Tibetan architecture has a long history, dating back to the Neolithic Period 4,500 years ago. It is the Tibetan people's great creation and symbol of civilization of the snow-covered plateau. It is also an important part of architectural culture of the Chinese nation.

Traditional Tibetan-style architecture has very distinctive and beautiful architectural forms and styles. These forms are varied, dynamic, and rich in content.

Although traditional Tibetan architecture is marked by the similarities in structure, doors, windows, and the use of materials, different regions and different types of buildings each has  very distinctive feature.

Tibetan Buddhism has a profound impact on the local residents' way of living, food, lifestyle and architecture, thus instilling traditional Tibetan thought and concepts into architectural design. The main categories of Tibetan-style architectures include palaces, temples, Rdzaong mountain, and residential buildings.

A palace in Tibetan is referred to as "potrang". The most typical palace-style architecture can be seen in the design of the Potala Palace. It is a splendid achievement and masterpiece of Tibetan architecture.

Temples in Tibet are usually very large, such as Lhasa's largest temple-the Drepung Monastery, with Drepung meaning "a pile of rice" in Tibetan.

The Rdzaong Mountain buildings’ most distinctive features are their complete defense system, with mountain terrain strategically located at their backs. These building complex includes a palatial area, residential area and temple area. Hidden pathways and secret aqueducts run between them and link the different areas to form a very tight defense system. For example, in order to resist invaders, soldiers in Gyangze laid a big stone around 5 to 8 meters in height with a width of 4 meters to create a wall guarding the mountain slope. This demonstrates the significant strategic military value of these mountain complexes.

Tibetan residential buildings come in various forms and styles. The pastoral areas are dominated by tents.