The Lhotshampa or Lhotsampa (; ) people are a heterogeneous Bhutanese people of Nepalese descent. "Lhotshampa", which means "southern borderlanders" in Dzongkha, began to be used by the Bhutanese state in the second half of the twentieth century to refer to the population of Nepali origin in the south of the country. After being displaced as a result of the state-run ethnic cleansing and living in refugee camps in eastern parts of Nepal, starting in 2007, most of the Lhotshampas, or Bhutanese Refugees, were resettled to various countries, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and other European countries. the number of Lhotshampa in Nepal is significantly lower than that in the United States and other countries where they have resettled. People of Nepalese origin started to settle in uninhabited areas of southern Bhutan in the 19th century. History The first small groups of Nepalese emigrated primarily from eastern Nepal under British auspices in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The beginning of Nepalese immigration largely coincided with Bhutan's political development: in 1885, Druk Gyalpo Ugyen Wangchuck consolidated power after a period of civil unrest and cultivated closer ties with the British in India. In 1910, the government of Bhutan signed a treaty with the British in India, granting them control over Bhutan's foreign relations. The actual immigrants registered and settled through the agent from Kalimpong, Raja Ugen Dorji and (son) Raja Sonam Togbay Dorji started in the reigns of the second and third kings. Immigrants from Nepal and India continued to enter Bhutan with an increase from the 1960s when Bhutan's first modern five-year plan began, many arriving as construction workers. The government traditionally attempted to limit immigration and restrict residence and employment of Nepalese to the southern region. Liberalization measures in the 1970s and 1980s encouraged intermarriage and provided increasing opportunities for public service. The government allowed more internal migration by Nepalese seeking better education and business opportunities. However, the most divisive issue in Bhutan in the 1980s and early 1990s was the accommodation of the Nepalese Hindu minority. In 1988, the government census branded many ethnic Nepalis as illegal immigrants. Local Lhotshampa leaders responded with anti-government rallies demanding citizenship and attacks against government institutions. In 1989, the Bhutanese government enacted reforms that directly impacted the Lhotshampa. First, it elevated the status of the national dress code of the Driglam namzha from recommended to