A Map of the Border Dispute Between India and China over Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh is the Eastern-most state in India and is bordered by China, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. It has been in the news this week because of a controversial visit by the Dalai Lama to Tawang, a Buddhist outpost in the state near the border with Bhutan and China. Disputes over the land go back decades and are likely to continue. India recognizes the border drawn by the British in 1914 and included land that Tibet ceded to the then British-ruled India in a 1914 treaty. This border follows the "McMahon Line" shown on the map. China says that Tawang was once part of Tibet. Since China seized Tibet in 1951, it feels its territorial claims should extend to Tawang and the state of Arunachal Pradesh.

According to Wikipedia, Arunachal means, "land of the dawn lit mountains" in Sanskrit, a reference to its location in Eastern reaches of India. If China ever gains ownership of the territory it will have to consider a name change to something like, "land of the mountains lit near the end of the day”.