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.
| Nepalese people | |
|---|---|
| Name | Nepalese people |
| Native name | नेपाली |
| Population | ~30 million |
| Regions | Nepal, India, Bhutan, United Kingdom, United States, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Malaysia |
| Languages | Nepali language, Maithili language, Bhojpuri language, Tamang language, Newar language |
| Religions | Hinduism in Nepal, Buddhism in Nepal, Islam in Nepal, Kirat Mundhum, Christianity in Nepal |
| Related | Indo-Aryan peoples, Tibeto-Burman peoples, Dravidian peoples |
Nepalese people are the inhabitants and citizens of Nepal and people of Nepali origin worldwide. They encompass diverse groups defined by ethnicity, language, religion, and regional affiliation across the Himalayas, the Terai, and the Hindu Kush foothills. Their identity has been shaped by interactions among Indo-Aryan migrations, Tibeto-Burman migrations, regional kingdoms such as the Kirat dynasty, and modern transformations linked to the Shah dynasty and the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal.
The demonym derives from the endonym Nepal and the Nepali language term "Nepali", historically linked to the medieval kingdom of Kathmandu, the Malla dynasty, and inscriptions referencing the Gorkha Kingdom. Scholarly usage contrasts terms tied to Bahun and Khas elites, ethnonyms like Newar, Tamang, and administrative labels from the Gurkha Kingdom era through the Rana dynasty and the 1990 People's Movement (Nepal). Modern legal documents from the Interim Constitution of Nepal and the Constitution of Nepal use citizen-based terminology alongside ethnic recognition lists used by the Central Bureau of Statistics (Nepal).
Census data compiled by the Central Bureau of Statistics (Nepal) records population distributions across provinces formed after the 2015 Constitution of Nepal and reflects urbanization trends in Kathmandu District, Lalitpur District, and Pokhara. Fertility, migration, and mortality patterns intersect with remittance flows monitored by the Nepal Rastra Bank and labor migration data from the Department of Foreign Employment (Nepal), affecting age structure and dependency ratios. Regional demographic concentrations occur in the Terai plains near Biratnagar, Janakpur, and Dhangadhi, while highland communities persist in districts like Mustang District and Dolpa District.
The population includes Khas Arya groups such as Chhetri and Bahun, indigenous communities including Newar, Magar, Limbu, Tamang, Sherpa, Rai, Tharu, and Gurung, plus linguistic communities speaking Maithili language, Bhojpuri language, Tharu language, and numerous Sino-Tibetan languages. The National Language Policy and academic surveys by Tribhuvan University and Central Department of Linguistics document over a hundred languages and dialects, with script traditions using Devanagari and historical use of Ranjana script among the Newar community. Endangered languages such as Kusunda language and revitalization efforts by Nepal Academy and Language Commission of Nepal reflect sociolinguistic change.
Archaeological and genetic research links early settlement to Paleolithic and Neolithic cultures in the Churiya hills, interactions during the Maurya Empire period, and medieval polities including the Licchavi dynasty and the Malla dynasty. The rise of the Gorkha Kingdom under Prithvi Narayan Shah led to unification, military campaigns exemplified by the Anglo-Nepalese War and the Sugauli Treaty, and the export of Gurkha soldiers through agreements with the British East India Company and later the British Army. 20th-century transformations involved the Rana dynasty, the 1950 Nepalese revolution of 1951, the People's Movement (1990), the Nepalese Civil War involving the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), and the abolition of the Nepalese monarchy culminating in the 2008 proclamation of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal.
Religious life centers on practices associated with Hinduism in Nepal and Buddhism in Nepal, with syncretic observances at pilgrimage sites like Pashupatinath Temple, Swayambhunath, Boudhanath, and regional shrines tied to Kirat Mundhum and Shamanism. Festivals include Dashain, Tihar, Holi, and regional festivals such as the Indra Jatra and Gai Jatra celebrated by Newar communities. Artistic traditions feature Newar architecture, paubha painting, thangka painting by Tibetan-influenced communities, classical music patronage associated with Karnali and Kathmandu Valley courts, and performing arts from groups like Dhaamee, Deuda, and Balan. Literary contributions span authors published through Sarangi traditions, poets recognized by the Madan Puraskar, and modern writers educated at Tribhuvan University and Kathmandu University.
Social organization reflects caste and ethnic hierarchies historically codified in documents like the Muluki Ain (1854), land tenure patterns in the Terai and hill terraces, and contemporary legal reforms from the Constitution of Nepal. Economic livelihoods revolve around agriculture in districts such as Chitwan District and Kavrepalanchok District, hydropower projects along the Koshi River and Trishuli River, tourism focused on routes to Mount Everest, Annapurna, and trekking corridors managed by the Nepal Tourism Board. Labor migration to Gulf Cooperation Council states, employment schemes administered by the Department of Foreign Employment (Nepal), and remittance inflows overseen by the Nepal Rastra Bank significantly influence household economies and urban growth in Kathmandu Valley and Birgunj.
Large communities of Nepali origin reside in India (notably in Sikkim and Darjeeling), the United Kingdom, the United States, Malaysia, and Qatar, with migration streams shaped by historical recruitment of Gurkha soldiers into the British Army and Indian Army, labor migration channels to Gulf Cooperation Council economies, and refugee movements related to the Nepalese Civil War and political upheavals. Diaspora organizations such as the Non-Resident Nepali Association and transnational networks maintain cultural ties through festivals at temples and community centers in cities like London, New York City, and Kuala Lumpur, while dual-citizenship debates engage institutions like the Election Commission, Nepal and policy forums at South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation meetings.
Category:Demographics of Nepal Category:Ethnic groups in Nepal