Nepal History

8/7/2019 Nepal History

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Nepalese History, Geography, People and their origin

History:

In the earlier days, Nepal was divided into small principalities which were fighting against

each other. It was not till the arrival of the Mallas from north India that Nepal was launchedinto its first flowering of social and artistic creativity. The Mallas also took control of a major

part of Nepal and Tibet. But, pattern of small, independent kingdoms continued and Nepal

could not be unified. The Mallas had three separate kingdoms in the Kathmandu Valley itself,

with their capitals at Kathmandu, earlier known as Kantipur, Patan, known as Lalitpur and

Bhadgaon, known as Bhaktpur. The Mallas left their stone inscriptions in temples and carved

them on the bases of statues. As the Mallas grew weaker due to family feuds, they were

replaced by the Shahs. It was during the rule of King Prithvi Narayan Shah (1730-75) that

Nepal became more unified. He came from the Gurkha region. He was the first to use these

tough fighters to strengthen his rule. The Gurkhas are still valued as great fighters and a large

number of them are serving in the Indian and British armies. The King Prithvi Narayan Shah

was responsible for the exclusion of European traders from the country. As the Shah dynastybecame weak, the Ranas took over Nepal in 1846. The monarch only became a figurehead

while the Ranas ruled the country. Nepal lost war to the British in 1857 and accepted their

nominal allegiance. As a result, the Gurkhas fought several wars for Great Britain. They sided

with them during the first War of Indian Independence in 1857. The British were so pleased

with their loyalty that they returned some of the territories they had occupied after the defeat

of the Nepalese. Subsequently, the Gurkhas fought other battles for Britain, including World

War I & II. They fought in all parts of the World. After a popular revolution made by the

ninth King Tribhuvan of Shah dynasty in 1950-51, the Ranas were defeated. The King

Tribhuvan died in 1955 and was succeeded by his son Mahendra. Nepal became a member of

the United Nations in 1955. The King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev was the 10th king in the

dynasty. The King Birendra abolished party system. In 1990, a popular democratic revolt led

to the re-establishment of a multi-party democratic system based on adult franchise. The new

democratic Constitution of the kingdom was promulgated on November 9, 1990. The king

remains the titular head of the government. In 1994, Nepal elected communist party to form

the government which has since been replaced by coalition government.

Geography:

Nepal is bounded in the north by Tibet the autonomous region of China, in the east by

Sikkim and West Bengal, in the south by Bihar and in the west by Uttar Pradesh. The land

extends approximately for 885 km from east to west, and 193 km from north to south. Theland in Nepal can be broadly divided into three regions which are Himalayan region,

Mountain region and Terai region. The altitude of the Himalayan Region ranges between

4877 metres and 8848 metres with the snow-line running around 4877 metres. It includes all

the major peaks of the Himalayas. The mountain region covers about 64 percent of the total

land area of the country. It is formed by the Mahabharata Range which soar up to 4877

metres. The lowland Terai region lies at an altitude of 305 metres and occupies about 17 per

cent of land area. Kachanakawal, the lowest point in the country, has an altitude of only 70

metres. It is located in Jhapa district of eastern Terai. The land rises from the Terai, the

southern plains covered with tropical jungles and fertile farm land at almost sea level to the

high Himalaya mountains in the north with valleys and lush hills in between within a distance

of less than 200 km. The lowlands of the Terai are about one hundred metres above sea level.This, together with monsoon rains along the slopes facing south has resulted in compacting


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virtually all climate zones on the earth. Except the Terai region in the extreme south, the mid-

valleys are seldom higher than 1220 metres above sea-level. Out of the ten peaks, eight

highest peaks lies in Nepal. The Himalayas are the youngest and the highest mountain chains

in the world. About a third of its 1000 km. long Himalayan range lies within Nepal. It has a

convergence of 1310 magnificent pinnacles and peaks over 6000 metres including the worlds

eight of the 14 giant peaks over 8000 metres high. Mount Everest, the worlds highest peakand Kanchanjunga, the third highest peak lies in Nepal. The other six peaks in Nepal are

Lohtse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Dhaulagiri, Manalsu and Annapurna I. Some of these

unconquerable mountain peaks provide a vivid contrast with hand-sculpted landscape of

farms in mountain valleys.

