Editing Leh (section)

==Background==
===Etymology===

The original name of the town was not ''sLel'', as it is nowadays spelled, but ''sLes'', which signifies an "encampment of nomads" (pastureland). These [Tibetan] nomads probably visited the Leh valley at when it began to be irrigated by Dard colonisers. The most ancient part of the ruins, atop rNam-rgyal-rtse-mo hill, are called 'aBrog-pal-mkhar (Dard castle).<ref name=fran1>Francke (1914), p. 68. See also, ibid, p. 45.</ref>

===History===
{{See also|Namgyal dynasty of Ladakh}}

[[File:Beautiful Leh Couple In Traditional Dress (202673443).jpeg|thumb|People of Leh in traditional dress.]]
Leh was for centuries an important stopover on [[trade route]]s along the [[Indus Valley]] between [[Tibet]], [[Kashmir]], India and [[China]]. The main goods carried were salt, grain, ''pashm'' or [[cashmere wool]], ''[[charas]]'' or [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]] resin from the [[Tarim Basin]], [[indigo]], [[silk]] yarn and [[Banaras]] [[brocade]].

Although there are a few indications that the Chinese knew of a trade route through Ladakh to India as early as the [[Kushan Empire|Kushan]] period (1st to 3rd centuries AD),<ref>Hill (2009), pp. 200-204.</ref> and certainly by the [[Tang dynasty]],<ref>Francke (1977 edition), pp. 76-78</ref> little is actually known of the history of the region before the end of the 10th century, when Tibetan prince ''Skyid lde nyima gon'' (or [[Kyide Nyimagon|Nyima gon]]), a grandson of the anti-Buddhist Tibetan king, [[Langdarma]] (r. c. 838 to 841), founded the kingdom. He conquered Western Tibet, although his army originally numbered only 300 men.{{citation needed|date=February 2023}} Several towns and castles are said to have been founded by Nyima gon, and he apparently ordered the construction of the primary sculptures at [[Shey]]. "In an inscription, he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the ''Tsanpo'' (the dynastical name of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of ''Ngaris'' (Western Tibet). This shows that already in this generation Langdarma's opposition to [[Buddhism]] had disappeared."<ref>Francke (1914), pp. 89-90.</ref> [[Shey]], 15&nbsp;km east of modern Leh, was the ancient seat of the Ladakhi kings.

During the reign of Delegs Namgyal (1660–1685),<ref>Francke (1977 edition), p. 20.</ref> the [[nawab]] of Kashmir, then a province in the [[Mughal Empire]], arranged for the Mongol army to temporarily leave Ladakh, though it returned later. As payment for assisting Delegs Namgyal in the [[Tibet-Ladakh-Mughal War]] of 1679–1684, the nawab made a number of onerous demands. One of the least was construction of a large [[Sunni Muslim]] mosque in Leh, at the upper end of the bazaar in Leh below Leh Palace. The mosque reflects a mixture of [[Islam]]ic and Tibetan architecture and can accommodate more than 500 people. This was apparently not the first mosque in Leh; there are two smaller ones that are said to be older.<ref>Francke (1977 edition), pp. 120-123.</ref>