1.
Birth rate
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The birth rate is the total number of live births per 1,000 of a population in a year. The birth rate are used to calculate population growth, the crude birth rate is the number of live births per year per 1,000 midyear population Another term used interchangeably with birth rate is natality. When the crude death rate is subtracted from the birth rate. This is equal to the rate of population change, the total birth rate —typically indicated as births per 1,000 population—is distinguished from an age-specific rate. The first known use of the birth rate in English occurred in 1859. In 2012 the average birth rate was 19.611 according to the World Bank and 19.15 births per 1,000 total population according to the CIA. Again, the average birth rate has shrunk to 18.6 births per 1,000 total population in 2016. The 2016 average of 18.6 births per 1,000 total population is estimated to be about 4.3 births/second or about 256 births/minute for the world, the birth rate is an issue of concern and policy for national governments. Some seek to increase the rate with financial incentives or provision of support services to new mothers. Conversely, other countries have policies to reduce the birth rate, policies to increase the crude birth rate are known as pro-natalist policies, and policies to reduce the crude birth rate are known as anti-natalist policies. Measures such as improved information on birth control and its availability have achieved results in countries such as Iran. There has also been discussion on whether bringing women into the forefront of development initiatives will lead to a decline in birth rates, in some countries, government policies have focused on reducing birth rates by improving womens rights, sexual and reproductive health. Typically, high rates are associated with health problems, low life expectancy, low living standards, low social status for women. Demographic transition theory postulates that as a country undergoes economic development and social change its population growth declines, at the 1974 World Population Conference in Bucharest, Romania, womens issues gained considerable attention. Family programs were discussed, and 137 countries drafted a World Population Plan of Action, as part of the discussion, many countries accepted modern birth control methods such as the birth control pill and the condom while opposing abortion. Abortion, according to a research based on psychological aspect stated, Birth rates ranging from 10–20 births per 1,000 are considered low, while rates from 40–50 births per 1,000 are considered high. There are problems associated with both extremes, high birth rates may stress government welfare and family programs. Low birth rates may stress the government to provide adequate senior welfare systems, there will be fewer children to support an aging population
2.
Infant mortality
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Infant mortality refers to deaths of young children, typically those less than one year of age. It is measured by the infant mortality rate, which is the number of deaths of children one year of age per 1000 live births. The Under-Five Mortality Rate is also an important statistic considering the Infant Mortality Rate has a limit on focusing on children only under one year of age. Premature birth is the biggest contributor to the IMR, one of the most common preventable causes of infant mortality is smoking during pregnancy. Many factors contribute to infant mortality, such as the level of education, environmental conditions. Improving sanitation, access to drinking water, immunization against infectious diseases. Child mortality is the death of a child before the fifth birthday. National statistics sometimes group these two mortality rates together, Infant mortality rate was an indicator used to monitor progress towards the Fourth Goal of the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations for the year 2015. It is now a target in the Sustainable Development Goals for Goal Number 3, throughout the world, Infant Mortality Rate fluctuates drastically, and according to Biotechnology and Health Sciences, education and life expectancy in the country is the leading indicator of IMR. This study was conducted across 135 countries over the course of 11 years with Africa having the highest Infant Mortality Rate of any other region studied with 68 deaths per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality rate is the number of deaths per 1,000 live births of children one year of age. The rate for a region is the number of children dying under one year of age, divided by the number of live births during the year. Forms of infant mortality, Perinatal mortality is late fetal death, Neonatal mortality is newborn death occurring within 28 days postpartum. Neonatal death is attributed to inadequate access to basic medical care, during pregnancy. This accounts for 40–60% of infant mortality in developing countries, postneonatal mortality is the death of children aged 29 days to one year. The major contributors to postneonatal death are malnutrition, infectious disease, troubled pregnancy, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, causes of infant mortality directly lead to the death. Greatest percentage reduction of infant mortality occurs in countries already have low rates of infant mortality. Common causes are preventable with low-cost measures, in the United States, a primary determinant of infant mortality risk is infant birth weight with lower birth weights increasing the risk of infant mortality
3.
Life expectancy
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Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of their birth, their current age and other demographic factors including sex. National LEB figures reported by national agencies and international organizations are indeed estimates of period LEB. In the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, LEB was 26 years, for recent years, in Swaziland LEB is about 49, and in Japan, it is about 83. But for those who survive early hazards, a life expectancy of 60 or 70 would not be uncommon, for example, a society with a LEB of 40 may have few people dying at precisely 40, most will die before 30 or after 55. In populations with high infant mortality rates, LEB is highly sensitive to the rate of death in the first few years of life. Mathematically, life expectancy is the number of years of life remaining at a given age. It is denoted by e x, which means the number of subsequent years of life for someone now aged x. Longevity, maximum lifespan, and life expectancy are not synonyms, Life expectancy is defined statistically as the mean number of years remaining for an individual or a group of people at a given age. Longevity refers to the characteristics of the long life span of some members of a population. Maximum lifespan is the age at death for the individual of a species. Moreover, because life expectancy is an average, a person may die many years before or many years after the expected survival. The term maximum life span has a different meaning and is more related to longevity. Life expectancy is also used in plant or animal ecology, life tables, an analysis published in 2011 in The Lancet attributes Japanese life expectancy to equal opportunities and public health as well as diet. The oldest confirmed recorded age for any human is 122 years and this is referred to as the maximum life span, which is the upper boundary of life, the maximum number of years any human is known to have lived. Theoretical study shows that the life expectancy at birth is limited by the human life characteristic value δ. The following information is derived from the 1961 Encyclopædia Britannica and other sources, unless otherwise stated, it represents estimates of the life expectancies of the world population as a whole. In many instances, life expectancy varied considerably according to class, Life expectancy at birth takes account of infant mortality but not prenatal mortality. Life expectancy increases with age as the individual survives the higher mortality rates associated with childhood, for instance, the table above listed the life expectancy at birth among 13th-century English nobles at 30
4.
Mortality rate
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Mortality rate, or death rate, is a measure of the number of deaths in a particular population, scaled to the size of that population, per unit of time. It is distinct from morbidity, a used to refer to either the prevalence or incidence of a disease. Other specific measures of mortality include, Crude death rate – the total number of deaths per year per 1,000 people, as of 2014 the crude death rate for the whole world is 7.89 per 1,000 according to the current CIA World Factbook. Note that the death rate can be misleading. The crude death rate depends on the age specific mortality rates, the number of deaths per 1,000 people can be higher in developed nations than in less-developed countries, despite a higher life expectancy in developed countries due to better standards of health. This happens because developed countries typically have a higher proportion of older people. A more complete picture of mortality is given by a life table, a life table is necessary to give a good estimate of life expectancy. Perinatal mortality rate – the sum of neonatal deaths and fetal deaths per 1,000 births, maternal mortality ratio – the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in same time period. Maternal mortality rate – the number of deaths per 1,000 women of reproductive age in the population. Infant mortality rate – the number of deaths of less than 1 year old per 1,000 live births. Child mortality rate, the number of deaths of less than 5 years old per 1,000 live births. Standardized mortality ratio – a proportional comparison to the numbers of deaths that would have expected if the population had been of a standard composition in terms of age, gender. Age-specific mortality rate – the total number of deaths per year per 1,000 people of a given age, cause-specific mortality rate – the mortality rate for a specified cause of death. Cumulative death rate, a measure of the proportion of a group that die over a specified period, case fatality rate – the proportion of cases of a particular medical condition that lead to death. Late mortality rate – the total number of deaths in the stages of an ongoing treatment. Mortality may also be expressed in terms of survival, thus, the survival rate is equivalent to 1 minus the cumulative death rate. The ten countries with the highest crude death rate, according to the 2014 CIA World Factbook estimates, are, See list of causes of death by rate for worldwide statistics. According to Jean Ziegler, mortality due to malnutrition accounted for 58% of the mortality in 2006, In the world, approximately 62 millions people, all causes of death combined
5.
Net migration rate
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The net migration rate is the difference between the number of immigrants and the number of emigrants throughout the year. When the number of immigrants is larger than the number of emigrants, a positive net migration rates indicates that there are more people entering an area than leaving it. When there are more emigrants than immigrants the result is a net migration rate. When there is an amount of immigrants and emigrants, the net migration rate remains stable. The net migration rate is calculated over a one year period using the mid year population. Migration occurs over a series of different push and pull factors that contribute to social, political, economical, social migration is when one migrates to have a higher standard of living or to be closer to family. Political migration then is when you are going in as a refugee to escape war or political persecution, while economical migration is moving to a place where one can aspire to have a career and better job opportunities to contribute a better living conditions. Lastly, environmental migration is when natural disasters force you to move into anew area, if we analyze all this we can get the idea that the net migration rate can tell us so much about a country. For example if there are a lot of coming in. On the other if not many people are coming in and many are leaving it is easy to assume that there is a chance of violence, low economy. Throughout the year there was a total of 200,000 people that immigrated to country A, throughout the year there was a total of 100,000 births and 100,000 deaths. What is the net migration rate, first, find the mid year population for country A. Second, find the net migration for country A and please keep in mind this is simply the number of minus the number of emigrants. I - E =200,000 -100,000 I - E =100,000 The net migration for country A is 100,000, third, plug your findings into the formula to find the net migration rate for country A. N = / M X1,000 N =100,000 /1,050,000 X1,000 N =95.23809523809524 N =95.2 The net migration rate for country A is 95.2 per 1,000 people. This means that for every 1,000 people in country A at the beginning of the year,95.2 will have immigrated to country A by the end of the year. This number numerically shows the impact of migration on the countrys population, demography Human migration List of countries by net migration rate Population dynamics World Net migration rate Map Planet Wire - Glossary of Terms Census Bureau - Glossary
6.
