About Nepal

Nepal a small Himalayan landlocked country lying between India and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China occupies 0.1% of the globe. The elevation ranges above sea level from 60 meters at Kanchan Kanan to Mount Everest (8848m) highest point of the earth. In terms of bio-diversity Nepal has wide-range ecosystem, dense alpine forests swarmed with diverse wildlife, frozen valleys, deep gorges, wind-swept deserts fast rivers, lakes and glacial lakes that originate in the Himalayas with greatest peaks of the world
The multiplicity in Nepal's topography provides home to wildlife like tigers, rhinos, monkeys, bears, yaks, leopards and different species of insects and birds. Nepal is a home to almost 10 percent of the world's bird species. The country has managed to preserve some endangered species of Asia in its extensive parks and protected natural habitats.

Himalayan Region: The altitude of this region ranges between 4877 m. - 8848 m. It includes 8 of the highest 14 summits in the world which exceed altitude of 8000 meters.

Mountain Region: This region comprise of about 64 percent of total land area. It is created by the Mahabharat range that soars up to 4877 meter and the lower Churia range.

Terai Region: The low-land Terai occupies about 17 percent of the total land area of the country.

People and customs
Nepal has a population of 25 million recorded on July 2002. 86% percent of Nepalis follow Hinduism, 8%percent follow Buddhism and 3% percent follow Islam. The population comprises various groups of different races which are further divided into different castes. The distinction in caste and ethnicity is understood more easily with a view of customary layout of the population.
Some of the main groups are: Gurungs and Magars who live mainly in the western region. Rais, Limbus and Sunwars who live in the eastern mid hills. Sherpas, Manangpas and Lopas who live near the mountains of Everest, Annapurna and Mustang respectively; Newars who live in and around the capital valley of Kathmandu; Tharus, Yadavas, Satar, Rajvanshis and Dhimals who live in the Terai region; and Brahmins, Chhetris and Thakuris generally spread over all parts of the country.

The Northern Himalayan People
In the northern region of the Himalayas are the Tibetan-speaking groups namely Sherpas, Dolpalis, Lopas, Baragaonlis, Manangis. The Sherpas are mainly found in the east of Solu and Khumbu region; the Baragaonlis and Lopas live in the semi-deserted areas of Upper and Lower Mustang in the Tibetan rain-shadow area; the Managis live in Manang district area; while the Dolpalis live in Dolpa district of West Nepal, one of the highest settlements on earth at 4,000 meters.

The Middle Hills and Valley People
Several ethnic groups live together in harmony in the middle hills and valleys. Among them are the Magars, Gurungs, Tamangs, Sunuwars, Newars, Thakalis, Chepangs and majority of Brahmans and Chhetris. The Brahmans and Chhetris have long dominance in all pervading social, religious and political realms. There are also some occupational castes namely: Damai (tailor), Sarki (cobbler), Kami (blacksmith) and Sunar (goldsmiths). Though, there exist numerous dialects, the language of unification is the national language, Nepali.

Ethnic Diversity in the Kathmandu Valley
Kathmandu Valley represents a cultural cauldron of the country, where, people from varied backgrounds have come together to present a melting pot. The natives of the Kathmandu Valley are the Newars. Newari culture is an integration of both Hinduism and Buddhism. The Newars of Kathmandu Valley were traders or farmers by occupation in the old days.

The Terai People
The main ethnic groups in Terai are Tharus, Darai, Kumhal, Majhi and other groups that have roots in India. They speak north Indian dialects like Maithili, Bhojpuri. Owing to the fertile plains of Terai, most inhabitants live on agriculture. There are, however, some occupational castes like Majhi (fisherman), Kumhal (potter) and Danuwar (cart driver)

Language
Nepali is the prominent official language of Nepal, with over 30 other ethnic languages spoken as mother-tongues in different parts of the country. Here prevails also many other regional dialects. Nepali is of the Indo-Aryan family of languages brought from central Asia by the Aryans about 1500 BC. The original Old Indo-Aryan language gave rise to Sanskrit from which Nepali was derived.
In common with Hindi, Nepali uses the Devanagri script (the script of the city of the gods, sometimes known as Nagari) which was itself derived from the Brahmi script of ancient India.
In Kathmandu at the Bishwa Bhasha Campus (at Bhrikutimandap) of Tribhuvan University provides Nepali (spoken and Devanagari script), Newari, Sanskrit and Tibetan languages for foreign students. At Tribhuvan University in Kirtipur there is the Department of Nepali Studies, where BA and MA studies in Nepali language can be pursued. Sanskrit is also taught in the medical colleges, as many of the texts for natural medicines (ayurvedic and homoeopathic) are written in Sanskrit.
With all above traditional languages English is practiced as Internationally Official Language and Nepalese are too prone to learn and speak with other languages such as French, German, Spanish, Japanese and Korean etc for the sake of wide tourism.