Lhasa, sometimes spelled Lasa, is the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Lhasa is located at the foot of Mount Gephel.
The city is the traditional seat of the Dalai Lama and the Potala and Norbulingka palaces (both are included in a World Heritage Site) and in Tibetan Buddhism is regarded as the holiest centre in Tibet.
The city is home to 257,400 as of the 2004 census estimate, and at an altitude of approximately 3,650 metres (11,975 feet), is one of the highest cities in the world.
Lhasa literally means "place of the gods", although ancient Tibetan documents and inscriptions demonstrate that the place was called Rasa, which means "goat's place", until the early 7th century.
