The Dalai Lama has announced that he intends to reincarnate, paving the way for a successor to take on a mantle stretching back 500 years after his death.

The Dalai Lama says he'll have a successor, after all, ending years of speculation that he might be the last person to hold the role and meaning he'd be reincarnated.

The statement puts to rest speculation that the Dalai Lama may be the last of Tibet's spiritual leaders, ending a line that stretches back centuries.