Literacy
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Literacy is traditionally understood as the ability to read, write, and use arithmetic. The concept of literacy is expanding in OECD countries to include skills to access knowledge through technology and ability to assess complex contexts. A person who travels and resides in a country but is unable to read or write in the language of the host country would also be regarded by the locals as being illiterate. The key to literacy is reading development, a progression of skills that begins with the ability to understand words and decode written words. The inability to do so is called illiteracy or analphabetism, Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society. Literacy is thought to have first emerged with the development of numeracy, script developed independently at least four times in human history in Mesopotamia, Egypt, lowland Mesoamerica, and China. The earliest forms of written communication originated in Sumer, located in southern Mesopotamia about 3500-3000 BCE, writing systems in Mesopotamia first emerged from a recording system in which people used impressed token markings to manage trade and agricultural production. The token system served as a precursor to early cuneiform writing once people began recording information on clay tablets, proto-cuneiform texts exhibit not only numerical signs, but also ideograms depicting objects being counted. Egyptian hieroglyphs emerged from 3300-3100 BCE and depicted royal iconography that emphasized power amongst other elites, the Egyptian hieroglyphic writing system was the first notation system to have phonetic values. Writing in lowland Mesoamerica was first put into practice by the Olmec and Zapotec civilizations in 900-400 BCE and these civilizations used glyphic writing and bar-and-dot numerical notation systems for purposes related to royal iconography and calendar systems. The earliest written notations in China date back to the Shang Dynasty in 1200 BCE and these systematic notations were found inscribed on bones and recorded sacrifices made, tributes received, and animals hunted, which were activities of the elite. These oracle-bone inscriptions were the ancestors of modern Chinese script and contained logosyllabic script. According to social anthropologist Jack Goody, there are two interpretations that regard the origin of the alphabet, many classical scholars, such as historian Ignace Gelb, credit the Ancient Greeks for creating the first alphabetic system that used distinctive signs for consonants and vowels. Thus, many argue that the ancient Semitic-speaking peoples of northern Canaan invented the consonantal alphabet as early as 1500 BCE. Much of this development is credited to English archeologist Flinders Petrie. Ten years later, English Egyptologist Alan Gardiner reasoned that these contain an alphabet. In 1948, William F. Albright deciphered the text using additional evidence that had been discovered subsequent to Goodys findings and this included a series of inscriptions from Ugarit, discovered in 1929 by French archaeologist Claude F. A. Schaeffer. Some of these inscriptions were mythological texts that consisted of a 32-letter cuneiform consonantal alphabet, another significant discovery was made in 1953 when three arrowheads were uncovered, each containing identical Canaanite inscriptions from twelfth century BCE
7.
Chhetri
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Chhetri, synonymous with Kshetri and Khatri are a caste among Nepali speaking peoples, which are a part of Khas people, along with some Brahmins, and Thakuris. According to 1854 Legal Code of Nepal, Chhetris are the group among the sacred thread bearers. Chhetris claim to be of the Kshatriya varna and they make up 16. 6% of Nepals population according to the census of 2011, making them the most populous caste or ethnic community in Nepal. The majority of Chhetris speak Nepali, an Indo-Aryan language as mother tongue Chhetris are primarily Hindu and those Chhetri who follow Hinduism may also follow Buddhism. The ancient religion of the Chhetri is Masto which uses nature worship and can still be seen in western Nepals Karnali district, in Nepals hill districts the Chhetri population rises to 41% compared to 31% Brahmin and 27% other castes. This greatly exceeds the Kshatriya portion in most regions with predominantly Hindu populations and they are thought to be connected to the Khasas mentioned in the ancient Indian literature and the medieval Khasa kingdom. The Chhetris first settled in Sinja Valley of Karnali in Nepal, the ancient name of this Himalayan region was Khas-des. There are several recognized ways to enter the Chhetri caste apart from Jharra Chettri, Having nothing, the child of a Chhetri father and a woman from lower but clean castes is still Chhetri. An arbitrary community can start following Chhetri caste rules, hiring Brahmin to conduct certain rituals, over generations these claims of Chhetri affinity become plausible to broader audiences. In the early history of Nepal, Chhetris played a key role in the unification of the country. During the monarchy, Chhetris continued to dominate the ranks of the Nepalese Army, police, Nepalese government administration and that marginalized the monarchy, and the Chhetri presence in the armed forces, police, and Government of Nepal. In traditional and administrative professions, Chhetris were given favorable treatment by the royal government, Chhetri had dominated high military positions and monopolized the military force at the times of Chhetri autocratic administrators like PM Bhimsen Thapa and PM Jung Bahadur Rana. Rana dynasty of Chhetri ruler Jung Bahadur Rana have marital ties with Maratha royal Gaekwad dynasty, asha Laxmi, the granddaughter of Chandra Shamsher Jung Bahadur Rana was married to royals of Baroda. Also, the Scindia Dynasty was maritally linked to Rana dynasty of Nepal by Usha Raje Scindia, Madhavrao Scindia royal of Gwalior was also linked to Ranas by his mother Vijaya Raje Scindia. Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindias mother was daughter of General Yuvaraj SJB Rana, similarly, Dr. Karan Singh was married to Yasho Rajya Laxmi, daughter of General Sharada Shamsher Jung Bahadur Rana. Gautama SJB Ranas son, Varun Shamsher Jung Bahadur Rana was married to Padmaja Jadeja of Gujarat Jamnagar Royalty, as per 2011 census, almost all Chhetris are Hindu. Chhetri religion began with shamanism and nature worship, Thapa Politics in Nepal, With Special Reference to Bhim Sen Thapa, 1806–1839, New Delhi, Concept Publishing Company, p.278, ISBN9788180698132 Debra Skinner et. al. Selves in time and place, Identities, Experience and History in Nepal. Roman & Littlefield Publishers, Nepalese Language, Folklore and Practices for Foreigners
8.
Magars
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The Magars are one of the indigenous ethnic nationalities of Nepal representing 7. 13% of the Nepals total population as per the census of 2011. Their ancestral homeland extends from the Western and the Southern edges of the Dhaulagiri range of the Himalayas to the Mahabharat foothills in the South, genetically and physically, Magar people are Mongoloid/east Asian. They are believed to have migrated from Tibet via Sikkim like other prominent ethnic groups, mythical stories on the Origins of Magars, There are interesting mythical stories describing the origins of Magars. Three different versions relative to three different language groups are presented, the Magar of the Bahra Magaranth east of the Kali Gandaki River) are said to have originated in the land of Seem. Two brothers, Seem Magar and Chintoo Magar, fought, and one remained in Seem, while the other left, the Bhutia people lived at the northern end of this region. Over time, the Magars became very powerful and made the northern Bhutia their vassals, sintoo Sati Sheng ruled in a very despotic manner, and the Bhutia conspired to assassinate him. Shengs queen took revenge and poisoned 1,000 Bhutia people at a place now called Tong Song Fong, meaning where a thousand were murdered, the Bhutia later drove the Magar out, forcing them to again migrate further south. As part of migration, one group migrated to Simrongadh, one group moved towards the Okhaldhunga region. A second Magar federation called Athara Magarat was situated west of the Gandaki River, the first written history about Magar people dates as back as 1100 AD. But it is accepted that they have resided around Palpa from time immemorial. They are also thought to be the earliest settlers from the north, some records show these twelve areas as being Arghakhanchi, Gulmi, Isma, Musikot, Khanchi, Ghiring, Rising, Bhirkot, Payung, Garhung, Dhor and Satung. However, it is probable that some of the latter places should have been excluded in favour of Palpa, Galkot, Dhurkot, Char Hajar, Parbat, the Magars of middle and western region also played a role in Nepals formative history. Their kingdom was one of the strongest of west Nepal in, the 18th-century king, Prithvi Narayan Shah, the founder of the modern Kingdom of Nepal was announced and loved to call himself the King of Magarat. Many prominent historians of Nepal have claimed that Aramudi, a ruler of the Kali Gandaki region, was a Magar King. Aramudi derives from the word for river in the Magar language, ari-Source of Water + Modi-River=Arimodi or Aramudi, thus the literal meaning of Aramudi is source of river. But due to the lack of evidence there are some conflicting ideas among the historians. The Magars are structured with septs, followed by sub-septs, broadly speaking, Magars are divided into two main groups, Baraha Magaratis and Athara Magaratis. Before the unification of Nepal in the 18th century by the King Prithvi Narayan Shah, west of Kali Gandaki was called eighteen Magarat and East of Kali Gandaki was called twelve Magarat
9.
