This article was accepted into the corpus but its outbound wikilinks were never NER-processed — typical at the deepest BFS hop or when the run's entity cap was reached. No expansion funnel to show.
| Kathmandu (city) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Kathmandu |
| Native name | काठमाडौं |
| Settlement type | Capital city |
| Coordinates | 27.7172° N, 85.3240° E |
| Country | Nepal |
| Province | Bagmati Province |
| District | Kathmandu District |
| Established | 8th century (traditional) |
| Area total km2 | 49.45 |
| Population total | 975,453 (2011 census) |
| Timezone | Nepal Standard Time |
Kathmandu (city) is the largest urban center and capital of Nepal, situated in the Kathmandu Valley. It is a historic metropolitan hub linking South Asian and Tibetan cultural spheres and serves as the primary political, economic, and cultural nucleus of Bagmati Province. The city hosts numerous UNESCO World Heritage Sites and functions as a gateway for tourism to the Himalayas, including expeditions to Mount Everest via Tribhuvan International Airport.
Kathmandu's history traces to medieval polities such as the Licchavi dynasty and the Malla dynasty, with legendary foundations often associated with the Khas people and early Newar people urbanization. The valley's city-states competed with nearby capitals like Bhaktapur and Lalitpur during the period that produced monuments such as Durbar Square, Kathmandu and the Kasthamandap pavilion. In the 18th century, the city was incorporated into the unified state by Prithvi Narayan Shah of Gorkha Kingdom, initiating integration with regions like Sikkim and frontier interactions with Tibet and British India. During the 19th century, the Anglo-Nepalese War and the subsequent Treaty of Sugauli shaped Kathmandu's external relations and sovereignty, while the Rana dynasty era influenced urban governance and palace architecture such as Singha Durbar. The 20th century saw political transformations including the Democratic Movement (1990) and the Nepalese Civil War, events that affected municipal life and built heritage. Catastrophic seismic events, notably the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake and the 2015 Nepal earthquake, caused extensive damage to monuments like Kathmandu Durbar Square and precipitated international conservation efforts involving organizations such as UNESCO and International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
Kathmandu lies in the Kathmandu Valley, a bowl-shaped intermontane basin surrounded by hills such as the Shivapuri Hills and Chandragiri Hill. The Bagmati River and tributaries like the Bishnumati River traverse the urban area, influencing settlement patterns around sites including Pashupatinath Temple and Swayambhunath. The region borders districts including Lalitpur District and Bhaktapur District and is accessible from highland routes toward Langtang National Park and lowland corridors leading to Raxaul. Kathmandu experiences a humid subtropical climate with monsoon seasonality driven by the Indian monsoon, producing wet summers and cool, dry winters; snow is rare in the central valley but common in adjacent peaks like Gosainkunda.
The population comprises diverse ethnic groups including the Newar people, Bahun, Chhetri, Tamang people, and Sherpa people, alongside recent internal migrants from regions such as Terai and Himalaya. Languages spoken include Nepali language and Nepal Bhasa with minority tongues like Tamang language and Maithili language. Religious life is pluralistic with adherents of Hinduism in Nepal, Buddhism in Nepal, Islam in Nepal, and indigenous practices centered on sites like Swayambhunath and Patan Durbar Square. Socioeconomic indicators vary across municipal wards and are monitored by institutions such as the Central Bureau of Statistics (Nepal) and international agencies like the World Bank.
Kathmandu is the economic heart of Nepal. Key sectors include tourism, with operators organizing treks to Everest Base Camp and cultural tours of Patan and Bhaktapur; remittances from labor migration; banking conducted by institutions such as the Nepal Rastra Bank and commercial banks like Nepal Investment Bank; and nascent information technology enterprises clustered near Durbar Marg. Markets such as Ason Bazaar and New Road are commercial arteries for goods from regions including Janakpur and Pokhara, while manufacturing hubs around Balaju produce textiles and agro-processing goods traded through freight links to Birgunj. The city hosts headquarters of national entities like the Nepal Stock Exchange and attracts development projects funded by multilateral partners such as the Asian Development Bank and United Nations Development Programme.
Kathmandu's cultural landscape is rich with artistic traditions of the Newar people including paubha painting, woodcarving, and metalwork found in workshops near Kathmandu Durbar Square. Festivals like Indra Jatra, Dashain, and Biska Jatra animate neighborhoods around temples such as Kumari Ghar and Jagannath Temple. Architectural heritage ranges from pagoda temples to stupas exemplified by Swayambhu and Boudhanath Stupa, attracting scholars from institutions like Tribhuvan University and curators from Columbia University studying South Asian art. Literary and musical scenes are vibrant with publications in Nepali literature and venues hosting performances linked to Royal Nepal Academy and independent collectives.
The municipal administration operates under statutes including the Local Government Operation Act and coordinates with provincial bodies in Bagmati Province. The Kathmandu Metropolitan City office manages urban planning, heritage conservation, and public services while interacting with national ministries such as the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation. Law and order involve agencies like the Nepal Police and judicial matters are addressed in courts such as the Supreme Court of Nepal located in the Kathmandu urban agglomeration.
Transportation infrastructure centers on Tribhuvan International Airport, the principal international gateway connecting to hubs like New Delhi and Doha. Road networks include arterial routes to Prithvi Highway and Araniko Highway facilitating overland links to Pokhara and Kodari Border. Public transit comprises municipal buses, microbus operators, and ride-sharing services alongside heritage transport corridors near Thamel. Utilities and services are delivered by entities such as the Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited for water and the Nepal Electricity Authority for power; ongoing projects address seismic retrofitting, wastewater management, and expansion of rapid transit proposals including feasibility studies with partners like the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Category:Cities in Nepal