The Bhutias (exonym; Nepali: भुटिया, 'People from Tibet') or Drejongpas (endonym; Tibetan: འབྲས་ལྗོངས་པ་, Wylie: Bras-ljongs-pa, THL: dre-jong pa, 'People of the Rice Valley') are a Tibetan ethnic group native to the Indian state of Sikkim who speak Drejongke, a Tibetic language which descends from Old Tibetan. The majority of Bhutias live in Sikkim, while a significant number also reside in the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of northern West Bengal and in countries such as Nepal and Bhutan.

The language spoken by the Bhutias of Sikkim is Drejongke, a Tibetic language which has a lexical similarity of 65% with Dzongkha, the language of Bhutan. By comparison, Drejongke is only 42% lexically similar with Standard Tibetan. Sikkimese has also been influenced to some degree by the neighboring Yolmo and Tamang languages.

Migration from Tibet to Sikkim in small numbers occurred since the 8th century. However, the 13th century saw an increase in migrations as many clans came with Gyed Bum Sa. Constant conflicts between the Red hat and Yellow Hat sects in Tibet caused a series of Lamas movement southwards. With the final victory of the Yellow hats in the mid-1600s, there was a mass persecution of the followers of the Red hat sect by the victorious Güshi Khan and his Gelug allies. Many, fearing the same fate as their Red hat brethren, fled southwards towards Sikkim and Bhutan, migrating through the different passes in the Himalayas. In consequence, there are Red hat majorities in both Bhutan and Sikkim to this day. Geographical indications in the Bhutias last names are common. In Northern Sikkim, for example, where the Bhutias are the majority inhabitants, they are known as the Lachenpas or Lachungpas, meaning inhabitants of La chen (Tibetan: ལ་ཆེན་; 'big pass') or La chung (Tibetan: ལ་ཆུང་; 'small pass') respectively.

Bhutia aristocrats were called Kazis after similar landlord titles in neighboring regions, especially in modern-day Bangladesh. This feudal system was an integral part of the Chogyal monarchy prior to 1975, when Sikkim was an independent monarchy; the ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Sikkim before the mid-1970s plebiscite was the Bhutia Namgyal dynasty. Among the Bhutias, the Lachenpas and Lachungpas have their own traditional legal system called the "Dzumsa" which means 'the meeting place of the people'. The Dzumsa is headed by the village headman known as the Pipon. People of North Sikkim have been given full protection by the state government by deeming a status of Panchayat ward and the Pipon, a status of Panchayat head.

There are many clans within the Bhutia tribe. Inter-clan marriages are preferred rather than marriages outside of the clan. Traditionally, the Bhutias were divided into two groups:

The traditional outfit of Bhutias is the kho (similar to the Tibetan chuba), which is a loose cloak-like garment fastened at the neck on one side and near the waist with a silk/cotton belt. Male members array the kho with loose trousers. Bhutia women traditionally wear sleeveless, floor-length dresses called mo kho (or bakhu in Nepali) which is worn over a full sleeved shirt called teygho and tied to the waist with a silk belt called kyera. On the front, a loose sheet of multicolored woolen cloth with exotic geometric designs is tied, this is called the pangden which is a symbol of a married woman. This traditional outfit is complemented by embroidered leather boots worn by both men and women.

Bhutia women enjoy a much higher status than their counterparts from other communities. Pure gold tends to be favored by both women and men thus traditional jewelry is mostly made of twenty-four carat, pure gold.^{[citation needed]}

In Sikkim, the Bhutias are mostly employed in the government sector, in agriculture, and increasingly in the business area as well. In the district of Darjeeling, Bhutias are often employed in government and commerce.^{[citation needed]} Bhutias practise intermarriage within their clans and follow a very hierarchical system of bride and groom selection. Clan discrimination is widespread, and marriage outside the community is looked down upon.^{[citation needed]}