The Layap (Dzongkha: ལ་ཡཔ་) are an indigenous people inhabiting the high mountains of northwest Bhutan in the village of Laya, in the Gasa District, at an altitude of , just below the Tsendagang peak. Their population in 2003 stood at 1,100. Ethnically related to the Tibetans, they speak Layakha, a Tibeto-Burman language. Layaps refer to their homeland as Be-yul – "the hidden land." Dress The dress of the Layap is similar to the Tibetan costume, except for a few differences. While men wear the Bhutanese costume, which consists of a silk or linen garment that is typically colored saffron and red (cf. gho), the women wear black woolen jackets, which reach right down to the ankles. A blue pattern band may also be found at the bottom of their long sleeves. Religion Owing to Tibetan influence, the Layap practice a mixture of Bon and Tibetan Buddhism. According to legend, Laya village is the spot where Ngawang Namgyal, the founder of Bhutan, first entered the country. Particularly unique among the Layap is the extensive tradition of "living defilements" (Dzongkha: soen drep), whereby a ritually impure person is ostracized from social activities. The Layap shun "living defilements" in order not to anger deities, and to avoid physical maladies and livestock plagues. Among ritually impure acts are birth, divorce, and death, including the death of a horse. Lifestyle Located near the Tibetan border, the Layap have traditionally engaged in trade. Nowadays that includes the smuggling of bootleg Chinese blankets and plastic goods which are embargoed by the Bhutanese government, but in much demand by Bhutanese villagers. Traditionally, the Layap lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle, who rearing yaks and dzos, although in recent times small ponies may also be found in the area. Owing to the cold weather at this altitude, few crops can be planted, except for some grasses. Layaps also traditionally pick cordyceps, valuable traditionally medicinal and magical fungi native to the region. With Bhutan's increased environmental protection, Layaps and rural farmers face more challenges protecting their livestock from natural predators, particularly leopards. Layap people also participate in the heavy labor to drain Thorthormi, a glacial lake prone to GLOF flooding. Flooding is a particularly serious threat to the Layap way of life, heavily dependent on livestock and sparse water resources. Until the 1980s, the Layap lived in near-complete isolation from the world, except for occasional visits to Thimphu or Punakha, which was