Climate:

Nepal is a land of extreme contrasts as far as the climatic conditions are concerned. The

climate in Nepal ranges from the subtropical monsoon conditions in the Terai region to cool

temperate conditions in the higher areas and an alpine climate with snow and extreme day

temperature in the mountains. As Nepal is situated in the northern hemisphere, so during thesummers, it is the rainy season in Nepal. The monsoon lasts across the whole country from

June to September when over 75% of the annual rainfall occurs. The amount of rainfall

decreases from south to north and from east to west. The Mahabharat Lekh forces the moist

monsoon airstream to rise that causes heavy rains on the hills in the south, especially in the

Terai region. The Spring season is warmer than the autumn. In the high mountains in winters,

the temperature drops below zero, while in the Kathmandu valley, daytime temperature rarely

drop below 10 degrees Celsius. Pokhara is lower and warmer and more pleasant than

Kathmandu in winter but hotter, more humid and less comfortable in summer. The post-

monsoon period from October to November is characterized by settled weather, clear skies,

no rain and moderately high temperatures. As winter approaches it gets cooler, especially at

night. This is an ideal time to visit Nepal.

People:

One of the greatest assets of the Nepal is its people. These people resides in the mountains,

hills, the lower hills or the Terai and the great plains of Nepal. Over the last century, there has

been a move in population from west to east, and a continuous flow into India. Over 40% of

the population live in the Terai, 56% in the central region and 5% in the Kathmandu Valley.

Hindi, Nepali and Mailthali are widely spoken in the Terai. More than 6 million Nepalis live

in the Indian states of Bihar, West Bengal and Assam. The Nepalis are known for their

honesty, hospitality and their ability to grin and bear whatever the situations are. Interwined

into this fine tapestry of more than 112 different indigenous, ethnic and sub-class groups, arethe modern immigrants to Nepal, people from Tibet, Bhutan, the erstwhile kingdom of

Sikkim, Darjeeling and the north-eastern states of India.

Social origins

The Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Bhote and Sunwar are the main tribals of Tibetan origin who

resides in the centre and east, while the Magar and Gurung lives in the west. High caste

Brahmins, Thakuris and Chettris dominate the Hindu social system. They speak Nepali

language and are closely related to the dominant communities of northern India. Today,

Hindus make up 90% of Nepals population. The Mongoloid people have entered into the

country from the Tibetan plateau in the north and comprises of 20% of the people of Nepal.

While from south, the Indo-Aryan people have entered into the country, who comprises 80%of the total population of Nepal.


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Newars

The Newars belongs to Mongolia and have settled in the Kathmandu Valley for over 2000

years. They have absorbed many Indian characteristics, including Hinduism. The majority of

the Newars are Saivite Hindus, while some of them are Buddhists. They speak the Newari

language which is commonly placed in the Tibeto- Burman family, and influenced by bothTibeto-Burman and Indo-European languages. Despite losing political power in the mid 18th

century, Newaris still follow their identity, language and rituals that are combination of

Hinduism, Buddhism and Animism. The Newars are the creators of the three separate cities of

Bhaktapur, Lalitpur and Kathmandu that join together to make the modern capital of Nepal.

The Newars believes that the goddess Kumari temporarily resides in the bodies of the Newar

Buddhist girls. Nearly a dozen communities have Kumaris, and each is worshipped with

offerings of ornaments, food and money. Most of the girls give up this holy post on reaching

puberty, although, recently the Kumari of Patan retained her post till the age of twenty. Since

her feet were literally not allowed to touch the ground, a relative carried her around. The

Newars also believes that the Kathmandu Valley was a deep lake until the BoddhisatvaManjusri swung his mighty sword to create a huge cleft in the encircling mountains. The

Newars were the Nepals leading traders, who organize the trains of basket carrying porters

over the trans-Himalayan passes to Tibet. The Newars are also the remarkable craftsmen.

