Portal:Nepal

Parent portals : Geography / Asia / Nepal

स्वागतम् / Welcome to the Nepal Portal
Mount Everest,Koshi,Nepal

Budhanilkantha Temple in Budhanilkantha, Nepal

Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China to the north, and India to the south, east, and west, while it is narrowly separated from Bangladesh by the Siliguri Corridor, and from Bhutan by the Indian state of Sikkim. Nepal has a diverse geography, including fertile plains, subalpine forested hills, and eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including Mount Everest, the highest point above mean sea level on Earth. Kathmandu is the nation's capital and its largest city. Nepal is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious, and multi-cultural sovereign state, with Nepali as the official language.

The name "Nepal" is first recorded in texts from the Vedic period of the Indian subcontinent, the era in ancient Nepal when Hinduism was founded, the predominant religion of the country. In the middle of the first millennium BC, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was born in Lumbini in southern Nepal. Parts of northern Nepal were intertwined with the culture of Tibet. The centrally located Kathmandu Valley is intertwined with the culture of Indo-Aryans, and was the seat of the prosperous Newar confederacy known as Nepal Mandala. The Himalayan branch of the ancient Silk Road was dominated by the valley's traders. The cosmopolitan region developed distinct traditional art and architecture. By the 18th century, the Gorkha Kingdom achieved the unification of Nepal. The Shah dynasty established the Kingdom of Nepal and later formed an alliance with the British Empire, under its Rana dynasty of premiers. The country was never colonised but served as a buffer state between Imperial China and British India. Parliamentary democracy was introduced in 1951 but was twice suspended by Nepalese monarchs, in 1960 and 2005. The Nepalese Civil War in the 1990s and early 2000s resulted in the establishment of a secular republic in 2008, ending the world's last Hindu monarchy. The Constitution of Nepal, adopted in 2015, affirms the country as a federal parliamentary republic divided into seven provinces. In September 2025, protests against social media ban, economic inequality and corruption caused riots, resulting in casualties and the resignation of the prime minister.

Nepal's foreign policy focuses on neutrality, sovereignty, and multilateral cooperation. Nepal was admitted to the United Nations in 1955, and friendship treaties were signed with India in 1950 and China in 1960. Nepal hosts the permanent secretariat of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), of which it is a founding member. Nepal is also a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and the Bay of Bengal Initiative. Nepal's foreign relations also emphasise development assistance, trade partnerships, and promoting peace and stability in South Asia. (Full article...)

More Did you know (auto generated)

... that the Nepali term "sukumbasi" refers to squatters, who typically avoid using the word because of its negative connotations?
... that white moths are suspected to cause seasonal hyperacute panuveitis in Nepal?
... that Anjali Lama, Nepal's first transgender model, worked with Calvin Klein in 2019?

Selected article -

Damaged homes in Kathmandu after the April mainshock.

The April 2015 Nepal earthquake (also known as the Gorkha earthquake) killed 8,962 people and injured 21,952 across the countries of Nepal, India, China and Bangladesh. It occurred at 11:56 Nepal Standard Time on Saturday 25 April 2015, with a magnitude of M_w 7.8–7.9 or M_s 8.1 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of X (Extreme). Its epicenter was east of Gorkha District at Barpak, Gorkha, roughly 85 km (53 mi) northwest of central Kathmandu, and its hypocenter was at a depth of approximately 8.2 km (5.1 mi). It was the worst natural disaster to strike Nepal since the 1934 Nepal–India earthquake. The ground motion recorded in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, was of low frequency, which, along with its occurrence at an hour when many people in rural areas were working outdoors, decreased the loss of human lives.

The earthquake triggered an avalanche on Mount Everest, killing 22 people, the deadliest incident on the mountain on record. The earthquake triggered another huge avalanche in the Langtang valley, where 250 people were reported missing. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Good article -

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

Pashupatinātha Temple, associated with Shiva as 'the lord of all beings'

Pashupatinath Temple (Nepali: श्री पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर) is a revered Hindu temple dedicated to Pashupati, a manifestation of Shiva. Located on the banks of the sacred Bagmati River in Kathmandu, Nepal, the temple is one of the oldest and most significant religious complexes in South Asia. Recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979, it is one of seven monument groups in UNESCO's designation of Kathmandu Valley and is described as an "extensive Hindu temple precinct" comprising a vast network of temples, ashrams, inscriptions, and images raised over the centuries along the banks of the sacred Bagmati River. The temple, considered one of the holiest pilgrimage sites for Hindus, is built on an area of 246 hectares (2,460,000 m²) and includes 518 mini-temples and the principal pagoda-style temple.

Pashupatinath temple is venerated as one of the holiest abodes of Shiva in Skanda Purana and is honored as one of the Paadal Petra Sthalams (Tamil Tevara Sthalam) of Tevaram. The linga of Pashupatinath, as per Shiva Purana, is believed to be the bestower of all wishes. Mythologically, the temple is seen as the head of Shiva with his body stretching to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in India, and is also spiritually connected to the temples of Kedarnath, Rudranath, Kalpeshwar, Madhyamaheshwar and Tungnath as per the legend of Mahabharata. The main temple priests are, as a long-standing tradition, Vedic Dravida Brahmins from Karnataka trained at the Sringeri Sharada Peetham in Southern India. (Full article...)