Tharu people
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The Tharu people are an ethnic group indigenous to the southern foothills of the Himalayas, most of the Tharu people live in the Nepal Terai. Some Tharu groups also live in the Indian Terai, foremost in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, the Tharus are recognized as an official nationality by the Government of Nepal. The Government of India recognizes the Tharu people as a scheduled tribe, as of 2011, the Tharu population of Nepal was censused at 1,737,470 people, or 6. 6% of the total population. In 2009, the majority of Tharu people were estimated to live in Nepal, in 2001, Tharu people were the largest of five scheduled tribes in Uttarakhand, with a population of 256,129 accounting for 33. 4% of all scheduled tribes. In the same year, they constituted 77. 4% of the tribal population of Uttar Pradesh with a population of 83,544. The Tharu people themselves say that they are a people of the forest, in Chitwan, they have lived in the forests for hundreds of years practicing a short fallow shifting cultivation. The Tharus never went abroad for employment – a life that kept them isolated in their own localities, in this isolation they developed a unique culture free from the influence of adjacent India, or from the mountain groups of Nepal. Much of the design is rooted in devotional activities and passed on from one generation to the next. The Deukheri Tharu are known for their colorful, shell and/or feather decorated basketry, in the western Terai, most Rana Tharu prefer living in Badaghar called longhouses with big families of many generations, sometimes 40-50 people. All household members pool their labor force, contribute their income, share the expenditure, Tharus from the mid west and far west of Nepal have been practicing the Badghar system, where a Badghar is elected chief of a village or a small group of villages for a year. The election generally takes place in the month of Magh, after celebrating the Maghi Festival, in most cases, each household in the village which engages in farming has one voting right for electing a Badghar. Thus the election is based on a count of households count rather than a headcount, the role of the Badghar is to work for the welfare of the village. The Badghar direct the villagers to repair canals or streets when needed and they also oversee and manages the cultural traditions of the villages. They have an authority of punishing those who do not follow their orders or who go against the welfare of the village, generally the Badghar has a Chaukidar to help him. With the consent of the villagers the Badghar may appoint aGuruwa who is the medic, as Tharus society is mainly involved in farming, irrigation is one of the most important aspects of the community. Tharus in western Nepal built canals that irrigate thousands of hectares of land, hundreds of years ago, without using any sophisticated tools, they built hundreds of kilometers of irrigation canals in the Kailali and Bardiya districts of Nepal. An irrigation canal could be used by several villages and its water and diversion works need to be managed fairly. For this purpose, the Badghars of different villages elect a person for the position of Chaudhary to manage a canal system, when needed, the Chaudhary orders the Badghars to send people to repair or build the canals
10.
Tamang people
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The Tamang ཏ་མང, or Murmi, are the indigenous inhabitants of the Himalayan regions of Nepal and India, their ancestral land is called Tamsaling. Tamang are also a significant minority in Sikkim and Darjeeling District of West Bengal of India as permanent settlers and they were one of the aborigines who were least affected by Nepalisation. Peculiar to Tamang people are complex marriage restrictions within the community, until 1950, Tamang were neither accepted into government posts, whether administrative, judicial or political, nor allowed to accept foreign employment, serving as a labour pool for the ruling class. But nowadays, Tamangs are highly respected as Buddhist Monks as rinpoche, in many Tamang Villages, there is still a tradition of sending the second son to study Buddhism and preferably to remain in the Monastery, and serve as a Buddhist Monk throughout his life. Tamangs have also served as Gurkha soldiers in British Gurkha army, Singapore police, Indian army and police and Nepalese army, the governments have considered that an empowerment of Tamang community is essential to in order to increase the living standard of the people. On August 3 the Nepalese parliament adopted a bill amending the Civil Service Act 1993, the amendments provide reservations for disadvantaged groups by allocating 45 percent of the jobs in the bureaucracy to these groups. Tamangs are represented by Tamsaling Rastriya Mukti Morcha and Tamsaling Nepal Rastriya Dal, the umbrella group Mongol National Organisation supports self-determination and works against said discrimination not just for Tamangs but for all Mongoloid groups in the country. Mongol National is against conversion to Hinduism of non-Hindus, but it holds no official parliamentary vote, federal Limbuwan State Council also works towards similar goals for self-determination for the Kirati peoples, who co-mingle with Tamangs, citing a reneged treaty with Kathmandu for autonomy. Tamang have gompas in every sizeable village, every family has their special Buddhist god and book to worship every morning. The Tamangs retain jhankris in addition to their Lama clan, the latter whose surnames are also Lama, additionally there exists the honorific term Lama, assigned to all Tamang regardless of kinship clan. This is not to be confused with Lama of Tibet or the Sherpa Lama surname and these jhankris perform certain rites such as trances and sacrifices to alleviate problems or assure good fortune. According to the 2001 census,90. 3% of the Tamang people follow Buddhism that makes up 47. 3% of the total in the country, hence, Tamang are the largest population who follow Buddhism in Nepal. Majority of the Tamangs are Buddhist, not Hindu so they dont belong to low caste system of Hindu, today they inhabit the borders of Nepal and Tibet, due to marginalization from Kathmandu, and are among the groups hardest hit by the April 2015 Nepal earthquake. The word Tamang is re-constructed from 2 words, Ta – Horse, Tamangs are divided into 240 families. Flags and colourful printed by Buddhist mantra, holy words and clothes are put in different places in the village. Tamang have a dance called Tamang Selo that is performed with the Damphoo instrument, also known as Damphoo Dance, having a brisk movement, dashain is also approached with much enthusiasm by Tamangs. Most Tamangs are farmers, engaged in agriculture, due to the lack of irrigation at higher altitudes, their crops are often limited to corn, millet, wheat, barley, and potatoes. They often supplement their income with manual labour
11.
Newar people
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The Newar or Newah are the historical inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley and its surrounding areas in Nepal, and the creators of its historic heritage and civilization. Newars form a linguistic and cultural community of primarily Indo-Aryan and Tibeto-Burman ethnicities following Hinduism and Buddhism with Nepal Bhasa as their common language, Newars have developed a division of labour and a sophisticated urban civilization not seen elsewhere in the Himalayan foothills. Newars have continued their traditions and practices, and pride themselves as the true custodians of the religion, culture. The valley and surrounding territories constituted the former Newar kingdom of the Nepal Mandala, Indo-Aryan immigrants like the Licchavis and Mallas that arrived at different periods eventually merged with the local population by adopting their language and customs. Newar rule in Nepal Mandala ended with its conquest by the Gorkha Kingdom in 1768, Newars are known for their contributions to culture, art and literature, trade, agriculture and cuisine. Today, Newars consistently rank as the most economically, politically and socially advanced community of Nepal, nepals 2011 census ranks Newars as the nations sixth-largest ethnicity/community, with 1,321,933 Newars throughout the country. The terms Nepāl, Newār, Newāl and Nepār are phonetically different forms of the same word, Nepal is the learned form and Newar is the colloquial form. The term Newar referring to inhabitant of Nepal appeared for the first time in an inscription dated 1654 in Kathmandu, italian Jesuit priest Ippolito Desideri who traveled to Nepal in 1721 has written that the natives of Nepal are called Newars. It has been suggested that Nepal may be a sanskritization of Newar, according to another explanation, the words Newar and Newari are vulgarisms arising from the mutation of P to V, and L to R. As a result of the process of dropping the last consonant and lengthening the vowel, Newā for Newār or Newāl. For about a thousand years, the Newar civilization in Central Nepal preserved a microcosm of classical North Indian culture in which Brahmanic, snellgrove and Richardson speak of the direct heritage of pre-Islamic India. The different divisions of Newars had different historical developments, the common identity of Newar was formed in the Kathmandu Valley. Until the conquest of the valley by the Gorkha Kingdom in 1769, so, the history of Newar correlates to the history of the Kathmandu Valley prior to the establishment of the modern state of Nepal. The earliest known history of Newar and the Kathmandu Valley blends with mythology recorded in historical chronicles, one such text, which recounts the creation of the valley, is the Swayambhu Purana. According to this Buddhist scripture, the Kathmandu Valley was a giant lake until the Bodhisattva Manjusri, with the aid of a sword, cut a gap in the surrounding hills. This apocryphal legend is supported by evidence of an ancient lakebed. According to the Swayambhu Purana, Manjusri then established a city called Manjupattan, now called Manjipā, a shrine dedicated to Manjusri is still present in Majipā. No historical documents have been found after this era till the advent of the Gopal era, a genealogy of kings is recorded in a chronicle called Gopalarajavamsavali
12.
Yadav
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The term Yadav now covers many traditional peasant-pastoral castes such as Ahirs of the Hindi belt and the Gavli of Maharashtra. The Yadav are included in the category Other Backward Classes in many Indian states, traditionally, Yadav groups were linked to cattle raising and, as such, were outside the formal caste system. The term Yadav has been interpreted to mean a descendant of Yadu, gadkari further notes of these ancient works that It is beyond dispute that each of the Puranas consists of legends and myths. But what is important is that, within that framework certain value system is propounded, a strong belief amongst them that all Yadavs belong to Krishnas line of descent, the Yadav subdivisions of today being the outcome of a fission of an original and undifferentiated group. There are several communities that coalesce to form the Yadavs and their traditional common function, all over India, was that of herdsmen, cowherds and milksellers. M. S. A. Rao had earlier expressed the opinion as Jaffrelot. According to Lucia Michelutti. Yadavs constantly trace their caste predispositions and skills to descent, for them, caste is not just appellation but quality of blood. The Ahirs had a view of caste that was based on a strong ideological model of descent. This descent-based kinship structure was also linked to a specific Kshatriya and their religious tradition centred on Krishna mythology, the Yadavs mostly live in Northern India, and particularly in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Traditionally, they were a pastoral caste. Employment with the army and the police have been other occupations in northern India. She believes that positive discrimination measures and gains as a consequence of land reform legislation have been important factors in at least some areas and their traditional position, which Jaffrelot describes as low caste peasants, also mitigated against any dominant role. Tilak Gupta said that this view persisted in modern times in Bihar, however, Michelutti observed, these very same people acknowledge and coveted their political influence, connections and abilities. The Yadavs have, however, demonstrated a feature, driven by their notable members. They try to abandon demeaning practices and to adopt purer and more prestigious ways and they usually want to drop the old name for a better one. By the end of the century, some Yadavs had become successful cattle traders and others had been awarded government contracts to care for cattle. The AYKM was a unit and did not try to forge links with similar bodies among other caste groups that claimed Kshatriya descent at that time. Ameliorating the effects of strict endogamy was seen as being conducive to causing the community as a whole to unite, Rao has said that the events of this period meant that the term Yadava refers to both an ethnic category and an ideology
13.
