The LTWA also offers daily Tibetan language classes to help people understand Tibetan culture. The classes are taught by experienced teachers. Tibetan language courses are taught in three terms of three months each: March 19 to June 18, June 23 to September 19 and September 22 to December 18. There are six classes of one-hour duration: 8:00 am to 9:00 am, 9:00 am to 10:00 am (two classes), 10:30 am to 11:30 pm, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm and 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm. There are three regular Tibetan language classes: basic, intermediate and advanced, and two regular speaking classes: basic and intermediate. The classes are held five times a week.
REGULAR TIBETAN LANGUAGE COURSES
1. Basic Tibetan Language Course:Beginning with the alphabet, vowels and combinations of letters, students learn the fundamental structure of the language, how to make simple sentences, how to use tenses and so forth. The aim at this level is to train students in reading and simple conversation.
Time : 9:00 am to 10:00 am
Teacher : Acharya Ani Norzom
Substitute : Dr. Chok Tenzin Monlam
Textbooks:
- Tsetan Chonjore’s Colloquial Tibetan: A Textbook of the Lhasa Dialect Pages: XXIX to LV (LTWA publication)
- Tashi’s A Basic Grammar of Modern Spoken Tibetan (LTWA publication)
The intermediate course is a stepping-stone to the upper intermediate course. Students in this course reinforce and extend their command of Tibetan grammar and idioms. The main aim of this class is to help students become confident in Tibetan.
Time : 9:00 am to 10:00 am
Teacher : Nyima Dekyi
Substitute : Phurbu Dolma and Umarabjampa Tsering Norbu
Textbooks:
- Lobsang Thonden’s Modern Tibetan Language, Vol. 1 (LTWA publication)
- Tsetan Chonjore’s Colloquial Tibetan: A Textbook of the Lhasa Dialect (LTWA publication)
- Yangchen Drupe Dorjee's Legs bshad ljon dbang
In this course, Tibetan grammar and honorific words are taught. The class also touches on aspects of Tibetan culture and religion, to provide a basis for students to discuss Buddhism in Tibetan.
Time : 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm
Teacher : Nyima Dekyi
Substitute : Umarabjampa Tsering Norbu and Phurbu Dolma
Textbooks:
- Thupten Chokdrup’s Bod kyi sgra rig pa’i gnas la dpyod pa bsal ba’i me long (LTWA publication)
- Geshe Thupten Sopa's Lectures on Tibetan Religion and Culture (LTWA publication)
- Ngeton Gyatso' bsTon pa'i mdzad rnam gsal ba'i me long
- Byis pa dag yig (An Orthography for Children)
REGULAR TIBETAN SPEAKING COURSES
1. Basic Tibetan Speaking Course:This course is aimed at assisting our students to communicate in Tibetan, thereby enriching their knowledge of the feelings and basic way of life of Tibetans. The main aim of this class is to help students become more confident in spoken Tibetan.
Time : 10:30 am to 11:30 am
Teacher : Nyima Dekyi
Substitute : Dr. Chok Tenzin Monlam
Textbook : Dr. Chok’s Speak Fluent Tibetan (LTWA publication)
2. Intermediate Tibetan Speaking Course:
Students will reinforce and extend their command of spoken Tibetan, thereby enriching their knowledge of the feelings and basic way of life of Tibetans. The main aim of this class is to help students become more confident in speaking Tibetan.
Time : 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm
Teacher : Nyima Dekyi
Substitute : Acharya Tsewang Gyalpo
Textbook : Dekyi's Speak Tibetan the Tibetan Way (LTWA publication)
Note:
- Serious students who wish to receive an LTWA certificate on completion of a three-month Tibetan language course must sit monthly tests.
- New students who wish to study basic Tibetan language will be admitted for the Basic Tibetan Language Course at any time during a term. For other Tibetan language and speaking classes, the students are not admitted after the third week of a term.
HINDI LANGUAGE COURSE
Since 2010, the LTWA has been offering a basic Hindi language course. At least five students are needed for this course to run.Teacher : Acharya Tsewang Gyalpo
Substitute : Dr. Jampa Dawa
Time : 10:00 am to 11:00 am
Text :No textbooks; only handouts will be given.
Beginning with the alphabet, vowels and combinations of letters, students learn the fundamental structure of the language, how to make simple sentences, how to use tenses and so forth. The aim at this level is to train students in reading and simple conversation.
EARLY MORNING ADVANCED TIBETAN LANGUAGE COURSE
The course is specially meant for students who have either completed their elementary education in the Tibetan language or who have strong background knowledge of Tibetan language and culture. The class is taught in Tibetan and covers a wide range of topics including Tibetan language, literature, culture, history and religion. Students, mostly Tibetan graduates from colleges and universities, are introduced to a higher level of Tibetan studies.Time: 8:00 am to 9:00 am
Teacher: Acharya Sangye Tandar Naga
Availability of this course and textbooks will be announced in advance.
TIBETAN LANGUAGE TEACHERS
 Acharya Sangye Tandar NagaAcharya Sangye Tandar Naga is the head of the Cultural Research and Tibetan Publication Department and the editor of gTam-tshogs Journal in Tibetan. He joined the LTWA in 1991. He teaches the morning special class and other academic workshops at the LTWA. |
 Dr. Chok Tenzin MonlamDr. Chok Tenzin Monlam is the head of the Research and Translation Department. He joined the LTWA in 2007. One of the research works that he has been doing since 2001 is on how to teach Tibetan as a foreign language. He has started to teach his findings to hundreds of foreign students since 2007. In 2012 he taught Tibetan language at the Summer Language Program in the University of Virginia. |
 Mrs. Nyima DekyiMrs. Nyima Dekyi was born in Phenpo, Tibet. She studied Buddhism in Poto Nunnery, Tibet, for seven years. In 1997, she escaped to India and continued to study Buddhism in Dolmaling Nunnery for three years. Then she studied Tibetan language in the Sarah College for Higher Tibetan Studies, Dharamsala, for more than two years. She taught Tibetan as a foreign language at Thosamling Nunnery for more than three years before joining the LTWA in 2009. |
 Acharya Ani NorzomVenerable Ani Norzom holds an Acharya degree in Tibetan Studies and Buddhist Philosophy from the Central University of Tibetan Studies, Varanasi. She joined LTWA in 1999 and has been teaching the basic Tibetan language course for the past nine years. |
 Tsering NorbuTsering Norbu holds an Uma Rabjampa degree (equivalent to MA degree) in Buddhist philosophy and Tibetan studies from the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, Dharamsala. He joined the LTWA in 2010. |
 Phurbu DolmaPhurbu Dolma holds a Bachelor’s degree in Tibetan studies from the College for Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarah and a Bachelor’s degree from Delhi University. She joined the Research and Translation Department of the LTWA in the summer of 2012. |
TIBETAN LANGUAGE TEACHERS
 Acharya Tsewang GyalpoAcharya Tsewang Gyalpo holds an MA from the Central University of Tibetan Studies, Varanasi. He joined the LTWA in 2009. |
 Dr. Jampa DawaDr. Jampa Dawa is the head of the Hindi Section of the Research and Translation Department. He joined the LTWA in 2006. Since then he has been working as an editor for the LTWA Hindi publications |