List of Good articles

Selected picture -

Kala Patthar with Pumori in the background

Selected biography -

Gyanendra in 2012

Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev (Nepali: ज्ञानेन्द्र वीर विक्रम शाह देव; born 7 July 1947) was the last king of Nepal. He reigned from 1950 to 1951 and again from 2001 to 2008, when the Kingdom of Nepal was abolished and a republic declared.

At a young age of three, Gyanendra was briefly declared king by the Rana regime after his grandfather Tribhuvan and his family fled to India. During his brother Birendra's reign, he served as chairman of the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies

Selected fare or cuisine -

Nepali cuisine comprises a variety of cuisines based upon ethnicity, alluvial soil and climate relating to cultural diversity and geography of Nepal and neighboring regions of Sikkim and Gorkhaland. Dal-bhat-tarkari (Nepali: दाल भात तरकारी) is eaten throughout Nepal. Dal is a soup made of lentils and spices, bhat — usually rice but sometimes another grain — and a vegetable curry, tarkari. Condiments are usually small amounts of spicy pickle (achaar, अचार) which can be fresh or fermented, mainly of dried mustard greens (called gundruk ko achar) and radish (mula ko achar) and of which there are many varieties. Other accompaniments may be sliced lemon (nibuwa) or lime (kagati) with fresh green chilli (hariyo khursani) and a fried papad and also Islamic food items such as rice pudding, sewai, and biryani. Dhindo (ढिंडो) is the national dish of Nepal, primarily made from flour of millet and is served with achar of gundruk 'dried spinach'. A typical example of Nepali cuisine is the Chaurasi Byanjan (Nepali: चौरासी व्यञ्जन) set where bhat (rice) is served in a giant leaf platter (patravali) along with 84 different Nepali dishes each served on small plates. It is mostly served during weddings and Pasni (rice feeding ceremony).

Momo is a Himalayan dumpling, filled with minced meat in a flour dough, given different shapes and then cooked by steaming. It is one of the most popular foods in Nepal and the regions of Sikkim, Darjeeling and Kalimpong in India where Nepali-speaking Indians have a presence. Momo were originally filled with buffalo meat but are now commonly filled with goat or chicken, as well as vegetarian preparations. Special foods such as sel roti, finni roti and patre are eaten during festivals such as Tihar. Sel roti is a traditional Nepali homemade ring-shaped rice bread which is sweet to taste. Other foods have hybrid Tibetan and Indian influence. (Full article...)

List of fare/cuisine articles

Did you know -

Himalayan rivers are older than the Himalayan peaks?
In Nepal there are 8 of the world’s 14 highest mountains above 8000 meters, including Mount Everest?
Nepal has 8% of the total species of birds found in the world?

Wiki Loves Nepal

The following pages at Wikimedia Commons contain a plethora of images taken in Nepal.

Suspension bridge over he Kali Gandaki river near Tatopani.: Wiki Loves Earth 2017 3rd Price Winner

This image won the 2nd prize in the national contest of Nepal in Wiki Loves Earth 2017: Sunrise near Samagauon village – Manaslu trek area.

Wiki Loves Earth is an international photographic competition to promote natural heritage sites around the World through Wikimedia projects (mainly Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons).

Wiki Loves Earth 2019 in Nepal

2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • More information • Main category page

Wiki Loves Monuments is an international photographic competition to promote cultural monuments around the World through Wikimedia projects (mainly Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons.

Wiki Loves Monuments 2018 in Nepal

2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • More information • Main category page

Provinces

Below is a clickable map of Nepal's Provinces

NEPAL

General images -
The following are images from various Nepal-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Women in cultural costume at Ubhauli Kirati festival 2017 at Gough Whitlam Park, Earlwood (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 2Procession of Nepali Hindu Wedding (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 3The old king's palace on a hill in Gorkha (from History of Nepal)
Image 4Mohar of king Prithvi Narayan Shah dated Saka Era 1685 (CE 1763) (from History of Nepal)
Image 5Bhakti Thapa leading Gorkha men at Anglo-Nepalese War (from History of Nepal)
Image 6Nepali Pahadi Hindu marriage at Narayangadh, Chitawan (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 7Procession of Nepali Hindu Wedding; Groom being carried by a bride brother or relatives (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 8Senior offering Dashain Tika on great Nepali Hindu festival at a traditional home. (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 9Nepali Pahadi groom (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 10Senior offering Dashain Tika to junior (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 11Statue of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, gilded bronze, Nepal, 16th century CE (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 12Procession of Nepali Pahadi Hindu Wedding (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 13Nepali traditional Pahadi dress used for dance (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 14A family in a Maoist-controlled valley, 2005 (from History of Nepal)
Image 15Costumed Hindu girls of Kathmandu during festival time in Nepal (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 16"Nēpāla" in the late Brahmi script, in the Allahabad Pillar inscription of Samudragupta (350-375 CE). (from History of Nepal)
Image 17Ascension of King Gyanendra, 2001 (from History of Nepal)
Image 18A 1905 painting of Nepalese woman (from Culture of Nepal)
Image 19A Buddhist monastery in southern Nepal. (from Culture of Nepal)

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