Rai people
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The Khambu or Rai are indigenous ethnolinguistic groups of Nepal, the Indian State of Sikkim and Darjeeling Hills. They were Rai meaning king (Rai means King in old Khas kura, when the king Prithvi Narayan Shah couldnt defeat Khambu king, he somehow took them in confidence that the land is theirs forever and gave them the title Rai in around B. S.1832. The title of Rai instead khambu kirant people who used to live in majh kirant for particular reason, then the post Rai was provided to the topmost leaders of the region. They were given the power to land tax. Thats why sometimes Rai people are called jimmi or jimmi-wal, the Rai belong to the Kirati group or the Kirat confederation that includes Limbu, Sunuwar, Yakkha and Dhimal ethnic groups. Rais are also found in significant numbers in the Indian state of Sikkim, Assam and in the northern West Bengal towns of Kalimpong, Kurseong, Mirik, according to Nepals 2001 census, there are 635,751 Rai in Nepal representing 2. 79% of the total population. Of this number,70. 89% declared themselves as practicing the traditional Kiranti religion, some groups number only a few hundred members. More than 32 different panoti languages and dialects are recognized within the Tibeto-Burman languages family and their languages are Pronominalised Tibeto-Burman languages, indicating their antiquity. The traditional Kiranti religion, predating Hinduism and Buddhism, is based on ancestor-worship, sumnima-Paruhang are worshipped as primordial parents. They are worshipped as Lord Shiva and Parvati, a major Rai holiday is the harvest festival, Nwogi, when fresh harvested foods are shared by all. The Bijuwa and Nakchhung or Priest plays an important role in Rai communities, the Rai people do not belong to the caste system. The Rai people have never accepted casteism and never adopted a caste, the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities and the Nepal government have recognised this fact. Rai women decorate themselves lavishly with silver and gold coin jewellery, marriage unions are usually monogamous and arranged by parents, although love marriage, bride capture in the past and elopement are alternative methods. Sakela or Sakewa dance is the greatest religious festival of Kirant Rai people in Nepal, the Sakela celebration is a prayer to Mother Nature for healthy crops and protection from natural calamities. Therefore, the festival is known as Bhumi Puja. Starting on Baisakh Purnima, Sakela Ubhauli is celebrated for 15 days in Baisakh marking the beginning of the farming year, Nepal is a very ancient country, which has been ruled by many dynasties. Among them, the Kirat rule is taken as a significant one. In ancient Hindu scriptures, Nepal is referred as the Kirat Desh or the Land of Kirats, when the 28th Kirat King Paruka was ruling in the valley, the Sombanshi ruler attacked his regime many times from the west
14.
Gurung people
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The Gurung people, also called Tamu, are an ethnic group from different parts of Nepal. Priestly practitioners of Gurung Dharma include Ghyabri, Pachyu, and Bon Lamas, shamanistic elements among the Gurungs remain strong and most Gurungs often embrace Buddhist and Bön rituals in all communal activities. Nepal, the Living Heritage, Environment and Culture, university of Michigan, Kathmandu Environmental Education Project. The Land of the Gurkhas, Or, The Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal, the Gurungs, Thunder of Himal, A Cross Cultural Study of a Nepalese Ethnic Group
15.
Limbu people
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The name Limbu is an exonym of an uncertain origin. They call themselves Yakthumba (IPA, or Yakthungba, in Standard Tibetan, they are referred to as Sikkimese people and in Sikkimese as Shong or Tsong Tsang people. Portions of the Limbu population are located in the east and west districts of Sikkim. Limbu clans and tribes are divided into two gotras indicating their origin, Lhasa and Yunnan, the Limbu are known as Yakthung Thibong or Ten Limbu, from which thirteen Limbu subgroups have emerged. According to legend, five of the came from Yunnan. The Chinese text Po-ou-Yeo-Jing translated in 308 AD refers to the Yi-ti-Sai, accounts with Sirijunga Limbu, Lepcha and Newar are the only Sino-Tibetan languages of the Central Himalayas to possess their own pre-20th century scripts. Vowels, ʌ, ɑ, i, u, e, ɑi, o, ɑu, ɛ, ɔ Consonants k, kh, g, gh, ŋ, c/ts, ch/tsh, j/dz, jh/dz, t, th, d, dh, n, p, ph, b, bh, m, j, r, l, w, sh, s, h, tr 1. Sleep, imma, kiratism or Kirat Dharma Limbus practice many of their own life cycle rituals and they believe that lineage is not transmitted patrilineally. Rather, a woman inherits her mothers gods, and when she marries and lives with her husband she brings with her the deities that will then be recognized as the household deities, Limbu bury their dead and observe for two-to-three days through practiced death rituals. The length of the period varies depending on the gender of the deceased. Dancing parties are arranged for visitors to the village and these affairs give the young Limbu girls and boys a chance to meet and enjoy dancing and drinking. The traditional dress of the Limbus are mekhli and taga, while performing mangsewa IPA, Yakthung IPA, people wear mekhli and taga in white colour as it symbolizes purity. Dhaka is the fabric of the Limbus which are made by weaving it in geometric patterns in a handloom. The art of making dhaka is taught by one generation to another and you will always see a Limbu man clad in dhaka topi and scarf, and a Limbu lady in dhaka saree, mekhli, blouse and shawl. In the olden days, the Limbus were skilled in silk farming, the Kiratis were also known as silk traders. According to JB Subba and Iman Xin Chemjong, the Kirat is a form of kereta. Mekhli- Long dress worn with a strip of cloth with collars crossing over or in a Vneck style. Chunglokek/sunghamba- Blouse Chaubandi Cholo- Blouse with collars overlapping each other Sim- gunyo in Nepali, a long strip of cloth wrapped around like a skirt
16.
Teli
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Teli is a caste traditionally occupied in the pressing of oil in India, Nepal and Pakistan. Members may be either Hindu or Muslim, Muslim Teli are called Roshandaar or Teli Malik, the Jewish community of Maharashtra was also known to be a sub-group in the Teli caste called Shanivar Teli meaning Saturday oil pressers for their Jewish custom of abstention from work on Shabbat. The Teli are sometimes considered to belong to the Vaishya varna in Hinduism, in Bengal, the Teli would be reckoned as Vaishya, along with other traders and bankers such as the Suvarnabanik, Gandhabanik, Saha, had not the Vaishya varna disappeared there. In Rajasthan, the Teli claim Kshatriya status, though their neighbors recognise them as Vaishya, the Bene Israel of Maharashtra were nicknamed the Shanivar Teli by the local population as they abstained from work on Saturdays which is Judaisms Shabbat. The Ghanchi community of Gujarat have been described as a counterpart of the Telis, in April 2015, Bihar chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced a decision to include the Teli caste in the list of Extremely Backward Class in Bihar. In 2004, Jhanrkhand government under Arjun Munda recommended Scheduled Tribes status to Teli caste in Jharkhand, in 2014, Raghubar Das became first Teli Chief minister of Jharkhand. Gupta Other Backward Class Bania Ghanchi
17.
Chamar
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Chamar is one of the untouchable communities, or dalits, who are now classified as a Scheduled Caste under modern Indias system of positive discrimination. As untouchables, they were considered outside the Hindu ritual ranking system of castes known as varna. They are found mainly in the states of India and in Pakistan. Ramnarayan Rawat posits that the association of the Chamar community with an occupation of tanning was constructed. The term chamar has also used as a pejorative word for anyone whom the describer considers to be of low standing. According to the 2001 census of India, the Chamars comprise around 14 per cent of the population in the state of Uttar Pradesh and 12 percent of that in Punjab. The 2011 Census of India for Uttar Pradesh combined the Chamar, Dhusia, Jhusia, Jatava Scheduled Caste communities and they believe that leatherwork is degrading when compared to weaving. The 1st Chamar Regiment was a regiment formed by the British during World War II. Officially, it was created on 1 March 1943, as the 27th Battalion 2nd Punjab Regiment was converted, the Chamar Regiment which was involved in the Pacific War Japanese front and was awarded the Battle Honor of Kohima for theirs distinguished role in the Battle of Kohima. The Regiment was disbanded in 1946, recently, several politicians have demanded that The Chamar Regiment be revived. Kanshi Ram, founder of Bahujan Samaj Party and mentor of Mayawati Kumari Hindu Mochi Muslim Mochi Briggs, the Religious Life of India — The Chamars. Rawat, Ramnarayan S. Reconsidering Untouchability, Chamars and Dalit History in North India, a Bibliographic Essay on Hindu and Christian Dalit Religiosity
18.
