There are about 33,600 Pumi people in China, most in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces.

The Pumi people call themselves Puyingmi, Purimi, or Peimi. Their ancestors were a nomadic tribe that roamed the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and they are related to the Qiang people.

The Pumi language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. In the past it was written using Tibetan script, but today it’s written using either a Roman alphabet or Chinese characters.

The Pumi people mostly practice either Taoism or Tibetan Buddhism.

Agriculture and animal husbandry are their main occupations. The chief farm products include corn, wheat, and barley.

Technorati Tags: Chinese Minorities Peimi Purimi Puyingmi Sichuan Sino-Tibetan The Pumi Tibeto-Burman Yunnan