or HLassa (Land of the Divine Intelligence), the capital of Tibet, is situated in a fertile plain on the banks of the Dzang-tsa, 30 miles above its junction with the Dzang-bo, in N. Lat. 29° 30', E. Long. 91° 40'. The city is composed of wide and regular streets, lined with houses built of mud, brick, or stone, and having their walls whitened, and their doors and window-frames painted with the sacred colours, red and yellow. Lassa is the chief seat of commerce in Tibet, and the resort of merchants from all parts of Asia. The principal articles of its trade are linens, woollen cloth, Cashmerian shawls, sable furs, raw silk, musk, sugar, dried fruits, sweetmeats, bullion, glass, and cutlery. Foreign merchants and workmen reside in parts of the city allotted to them, according to their nations. The women of Lassa cover their faces with a thick dark varnish before appearing in public. The town is walled, and contains some fine public edifices, the chief of which is the lamassery of Moru. In the suburbs are situated the four largest lamasseries in Tibet—Prasbung, Sera, Samie, and Pobrang-Marbu. The last of these, built on Mount Botala, to the N.W. of Lassa, is the residence of the Dalai-Lama, is 367 feet in height, and said to contain 10,000 rooms. These lamasseries are attended by thousands of students from different parts of Asia. Pop. of city and suburbs, about 50,000.