Kurmi
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The Kurmi are a Hindu agricultural caste in India and Nepal. There are several theories regarding the etymology of the term Kurmi and it may be derived from an Indian tribal language, or may be a Sanskrit compound term krishi karmi, agriculturalist. Another theory holds that it was derived from kṛṣmi, meaning ploughman, many new rulers of the 18th century came from such nomadic backgrounds. The effect of this interaction on Indias social organization lasted well into the colonial period, the Kurmi were famed as cultivators and market gardeners. In western and northern Awadh, for example, for much of the eighteenth century, once the land had been brought stably under the plough, however, the land rent was usually raised to 30 to 80 per cent above the going rate. A network of ganjs and Kurmi or Kacchi settlements could transform a local economy within a year or two, Hindu tillers worshipped at Muslim shrines in the small towns founded by their Muslim overlords. The Hindu Kurmis of Chunar and Jaunpur, for instance, took up the Muslim custom of marrying first cousins, and bemoaned the loss of agricultural revenue in part due to, this unfavourable mutation amongst the cultivators. In the first half of the century, economic pressures on the large landowning classes increased noticeably. The prices of agricultural lands fell at the time that the East India Company, after acquiring the Ceded and Conquered Provinces in 1805. The annexation of Awadh in 1856 created more fear and discontent among the landed elite, economic pressures also opened marginal areas to intensive agriculture and turned the fortunes of the non-elite peasants, such as the Kurmi, who worked them. According to historical anthropologist Susan Bayly, In some instances these were attempts to stave off decline by reinvigorating or intensifying existing froms of customary service. Elsewhere these were wholly novel demands, many being imposed on clean tillers and cattle-keepers like the Ram- and Krishna-loving Koeris, Kurmis, in either case, these calls were buttressed with appeals to Sanskritic varna theory and Brahmanical caste convention. The elite landowning classes, such as Rajputs and Bhumihars, now sought to present themselves as flagbearers of the ancient Hindu tradition. The second half of the century also largely overlapped with the coming of age of ethnology—interpreted then as the science of race—in the study of societies the world over. Although later to be discredited, the methods of discipline were eagerly absorbed and adopted in British India. According to Susan Bayly, Those like Hunter, as well as the key figures of H. H. A. H. Blunt. Seeing caste as a force in Indian life, Risley, especially. Risley is best known for the now discounted attribution of all differences in caste to varying proportions of seven racial types which included Dravidian, Aryo-Dravidian, the Kurmi fell into two such categories
19.
Sanyasi
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Sannyasa is the life stage of renunciation within the Hindu philosophy of four age-based life stages known as ashramas, with the first three being Brahmacharya, Grihastha and Vanaprastha. Sannyasa has historically been a stage of renunciation, ahimsa peaceful and simple life, however, this has not always been the case. These warrior sanyasis played an important role in helping European colonial powers establish themselves in India, saṃnyāsa in Sanskrit means renunciation of the world and abandonment. It is a word of saṃ- which means together, all, ni- which means down and āsa from the root as. A literal translation of Sannyāsa is thus to put down everything, Sannyasa is sometimes spelled as Sanyasa. The term Saṃnyasa makes appearance in the Samhitas, Aranyakas and Brahmanas, the earliest layers of Vedic literature, but it is rare. The term Sannyasa evolves into a rite of renunciation in ancient Sutra texts, in Dravidian languages, sannyasi is pronounced as sanyasi and also sannasi in colloquial form. Sanyasis are also known as Bhiksu, Pravrajita/Pravrajitā, Yati, Sramana, jamison and Witzel state early Vedic texts make no mention of Sannyasa, or Ashrama system, unlike the concepts of Brahmacharin and Grihastha which they do mention. Instead, Rig Veda uses the term Antigriha in hymn 10.95.4, still part of extended family and it is in later Vedic era and over time, Sannyasa and other new concepts emerged, while older ideas evolved and expanded. The explicit use of the four stage Ashrama concept, appeared a few centuries later, however, early Vedic literature from 2nd millennium BC, mentions Muni, with characteristics that mirror those found in later Sannyasins and Sannyasinis. Rig Veda, for example, in Book 10 Chapter 136, mentions mendicants as those with Kesin, rigveda, however, refers to these people as Muni and Vati. The Munis, girdled with the wind, wear garments of soil hue, They, following the winds swift course and these Munis, their lifestyle and spiritual pursuit, likely influenced the Sannyasa concept, as well as the ideas behind the ancient concept of Brahmacharya. One class of Munis were associated with Rudra and this freedom has led to diversity and significant differences in the lifestyle and goals of those who adopt Sannyasa. There are, however, some common themes, a person in Sannyasa lives a simple life, typically detached, itinerant, drifting from place to place, with no material possessions or emotional attachments. They may have a stick, a book, a container or vessel for food and drink, often wearing yellow, saffron, orange. They may have hair and appear disheveled, and are usually vegetarians. Some minor Upanishads as well as monastic orders consider women, child, students, fallen men and others as not qualified for Sannyasa, the dress, the equipage and lifestyle varies between groups. For example, Sannyasa Upanishad in verses 2.23 to 2.29 and those who enter Sannyasa may choose whether they join a group
20.
Sherpa people
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Sherpa are an ethnic group from the most mountainous region of Nepal, the Himalayas. Sherpa as a surname is the result of census takers of the Nepalese government. Not recognizing that some only have one name, census takers wrote Sherpa in the place of a last name. The surname Sherpa has thus been adopted and involuntarily used as last names even though last names are not part of Sherpa culture, most Sherpa people live in Nepals eastern regions, however, some live farther west in the Rolwaling valley and in the Helambu region north of Kathmandu. Tengboche is the oldest Sherpa village in Nepal, Sherpa people also live in Tibet, Bhutan, as well as in the Indian states of Sikkim and the northern portion of West Bengal, specifically the district of Darjeeling. The Sherpa language belongs to the branch of the Tibeto-Burman languages. However, this language is separate from Lhasa Tibetan and unintelligible to Lhasa speakers, the number of Sherpas migrating to the West has significantly increased in recent years, especially to the United States. New York City has the largest Sherpa community in the United States, the 2001 Nepal census recorded 154,622 Sherpas within its borders. Some members of the Sherpa population are known for their skills in mountaineering, the Sherpa were nomadic people who first settled in the Solukhumbu District, Nepal, then gradually moved westward along salt trade routes. According to Sherpa oral history, four groups migrated out of Solukhumbu at different times, giving rise to the four fundamental Sherpa clans, Minyagpa, Thimmi and these four groups have since split into the more than 20 different clans that exist today. About 1840, Sherpa ancestors migrated from Kham, mahayana Buddhism religious conflict may have contributed to the migration in the 15th and 16th centuries. Sherpa migrants traveled through Ü and Tsang, before crossing the Himalaya, by the 1400s, Khumbu Sherpa people attained autonomy within the newly formed Nepali state. In the 1960s, as tension with China increased, Nepali government influence on the Sherpa people grew, in 1976, Khumbu became a national park, and tourism became a major economic force. According to Oppitz, Sherpas migrated from the Kham region in eastern Tibet to Nepal within the last 300–400 years, on the other hand, Gautam concluded that the Sherpa migrated from Tibet approximately 600 years ago, through the Nangpa La pass. It is presumed that the group of people from the Kham region, east of Tibet, was called Shyar Khamba, as the time passed, the Shyar Khamba, inhabitants of Shyar Khumbu, were called Sherpa. A recent Nepal Ethnographic Museum study postulated that present-day Nepal became a part of the kingdom of Nepal. Since ancient times, Sherpas, like other indigenous Kirat Nepalese tribes, would move one place to another place within the Himalayan region surviving as Alpine pastoralists. Genetic evidence shows that the majority of Sherpa have a Tibeto-Burman origin, genetically, the Sherpa cluster closest with Tibetans and Han Chinese
21.
Sunuwar people
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The Sunuwar are one of the indigenous peoples of Nepal and some areas in India. The majority of this tribe follow the Kirant religion and adopt the Mundhum culture, however, some population of this tribe is influenced by the Hinduism and Christianity also. According to the 2001 census, only 17. 4% were Kirant, the term ‘Kõinchs’ is also the name of the mother tongue. Other terms like Mukhiya or Mukhia are exonyms of the tribe, there is another common teasing name of the tribe coined from the Sunuwar language itself, e. g. Maaraapaache. Sunuwar have their language, religion, culture and social customs. They inhabit the hills of Nepal. They are autochthonous to the Molung Khola, Likhu Khola and Khimti Khola, by administrative division, they dwell in Okhaldhunga, Ramechhap and Dolakha districts of Nepal, politically known as Wallo Kirant after the fall of the Kirant dynasty at the ancient Nepal valley. Wallo Kirant in the past was their Kipat or communal land, most Sunuwar practice agriculture throughout the eastern hills of present-day Nepal. Crop cultivation and cattle farming are the agricultural works. Sunuwar people also took part in the Second World War and they were known as brave gorkhali, some Sunuwar still join the Nepal Army, Indian Army, Singapore Police Force and British Gurkha Army. Due to limited opportunities within the nation, people with education go abroad for work, attractive salaries and facilities in other countries motivate these people for jobs abroad. Only few Sunuwar people are involved in the government service and private sectors in Nepal, Sunuwar are very in rich culture and traditions. They have hundreds of traditional feasts and festivals which are difficult to explain in detail, every traditional feast and festival has its own objectives, characteristics and system of celebration. Some greatest traditional festivals such as Chandi Dance in, Sakela, Gil puja and they celebrate Shyadar-pidar festival on the Day of Buddha Purnima or after 5 days of Buddha Purnima according to Nepali calendar. Sunuwar New year is celebrated on the day of Basanta Panchami, as a community, they celebrate Meserani Pidar twice a year, with no specific date allocated as such. See more Sunuwar Dress Ne, सुनुवार पोसाक Sunuwari Song, Reuhita Ragimshumshaa Hal-Li Or HaliCha हाल्ली खेल Place, Khiji Chandeshwori DVC, Mainland after Kathmandu Month, November/Dec. Only One in the World Players, 12x12, As 12 Month Rule,1 Hali change the Area/court, arranged Marriage Escape Marriage Traction Marriage. Before but not now The 29 Kirat kings were as follows, Yalamber 2
22.
