The Zhalu Kuzhang was an aristocratic family based in Tsang, members of the Je clan. They were the lords of the Zhalu region under the Yuan dynasty of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, and were intermarried with the Khon family, thus earning their name, which means “royal uncle.” They were patrons of Zhalu Monastery and of Buton Rinchen Drub, and later of Ngor and Nalendra monasteries as well, sending sons to serve as abbots of all three monasteries.