Frank Kingdon-Ward was the first Westerner to describe the area in his 1925 book,
Riddle of the Tsangpo Gorges. In his 1994
Tibet Handbook, Hong Kong-born
Victor Chan describes the extremely difficult trek from Pemakö Chung to the
beyul Gonpo Ne, one of the remotest spots on earth. A modern journey by Ian Baker and his
National Geographic-sponsored team to Pemakö received book-length treatment in his 1994
The Heart of the World. Since 1904, the year
Kabgye Dudjom Rinpoche was born in Pemako, people from all over
Tibet, especially from
Khams,
Golok, and
U-Tsang, entered Pemako and settled near their
lama.
Nyingma centers in Pemako were also connected to Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche. Ever since Pemako was first opened to the outside world thousands of people settled in the region. The Tsanglha people were the original inhabitants of Pemako, as Pemako was part of
Monyul. Monyul includes present day
Arunachal Pradesh,
Bhutan and
Sikkim. The Tshangla community continued to grow into the beginning of the 18th century right until the early 20th century. Political and religious turmoil in Tibet forced many Tibetans to join Tshangla people in Pemako, a land where religious serenity pledge through many revered Lamas who had been to this land, prophesied by
Padmasambhava in the mid-8th century to be a land of final call where devotees would be flocking at the time of religious persecutions, the last sanctuary for
Buddhism, with the time Pemako's popularity grew more and more, with the popularity many Tibetan people particularly from Kham followed their Lamas and settled alongside Tshangla populace. Over the period of time, Tibetans and Tshangla migrants amalgamated to form an homogeneous group called Pemakopas (
Pad-ma dkod pa). The process of infusion gave birth to a new Tshangla dialect called Pemako dialect. The majority of the people in Pemako speak the
Tshangla language. Historically, Tshangla speakers migrated from eastern Bhutan around the 17th century during the Drukpa conquest led by
Zhabdrung Ngawang Ngamgyal. It was reported that over several hundred families made their way to Pemako.
Ngatshang and Chitsang clans were there in Pemako, later joined by many more people who left their homeland in a quest for better life. When the first Tsangla people arrived in Pemako they settled in the lower
Yarlung valley, surrounded by
Kongpopas in the northwest, Pobas in the northeast, and
Lhopas in the south. The Tsangla adopted many customs from their neighbors but still retained their original language. Historically, the area came under the rule of
Powo (Bomê) kings who ruled the entirety of Pemako (now Medog). During Powo rule, Pemako residents had good relations with the Tibetans. They jointly fought against the Tani (
Adis) and
Mishmis who regularly disturbed the pilgrimage. By 1931, the Tibetan government (
Ganden Phodrang) was able to dismantle the Powo kingdom and the region came under the direct rule of the central Tibetan Government in
Lhasa. Ganden Phodrang had its governor stationed in Medog Dzong, who looked after the territory and established communications between Lhasa and Pemako. Compulsory taxes in cash or goods were to be paid to Lhasa. The region of Pemako was divided among different monasteries and different aristocratic families. Some regions of Pemako pay tax to the
Sera Monastery in the form of grains, chillis, bamboo poles for prayer flags (Dharchen), products made of cane, medicinal herbs such as yertsa-goonbu, mushroom, and animal skin. On April 25, 1951, the 18th Army of the
Chinese People's Liberation Army assigned Bomi, Luoyu, and Gongbu to the jurisdiction of the Bomi Division of Labor. On July 23, 1959, Medog County was under the jurisdiction of the Tagong Division Committee. On August 27 of the same year, the Medog County Party Committee and the county government were formally established in the Pai District of
Milin County. On February 24, 1960, the Pagoda Works Division was renamed Nyingchi Division, and Medog County was under its jurisdiction. In July 1964, Medog County was placed under the jurisdiction of Lhasa City. On February 1, 1986, Medog County was placed under the jurisdiction of
Nyingchi Prefecture. In 1988, the district was withdrawn and the township was merged, and a total of 8 townships and 59 administrative villages were established. In May 1988, Damuluoba Ethnic Township was established. In 1999, Medog Township was revoked and Medog Town was established. In March 2015, the Nyingchi area was abolished and prefecture-level Nyingchi City was established, and Medog County was under the jurisdiction of Nyingchi City. ==Geography==