[2] It lies immediately to the north of the McMahon Line agreed as the mutual border between British India and Tibet in 1914.

[a] China has not accepted the 1914 border delineation, but treats it as the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

In 1354, the Phagmodrupa dynasty established Tsona County (mtsho sna rdzong).

The Mera lama of the Merag-Sagteng region in present-day Bhutan,[b] belonging to the Gelugpa sect, was chased out of his native village by the Drukpa forces.

[3][4] The people of Tawang were apparently indifferent to the sectarian divisions, and the Mera lama requested help from the governor of Tsona.

[6] The Fifth Dalai Lama died two years after these events, and his reincarnation was discovered to have been born in Tawang in 1683.

It is 34 km north of Bum La Pass, which marks the border with the Tawang district.

[15] Immediately to the north of Bum La is the village of Shao (Tibetan: ཤ་འུག, Wylie: sha 'ug), whose full name Shauk Tago has been associated with Guru Padmasambhava and other Buddhist preachers over centuries.

Lakes include Nariyong, Yang, Danba, Bila, Guwu, Gejin, Jimu, etc.