The World Factbook
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The World Factbook is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available from the National Technical Information Service, Other companies—such as Skyhorse Publishing—also print a paper edition. The Factbook is available in the form of a website that is updated every week. It is also available for download for use off-line, the World Factbook is prepared by the CIA for the use of U. S. Government officials, and its style, format, coverage, and content are primarily designed to meet their requirements. However, it is used as a resource for academic research papers. As a work of the U. S. Government, it is in the domain in the United States. In researching the Factbook, the CIA uses the sources listed below, Other public and private sources are also consulted. However, the CIA requests that it be cited when the Factbook is used, copying the official seal of the CIA without permission is prohibited by U. S. federal law—specifically, the Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949. Before November 2001 The World Factbook website was updated yearly, from 2004 to 2010 it was updated every two weeks, since 2010 it has been updated weekly, generally, information currently available as of January 1 of the current year is used in preparing the Factbook. The first, classified, edition of Factbook was published in August 1962, the World Factbook was first available to the public in print in 1975. In 2008 the CIA discontinued printing the Factbook themselves, instead turning printing responsibilities over to the Government Printing Office and this happened due to a CIA decision to focus Factbook resources on the online edition. The Factbook has been on the World Wide Web since October 1994, the web version gets an average of 6 million visits per month, it can also be downloaded. The official printed version is sold by the Government Printing Office, in past years, the Factbook was available on CD-ROM, microfiche, magnetic tape, and floppy disk. Many Internet sites use information and images from the CIA World Factbook, several publishers, including Grand River Books, Potomac Books, and Skyhorse Publishing have re-published the Factbook in recent years. As of July 2011, The World Factbook consists of 267 entities and these entities can be divided into categories. They are, Independent countries This category has independent countries, which the CIA defines as people politically organized into a state with a definite territory. In this category, there are 195 entities, others The Other category is a list of other places set apart from the list of independent countries. Currently there are two, Taiwan and the European Union, dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty This category is a list of places affiliated with another country
23.
Languages of Nepal
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The 2011 National census lists 123 Nepalese languages spoken as a mother tongue in Nepal. Most belong to the Indo-Aryan and Sino-Tibetan language families, the official language of Nepal is Nepali, formerly called Khaskura then Gorkhali. According to the 2011 national census, the percentage of Nepali Bhasi people is about 44. 6%, maithili is the second largest Nepalese language and according to 2011 Census, the percentage of Maithil people is 11. 57%. Three quarters of the 123 languages native to Nepal belong to the Tibeto-Burman language family, this includes Nepal Bhasa, the Dravidian languages are represented by Kurux, and the Munda languages of the Austroasiatic family by Santali and Mundari. The indigenous languages of Nepal that predated the influx of Indic, Tibeto-Burman, and other families barely survive in the Kusunda language, which is nearly extinct today. Nepal also has at several indigenous village sign languages, Jhankot Sign Language, Jumla Sign Language, and Ghandruk Sign Language, in addition to the Nepali Sign Language designed for national use
24.
Nepali language
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Nepali, originally known as Khas Kura, Parbate Bhasa or Gorkhali, is an Indo-Aryan language. It is the language and de facto lingua franca of Nepal. It is also spoken in parts of India, particularly by Indian Gorkha. In India, Nepali language is listed in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India having a status in the Indian state of Sikkim. Nepali developed in proximity to a number of Indo-Aryan languages, most notably the Pahari languages and Magahi, however, owing to Nepals geographical area, it has also been influenced by Tibeto-Burman languages. Nepali is mainly differentiated from Central Pahari, both in grammar and vocabulary, by Tibeto-Burman idioms owing to close contact with the language group. Nepali language shares 40% lexical similarity with the Bengali language, in the nineteenth century, the British resident at Kathmandu Brian Houghton Hodgson observed that it was, in eight-tenths of its vocabulary, substantially Hindi. Historically, the language was first called the Khas language, then Gorkhali or Gurkhali before the term Nepali was adopted, in 1920, during Rana regime in Nepal, the term Nepal which resembled the Nepal Mandala was taken from its people. Soon after that, Nepal Bhasa was renamed into Newari and Parbate/Khas language took over as Nepali language, other names include Parbatiya and Dzongkha Lhotshammikha. It is also known as the Khey language or Partya language among the Newar people and Pahari language among Madhesi, however, due to protests for identity, Newars have restored their languages name as Nepal Bhasa and voices have been raise to re-instate Parbate language in its original name. Nepali developed a significant literature within a period of a hundred years in the 19th century. This literary explosion was fueled by Adhyatma Ramayana, Sundarananda Bara, Birsikka, a collection of folk tales. The contribution of trio-laureates Lekhnath Paudyal, Laxmi Prasad Devkota, the contribution of expatriate writers outside Nepal, especially in Darjeeling and Varanasi in India, is also notable. In the past decade, there have been many contributions to Nepali literature from the Nepali diaspora in Asia, Europe, America, according to the 2011 national census,44.6 percent of the population of Nepal speaks Nepali as a first language. The Ethnologue website reports 12,300,000 speakers within Nepal, Nepali is traditionally spoken in the Hill Region of Nepal, especially in the western part of the country. Although the Newar language dominated the Kathmandu valley, Nepali is currently the most dominant, Nepali is used in government and as the everyday language of a growing portion of the local population. Nevertheless, the use of Nepali in the courts and government of Nepal is being challenged. Recognition of other languages in Nepal was one of the objectives of the Communist Party of Nepals long war
25.
Maithili language
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Maithili is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Mithila region which is today mainly situated in northern Bihar of India and a few districts of the Nepal Terai. It is one of the largest languages in India and the second largest language in Nepal, less commonly, it was written with a Maithili variant of Kaithi, a script used to transcribe other neighboring languages such as Bhojpuri, Magahi, and Awadhi. In 2002, Maithili was included in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, which allows it to be used in education, government and it is recognized as one of the largest languages in India and is the second most widely used language in Nepal. In 2007, Maithili was included in the Interim Constitution of Nepal 2063, Part 1, in the past, Maithili was written primarily in Mithilakshar, but today it is written in the Devanagari script. Native speakers are referred to as Maithils, Madhubani and Darbhanga constitute cultural and linguistic centers. Native speakers also reside in Delhi, Kolkata, Ranchi and Mumbai, in Nepal, Maithili is spoken mainly in the Outer Terai districts including Sarlahi, Mahottari, Dhanusa, Sunsari, Siraha and Saptari Districts. Janakpur is an important linguistic centre of Maithili, in the 19th century, linguistic scholars considered Maithili as a dialect of Eastern Hindi languages and grouped it with other languages spoken in Bihar. Hoernlé compared it with Gaudian languages and recognised that it shows similarities with Bengali languages than with Hindi. Grierson recognized it as a language and published the first grammar in 1881. Chatterji grouped Maithili with Magadhi Prakrit, the standard form of Maithili is spoken in Darbhanga and Madhubani districts in Bihar, India. Several geographic variations of Maithili dialects are spoken in India and Nepal, including Dehati, Some dialects such as Bantar, Barmeli, Musar and Tati are spoken only in Nepal, while the Kortha, Jolaha and Thetiya dialects are spoken in India. All the dialects are intelligible to native Maithili speakers, other dialects include, Thēthi is spoken between the western part of the Mahottari and the eastern part of the Sarlahi districts of Nepal, and in adjacent areas in Bihar. The Madhubani dialect spoken in north India is generally considered to be the standard form, central Maithili is also considered as the standard form. The Kulhaiya dialect is spoken in most of north-eastern Bihar, Maithili dates back to the 14th century. The Varna Ratnākara is the earliest known text, preserved from 1507. The name Maithili is derived from the word Mithila, an ancient kingdom of which King Janaka was the ruler, Maithili is also one of the names of Sita, the wife of King Rama and daughter of King Janaka. Scholars in Mithila used Sanskrit for their work and Maithili was the language of the common folk. In 1324, Ghyasuddin Tughluq, the emperor of Delhi invaded Mithila, defeated Harasimhadeva, entrusted Mithila to his family priest Kameshvar Jha, a Maithil Brahmin of the Oinwar dynasty
26.
