese human rights activist and former prisoner of conscience who has served as Chief Coordinator of the Association of Human Rights Activists, Bhutan (AHURA…
Rongthong Kuenley Dorji
Rongthong Kuenley Dorji (c.1938 – 19 October 2011) was an exiled Bhutanese political activist and the founding chairman of the Druk National Congress. His 1997 arrest in New Delhi…
Rongthong Kunley Dorji
Rongthong Kunley Dorji is a Bhutanese political dissident and the founding chairman of the Druk National Congress (DNC). Notably a Sharchop (eastern Bhutanese) rather than a Lhotsh…
Sangay Tenzin (Swimmer)
Sangay Tenzin is a Bhutanese swimmer who represented the Kingdom of Bhutan at international swimming competitions, including the 2024 Paris Olympics. Competing in the 100m freestyl…
Sangay Tsheltrim
Sangay Tsheltrim (born 1982) is a former captain of the Royal Bhutanese Army who became Bhutan's most internationally recognised actor, with roles in Bollywood blockbusters includi…
Sha Bahadur Gurung
Sha Bahadur Gurung (c. 1960 – 15 December 2025) was a Bhutanese political prisoner from Chirang district who died in custody at Chamgang Central Jail after approximately 35 years o…
Shabdrung Jigme Dorji
Shabdrung Jigme Dorji (1905–1931) was the seventh and last politically recognised mind incarnation (thugtul) of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal. Recognised in childhood and enthroned in…
Shabdrung Jigme Norbu
Jigme Norbu (1831–1861) was the fourth mind incarnation of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal. Born into the Drametse Choje family, recognised in childhood and briefly enthroned as Druk Des…
Sherab Dorji (actor)
Sherab Dorji is a Bhutanese actor, musician, and filmmaker best known for his lead role as Ugyen Dorji in Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (2019), Bhutan's first Oscar-nominated film…
Sherab Zam
Sherab Zam (born 10 October 1983) is a Bhutanese archer and coach who represented Bhutan in the women's individual recurve event at the 2012 Summer Olympics, where she carried the…
Sonam Pelden (Entrepreneur)
Sonam Pelden is a Bhutanese technology entrepreneur named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in 2017. She founded Code for Bhutan, a digital skills initiative, and is co-founder a…
Sonam Tobgye
Lyonpo Sonam Tobgye (born 1949) is a Bhutanese jurist who served as the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Bhutan from 2010 to 2014. He led the 39-member committee that dr…
Suraj Budathoki
Suraj Budathoki is the first Bhutanese-American state legislator in the United States, elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives in November 2024. A former Lhotshampa r…
Tandin Bidha
Tandin Bidha is a Bhutanese film actress, producer, and cultural figure who has appeared in over 30 Bhutanese films. A three-time National Film Award winner, she gained internation…
Tashi Choden Chombal
Tashi Choden Chombal (born 1998) is a Bhutanese model and LGBTQ+ advocate who became Bhutan's first openly queer contestant at the Miss Universe pageant in 2022. Her participation…
Tashi Dorji (musician)
Tashi Dorji is a Bhutanese-American experimental guitarist and improviser based in Asheville, North Carolina, with more than 70 recordings to his name. Self-taught on guitar, he ha…
Tashi Gyeltshen
Tashi Gyeltshen (born 1972) is a Bhutanese writer-director and former journalist whose 2018 feature film The Red Phallus is the first Bhutanese-Dzongkha-language drama selected for…
Tek Nath Rizal
Tek Nath Rizal is a Bhutanese former civil servant and Royal Advisory Councillor whose 1989 arrest, 1993 conviction under the National Security Act, and decade-long detention at Ch…
Tempa Dorji
Tempa Dorji (born 1968) is a Bhutanese politician who made history on 19 August 2026 as the first member of an opposition party to be elected Speaker of the National Assembly of Bh…
Tenzing Lamsang
Tenzing Lamsang is a Bhutanese investigative journalist, founder and editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper The Bhutanese, and president of the Journalists' Association of Bhutan.…
Thinley Norbu Rinpoche
Dungse Thinley Norbu Rinpoche (1931–2011) was a Nyingma teacher of the Dudjom Tersar lineage, the eldest son of Dudjom Rinpoche Jigdral Yeshe Dorje, and the father of the Bhutanese…
Thuksey Rinpoche
Thuksey Rinpoche (meaning "precious heart son") is a reincarnate-lama title of the Drukpa Kagyu, the Buddhist school that has been Bhutan's state religion since the 17th century. T…
Tilak Niroula
Tilak Niroula is a Bhutanese-American community leader and board chair of the Bhutanese Community in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He became a prominent public figure in 2025 when he l…
Topgyal Dorji
Dasho Topgyal Dorji (also spelled Tobgyal Dorji, born c. 1965) is a Bhutanese business magnate and the head of the Tashi Group of Companies, Bhutan's largest private conglomerate.…
Trulku Jigme Chhoeda
Trulku Jigme Chhoeda (born 1955) is the 70th and current Je Khenpo, the Chief Abbot of the Central Monastic Body of Bhutan. Enthroned in 1996, he is the longest-serving Je Khenpo i…
Trulku Jigme Choedra
Trulku Jigme Choedra (born 5 August 1955) is the 70th Je Khenpo of Bhutan, head of the Zhung Dratshang or Central Monastic Body since 1996. He is the longest-serving holder of the…
Tsheltrim Rabgyel
Tsheltrim Rabgyel (born c. 1995), known by the ring name "Blue Sky", is a Bhutanese-Canadian mixed martial artist recognised as Bhutan's first MMA fighter. Born in Pemagatshel, Bhu…
Tshering Choden (Archer)
Tshering Choden is a Bhutanese archer who competed at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics, becoming the first Bhutanese athlete to win an Olympic archery match. After retiring from c…
Tshering Palden
Tshering Palden is a Bhutanese journalist who joined the national newspaper Kuensel as a reporter in 2007 and rose to become its news editor and editor-in-chief. He was a 2019 Asia…
Tshering Tobgay
Tshering Tobgay (born 1965) is a Bhutanese politician serving as the seventh Prime Minister of Bhutan since 2024, having previously held the office from 2013 to 2018. A co-founder…
Ugyen Wangchuck
Sir Ugyen Wangchuck (1862–1926) was the founder and first hereditary King of Bhutan. Having unified the country through military campaigns and strategic diplomacy with British Indi…
Ugyen Wangdi (filmmaker)
Ugyen Wangdi is a Bhutanese filmmaker who directed Gasa Lamai Singye (1989), the first feature film produced in Bhutan. A graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India (FT…
Wangchuck Dynasty
The Wangchuck dynasty has ruled the Kingdom of Bhutan as hereditary monarchs since 1907, when Ugyen Wangchuck was elected the first Druk Gyalpo by an assembly of monks, government…
Yeshey Dorji
Yeshey Dorji is a pioneering Bhutanese photographer, ornithologist, writer, and blogger considered one of the first professional photographers in Bhutan. He has authored eight book…
Yeshi Lhendup
Yeshi Lhendup (born 1992) is a Bhutanese filmmaker, music video director, and content creator who founded Yeshi Lhendup Films. In 2021, his YouTube channel became the first Bhutane…