Ethnic groups in Nepal

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Nepal ethnic groups

A Khas/Chhetri boy. Khas Chhetri are the largest

Magar girls in ethnic dress. Magars are the most populous Janajati group in Nepal.

Nepali Gurkhas, the warriors of Nepal

Ethnic groups in Nepal are a product of both the colonial and state-building eras of Nepal. The groups are delineated using language, ethnic identity or the caste system in Nepal. They are categorized by common culture and endogamy. Endogamy carves out ethnic groups in Nepal.^{[citation needed]}

Linguistic groups[]

Tibetan Tamang people from central Nepal playing one of their traditional drums, Damphu

Nepal's diverse linguistic heritage evolved from three major language groups: Indo-Aryan, Tibeto-Burman languages, and various indigenous language isolates. According to the 2001 national census, 92 different living languages are spoken in Nepal (a 93rd category was "unspecified"). Based upon the 2011 census, the three major languages spoken in Nepal are Nepali, Maithili and Bhojpuri.^[2]

Since Nepal's unification, There is sense of Nepal unity and Since democracy was restored in 1990, however, the government has worked to improve the marginalization of these languages. Tribhuvan University began surveying and recording threatened languages in 2010 and the government intends to use this information to include more languages on the next Nepalese census.^[3]

Social status[]

Sunuwar, a division of Rai people; one of the largest ethnic groups in Eastern Nepal

Hill Hindus of upper caste status i.e., Khas people (Brahmin/Bahun and Chhetri castes) and the upper-caste segments of Newars dominated the civil service, the judiciary and upper ranks of the army throughout the Shah regime (1768–2008). Nepali was the national language and Sanskrit became a required school subject. Children who spoke Nepali natively and who were exposed to Sanskrit had much better chances of passing the national examinations at the end of high school, which meant they had better employment prospects and could continue into higher education. ^{[4][5][6][7][8]}

Hindu high-castes castes of Khas, Newar and Madhesi ethnicities form the historical topmost state elites' circle with the significant majority of leadership in executive, legislative, judicial, constitutional, local administrative bodies, bureaucracy, political parties and social organizations. Hindu varna system highlights these castes as high castes and makes them favorable in higher social status due to favorable social norms, values, and laws.^[9]

List of ethnic caste-groups in Nepal by population[]

The population wise ranking of 125 Nepalese castes groups as per 2011 Nepal census.^{[10][11][note 1][12]}

References[]

Footnotes[]

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