Bhojpuri language
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Bhojpuri is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand region of North India and in Terai region of Nepal. It is chiefly spoken in the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, in the part of Bihar state. Bhojpuri is one of the national languages of Nepal and has official status in Fiji as Fiji Hindi. It is also a language in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname. Bhojpuri is also spoken in Pakistan, Jamaica, Belize, other parts of the Caribbean, more Indians in Suriname know Bhojpuri. In Mauritius a dialect of Bhojpuri remains in use, and it is locally called Bojpury, the day-to-day usage of the language in Mauritius is dropping and today, it is spoken by less than 5% of the population, according to latest census. Bhojpuri was historically written in Kaithi scripts, but since 1894, Government gazetteers report that Kaithi was used in a few districts of Bihar through the 1960s. By 1894, official texts in Bihar were written in Kaithi, at present almost all Bhojpuri texts are written in Devanagari even in the overseas islands where Bhojpuri is spoken. For example, in Mauritius, both Kaithi and Devanagari scripts have been in use since the arrival of Bhojpuri people from India, the Kathi script was considered informal in Mauritius, with the structure of Kaithi similar to Devanagari. In modern Mauritius, Bhojpuri script is Devanagari, Bhojpuri is, sociolinguistically, one of the seven Hindi languages. Of these seven, Bhojpuri has the most allophonic variations in vowels, robert Trammell has published the phonology of Bhojpuri. Bhojpuri has six vowel phonemes, and ten vocoids, the higher vowels are relatively tense, while lower vowels are relatively lax. The language has 31 consonant phonemes and 34 contoids, according to Trammell, the syllable system is peak type, every syllable has the vowel phoneme as the highest point of sonority. Codas may consist of one, two or three consonants, vowels occur as simple peaks or as peak nuclei in diphthongs. The intonation system involves four pitch levels and three terminal contours, the United Nations has published the universal declaration of human rights in Bhojpuri and Sarnámi, one of 154 languages of the world. Ohi djanne ke lage sab ke samadj-boedj aur hierdaai hai aur doesare se sab soemmat sè, article 1, All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood, Bhojpuri syntax and vocabulary reflect a three-tier system of politeness. Any verb can be conjugated as per these tiers, for example, the verb to come in Bhojpuri is aana and the verb to speak is bolna
27.
Tamang language
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Tamang is a term used to collectively refer to a dialect cluster spoken mainly in Nepal, Sikkim, West Bengal, Some parts of Assam and North East Region. It comprises Eastern Tamang, Northwestern Tamang, Southwestern Tamang, Eastern Gorkha Tamang, lexical similarity between Eastern Tamang and other Tamang languages varies between 81% to 63%. For comparison, lexical similarity between Spanish and Portuguese, is estimated at 89%, Tamang likely split from the Tibetan languages some time before the 7th century. Ethnologue divides Tamang into the following due to mutual unintelligibility. Outer-Eastern Tamang Central-Eastern Tamang Southwestern Tamang Western Tamang,323,000, trisuli Rasuwa Northwestern dialect of Western Tamang — separate ISO code. Spoken in the central strip of Nuwakot District, Bagmati Zone. Southwestern dialect of Western Tamang Eastern Gorkha Tamang,4,000, kasigaon Kerounja The Tamang language is the most widely spoken Sino-Tibetan language in Nepal. Ethnologue gives the location information for the varieties of Tamang. Tamangic languages use Tam-Yig which is similar to Tibetan scripts and Devanāgarī, in many situations, however, Tamang is written in Devanāgarī proper. Tamang Gurung Languages of Nepal Languages of Bhutan Counting in Tamang ELAR archive of Tamang
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Newar language
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Although Nepal Bhasa literally means Nepalese language, the language is not the same as Nepali, the countrys current official language. The two languages belong to different language families, but centuries of contact have resulted in a significant body of shared vocabulary, Newar was Nepals administrative language from the 14th to the late 18th centuries. Since the beginning of the 20th century, Newar has suffered from official suppression, from 1952 to 1991, the percentage of the population in the Kathmandu Valley speaking Newar dropped from 75% to 44%, and Newar culture and language are under threat. The language has been listed as being endangered by UNESCO. The earliest occurrences of the name Nepālabhāṣā can be found in the manuscripts of a commentary to the Nāradasaṃhitā, dated 1380 AD, since then, the name has been used widely on inscriptions, manuscripts, documents and books. Conversely, the term Gorkhali in the national anthem entitled Shreeman Gambhir was changed to Nepali in 1951. On 8 September 1995, following years of lobbying to use the old name, however, the decision was not implemented, and on 13 November 1998, the Minister of Information and Communication issued another directive to use the name Nepal Bhasa instead of Newari. However, the Central Bureau of Statistics has not been doing so, Newar is spoken by over a million people in Nepal according to the 2001 census. In Nepal, Kathmandu Valley, Dolakha District, Banepa, Dhulikhel, Bandipur, Bhimphedi, Panauti, Palpa, Trishuli, Nuwakot, Bhojpur, Chitlang, Narayangarh, Chitwan. West Bengal In Tibet, Khasa With an increase in emigration, various bodies and societies of Newar-speaking people have emerged in such as the US. The exact placement of Newar within the Tibeto-Burman language family has been a source of controversies, the linguist Warren W. Glover classified Newar as a part of Bodic subdivision using Shafers terminology. Professor Van Driem classified Newar within Mahakiranti grouping but he retracted his hypothesis in 2003. Moreover, he proposed a new grouping called Maha-Newari which possibly includes Baram–Thangmi, T. R. Kansakar attributes the difficulty about the placement of Newar is due inability of scholars to connect it with the migration patterns of the Tibeto-Burman speakers. Since Newar separated from rest of the very early in history. He underscored the point that the language evolved from mixed racial/linguistic influences that do not lend easily to a neat classification. The date indicates a time when the language diverged. ɞ Van Driem labelled this branch as Parakiranti. However, he would drop this hypothesis. ʌ All languages within this branch have extensive Indo-Aryan vocabulary. It is hypothesized that either ancient IndoAryan admixture happened before Newar-Thangmi-Baram split or that Thangmi-Baram borrowed through Newari, according to the linguist Glover, Newari and the Chepang language must have diverged around 2200 BC
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Urdu
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Urdu is a persianized standard register of the Hindustani language. It is the language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also one of the 22 official languages recognized in the Constitution of India, hyderabad, Rampur, Bhopal and Lucknow are noted Urdu-speaking cities of India. Urdu is historically associated with the Muslims of the northern Indian subcontinent, apart from specialized vocabulary, Urdu is mutually intelligible with Standard Hindi, another recognized register of Hindustani. Urdu, like Hindi, is a form of Hindustani, Urdu developed under the influence of the Persian and Arabic languages, both of which have contributed a significant amount of vocabulary to formal speech. Around 99% of Urdu verbs have their roots in Sanskrit and Prakrit, Urdu words originating from Chagatai and Arabic were borrowed through Persian and hence are Persianized versions of the original words. For instance, the Arabic ta marbuta changes to he or te, nevertheless, contrary to popular belief, Urdu did not borrow from the Turkish language, but from Chagatai. Urdu and Turkish borrowed from Arabic and Persian, hence the similarity in pronunciation of many Urdu, Arabic influence in the region began with the late first-millennium Arab invasion of India in the 7th century. The Persian language was introduced into the subcontinent a few centuries later by various Persianized Central Asian Turkic and Afghan dynasties including that of the Delhi Sultanate. With the advent of the British Raj, Persian was no longer the language of administration but Hindustani, still written in the Persian script, the name Urdu was first used by the poet Ghulam Hamadani Mushafi around 1780. From the 13th century until the end of the 18th century Urdu was commonly known as Hindi, the language was also known by various other names such as Hindavi and Dehlavi. The communal nature of the language lasted until it replaced Persian as the language in 1837 and was made co-official. Urdu was promoted in British India by British policies to counter the previous emphasis on Persian and this triggered a Brahman backlash in northwestern India, which argued that the language should be written in the native Devanagari script. At independence, Pakistan established a highly Persianized literary form of Urdu as its national language, English has exerted a heavy influence on both as a co-official language. Owing to interaction with other languages, Urdu has become localized wherever it is spoken, similarly, the Urdu spoken in India can also be distinguished into many dialects like Dakhni of South India, and Khariboli of the Punjab region since recent times. Because of Urdus similarity to Hindi, speakers of the two languages can understand one another if both sides refrain from using specialized vocabulary. The syntax, morphology, and the vocabulary are essentially identical. Thus linguists usually count them as one language and contend that they are considered as two different languages for socio-political reasons
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Limbu language