They developed the countrys unique building style that successfully blends influences from

India, China and Tibet, with carved wood beams and pagoda-like temple roofs. The skillfully

built temples and palaces, delicately engraved stone and metal images, carved wooden

columns and pillars and the history laden shrines and stupas stands as testimony to the artistic

achievements of the Newars.

Indo-Nepalese

The Indo-Nepalese groups comprises the 80% of the population and consists of the people of

the Terai, Paharis (Hill people) and Tharus. There was also considerable early Buddhist

influence, although the Lamaistic Buddhism that entered Nepal from the N was quite

different. The Tharus are believed to be the descendants of some of the original inhabitants of

the Terai and are distributed along Lumbini, just inside the Nepal's border with India. There

are about 800,000 Thaurus who are farmers and generally practice a form of Hinduism that is

mixed with animist beliefs.

Tibeto-Nepalese

The Tibeto-Nepalese groups include the Gurung, Magar, Rai and Tamang which have

contributed towards the famous Gurkha regiments of the British army. The Gurungs live inthe shadow of the great Annapurna mountain, and are known for their strength, endurance and

fearlessness. As early as the 16th century they were much sought after by Indian princes and

in the late 18th century formed the martial stock which created the Gurkha kingdom. In the

19th century, these groups were largely placed in the British army. The word Gurkha is a

geographical term that refers to the Gurung, who came from the fortress town of Goraknath.

There are about 300,000 Gurungs who depend strongly on the military as a source of income.

Gurkhas have played distinctive and gallant roles in British wars and campaigns since 1815.

The Gurkhas have won 26 Victoria Crosses for gallantry and various other battle honours and

are regarded as an intrinsic and loyal element in British army. Some villages derive over 75%

of their income from military service and are dependent on it. The Magars and Rais are very

large groups, and are placed in the Gurkha regiments. Most of them are subsistence farmerswho lives in the middle Zone hill country of Western and Central Nepal from the high


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mountain down to the Terai. They all have Mongoloid features. The Tamangs believes that

the first mother of the Tamangs was a cow who bore 3 sons, the youngest of whom, Tolgu,

founded the race. The Tamangs practise a religion which looks like Tibetan Buddhism

blended with Hindu teachings and also incorporate elements of their old religion based on

shamanism. They live just beyond the Newari-Hindu cultural area of the Kathmandu valley.

Most of the Tamangs are subsistence farmers, but their name describes that they were thehorse traders and similar to the Sherpas.

Thakalis

The Thakalis originates from the Kali Gandaki gorge and are influenced by both Hinduism

and Buddhism. They have established little hotels all along the Annapurna Circuit and

extended their influence as hoteliers to other parts of the country. There are only about 10,000

Thakalis and were the subsistence farmers, before Nepal was opened up to tourists.

Bhotiyas

The Bhotiyas lives in the northern part of Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal and along the Indo-Tibetan

border in Garhwal, Kumaon and Himachal Pradesh. They are Mongolian who graduallymoved off from the Tibetan plateau. They include the world renowned Sherpas, who

immigrated from Tibet about 600 years ago. The word Sha means east, pa means people.

Earlier, the Sherpas were traders and porters, who carried butter, meat, rice, sugar, paper and

dye from India, and salt, wool, jewellery, Chinese silk and porcelain from Tibet and beyond.

The Sherpas live in the Solu Khumbu region of glacial valleys at the southern approaches to

Everest. Due to the close of the border following the 1962 war between India and China, their

economy was undermined. Due to various mountaineering expeditions and trekkers, the

Sherpas found their load carrying skills, both on normal treks and at high altitudes, in great

demand. The Sherpas also received considerable help to set up schools and small hospitals.

The foundation is named after Edmund Hillary, the first European who reached the top of

Everst and felt that he had a debt to repay the Sherpas.

http://www.indovacations.net/english/Nepalpeople.htm2008.09.16.

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Nepal History