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Limbu is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Nepal, India, Bhutan, Burma, Thailand, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Canada, and the USA. It is falsely believed that the Limbu/Yakthung are multi-lingual, but there are hundred and/or thousand of Yakthung who speak only in Yakthungpan, the Limbu refer to themselves as Yakthung and their language as Yakthungpan. Yakthungpan has four dialects, Phedape, Chhathare, Tambarkhole. Among four dialects and/or many dialects, Phedape dialect is widely spoken, as Panthare Yakthungs are much more engaged in central political position and administrative positions, they are trying to introduce Panthare dialect as a Standard Yakthungpan. Yakthungpan is one of the languages spoken and written in Nepal, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Sikkim, Bhutan, Burma. Today, linguists have reached the conclusion that Yakthungpan resembles Tibetan, before the introduction of the Sirijanga script among Limbu Kirats, the Rong script was popular in East Nepal, especially in the early Maurong state. The Sirijanga script had almost disappeared for 800 years and it was back into use by Te-ongsi Sirijunga Xin Thebe of Tellok Sinam Limbuwan present day Nepal. Limbu is spoken east of the Arun River in the districts of Nepal. Dialect cluster 1 Panthare Chaubise Yanggrokke Dialect cluster 2 Phedappe Tamorkhole Dialect cluster 3 Chhatthare Yanggrokke, Chaubise, chattare is less well understood by other dialect speakers. The Limbu dialect spoken in Sikkim, India is the same as Panthare, Limbu, Lepcha and Newari are the only Sino-Tibetan languages of the central Himalayas with their own scripts. The Limbu script or Sirijanga script was devised during the period of Buddhist expansion in Sikkim in the early 18th century when Limbuwan still constituted part of Sikkimese territory, the Limbu script was probably designed roughly at the same time as the Lepcha script. However, it is believed that the Limbu script had been designed by the King Sirijanga in the 9th century. The Sirijanga script was later redesigned and re-introduced by Tye-Angsi Singthebe, as Tye-Angsi Singthebe spent most of his time in the development of Yakthungpan, Yatkhung culture, and Limbu script, he is considered as the reincarnation of the 9th century King Hang Sirijunga. As Tye-Angsi Singthebe was astoundingly influential person to spread Limbu script, culture, Tasong monks feared that Tye-Angsi Singthebe might transform the social, cultural, and linguistic structure of Sikkim. Therefore, Tasong monks caputured Tye-Angsi, bound on a tree, both Limbu and Lepcha were ostensibly devised with the intent of furthering the spread Buddhism. However, Sirijanga was a Limbu Buddhist who had studied under Sikkimese high Lamas, Sirijanga was given the title the Dorje Lama of Yangrup. The language and scripts influential structure are mixture of Tibetan and Devanagari, unlike most other Brahmic scripts, it does not have separate independent vowel characters, instead using a vowel carrier letter with the appropriate dependent vowel attached. The Limbu language and literature has been practiced in Nepal since the last eighteenth century
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Gurung language
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Gurung is spoken by the Gurung people in two dialects with limited mutual intelligibility. Total number of all Gurung speakers in Nepal is 227,918, there is no distinction between Gurung as an ethnic group and the number of people who speak the language. Nepali, Nepals official language, is an Indo-European language, whereas Gurung is a Sino-Tibetan language, Gurung are recognized as an official nationality by the Government of Nepal. Gurung is spoken in the districts of Nepal. Languages of Nepal Languages of Bhutan Manang Language Project of Kristine A. Hildebrandt Manang Language Archive at the University of Virginia Tibetan and Himalayan Library J. Burton-Page, two studies in Gurungkura, I. tone, II. Bulletin of the Society of Oriental and African Studies 111-19, the Organizing Principles of Gurung Kinship. Occasional Papers of the Wolfenden society on Tibeto-Burman Linguistics III, Tone systems of Tibeto-Burman languages of Nepal, Pt. I, ed. by Austin Hale and Kenneth L. Pike, Studies in tone and phonological segments. Sememic and Grammatical Structures in Gurung, warren W. Glover and Jessie Glover. Kathmandu, Tribhuvan University and Summer Institute of Linguistics, warren W. Glover and John K. Landon. In Papers in Southeast Asian Languages No, Kristine A. Hildebrandt, D. N. Dhakal, Oliver Bond, Matt Vallejo and Andrea Fyffe. “A sociolinguistic survey of the languages of Manang, Nepal, Co-existence and endangerment. ”Parallel Landscapes, Ritual and Political Values of a Shamanic Soul Journey in Himalayan Space, Cultural Horizons and Practices, edited by Balthasar Bickel and Martin Gaenszle, 247-271. Zürich, Völkerkundsmuseum Nishi 西, Yoshio 義郎, in 亀井 Kamei, 孝 Takashi, 河野 Kōno, 六郎 Rokurō, 千野 Chino, 栄一 Eichi. 三省堂言語学大辞典 The Sanseido Encyclopaedia of Linguistics
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Indo-Aryan languages
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The Indo-Aryan or Indic languages are the dominant language family of the Indian subcontinent. They constitute a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family, Indo-Aryan speakers form about one half of all Indo-European speakers, and more than half of all Indo-European languages recognized by Ethnologue. While the languages are spoken in South Asia, pockets of Indo-Aryan languages are found to be spoken in Europe. The largest in terms of speakers are Hindustani, Bengali, Punjabi. Proto-Indo-Aryan, or sometimes Proto-Indic, is the reconstructed proto-language of the Indo-Aryan languages and it is intended to reconstruct the language of the Proto-Indo-Aryans. Proto-Indo-Aryan is meant to be the predecessor of Old Indo-Aryan which is attested as Vedic. Despite the great archaicity of Vedic, however, the other Indo-Aryan languages preserve a number of archaic features lost in Vedic. Vedic has been used in the ancient preserved religious hymns, the canon of Hinduism known as the Vedas. Mitanni-Aryan is of age to the language of the Rigveda. The language of the Vedas – commonly referred to as Vedic Sanskrit by modern scholars – is only marginally different from Proto-Indo-Aryan the proto-language of the Indo-Aryan languages. From the Vedic, Sanskrit developed as the language of culture, science and religion, as well as the court, theatre. Sanskrit is, by convention, referred to by scholars as Classical Sanskrit in contra-distinction to the so-called Vedic Sanskrit. Outside the learned sphere of Sanskrit, vernacular dialects continued to evolve, the oldest attested Prakrits are the Buddhist and Jain canonical languages Pali and Ardha Magadhi, respectively. By medieval times, the Prakrits had diversified into various Middle Indo-Aryan dialects, Apabhramsa is the conventional cover term for transitional dialects connecting late Middle Indo-Aryan with early Modern Indo-Aryan, spanning roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. Some of these dialects showed considerable literary production, the Sravakachar of Devasena is now considered to be the first Hindi book, the next major milestone occurred with the Muslim conquests on the Indian subcontinent in the 13th–16th centuries. Under the flourishing Turco-Mongol Mughal empire, Persian became very influential as the language of prestige of the Islamic courts due to adoptation of the language by the Mughal emperors. However, Persian was soon displaced by Hindustani and this Indo-Aryan language is a combination with Persian, Arabic, and Turkic elements in its vocabulary, with the grammar of the local dialects. The two largest languages that formed from Apabhramsa were Bengali and Hindustani, others include Sindhi, Gujarati, Odia, Marathi, the Indo-Aryan languages of Northern India and Pakistan form a dialect continuum
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Tibeto-Burman languages
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The name derives from the most widely spoken of these languages, namely Burmese and the Tibetic languages. These languages also have extensive literary traditions, dating from the 12th and 7th centuries respectively, most of the other languages are spoken by much smaller communities, and many of them have not been described in detail. Some taxonomies divide Sino-Tibetan into Sinitic and Tibeto-Burman branches, however, other scholars deny that Tibeto-Burman comprises a monophyletic group. Van Driem argues that the Sino-Tibetan family should be called Tibeto-Burman, others exclude a relationship with Chinese altogether. During the 18th century, several scholars noticed parallels between Tibetan and Burmese, both languages with extensive literary traditions, others identified related languages in the highlands of southeast Asia and southwest China. The name Tibeto-Burman was first applied to this group in 1856 by James Logan, the third volume of the Linguistic Survey of India was devoted to the Tibeto-Burman languages of British India. Julius Klaproth had noted in 1823 that Burmese, Tibetan and Chinese all shared common basic vocabulary, several authors, including Ernst Kuhn in 1883 and August Conrady in 1896, described an Indo-Chinese family consisting of two branches, Tibeto-Burman and Chinese-Siamese. The Tai languages were included on the basis of vocabulary and typological features shared with Chinese, jean Przyluski introduced the term sino-tibétain as the title of his chapter on the group in Antoine Meillet and Marcel Cohens Les Langues du Monde in 1924. The Tai languages have not been included in most Western accounts of Sino-Tibetan since the Second World War, the link to Chinese is now accepted by most linguists, with a few exceptions such as Roy Andrew Miller and Christopher Beckwith. More recent controversy has centred on the proposed primary branching of Sino-Tibetan into Chinese, most of the Tibeto-Burman languages are spoken in inaccessible mountain areas and many are unwritten, which has greatly hampered their study. It is generally easier to identify a language as Tibeto-Burman than to determine its precise relationship with other languages of the group. These subgroups are here surveyed on a geographical basis, the southernmost group are the Karen languages, spoken by three million people on both sides of the Burma–Thailand border. They differ from all other Tibeto-Burman languages in having a word order, attributed to contact with Tai–Kadai. The most widely spoken Tibeto-Burman language is Burmese, the language of Myanmar, with over 32 million speakers. All languages of the Loloish subgroup show significant Austroasiatic influence, the Pai-lang songs, transcribed in Chinese characters in the 1st century, appear to record words from a Lolo-Burmese language, but arranged in Chinese order. The Tibeto-Burman languages of southwest China have been influenced by Chinese over a long period. The grouping of the Bai language, with one million speakers in Yunnan, is particularly controversial, the Naxi language of northern Yunnan is usually included in Lolo-Burmese, though other scholars prefer to leave it unclassified. The hills of northwestern Sichuan are home to the small Qiangic and Rgyalrongic groups of languages, the most easterly Tibeto-Burman language is Tujia, spoken in the Wuling Mountains on the borders of Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou and Chongqing
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This article incorporates public domain material from the CIA World Factbook document "2003 edition".
