Nepal

Nepal

Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a sovereign country in South Asia. It is mainly in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The country is landlocked, and borders China in the north and India in the south, east and west. The constitution of Nepal affirms Nepal as a secular federal parliamentary republic divided into seven provinces.

About Nepal in brief

Summary NepalNepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a sovereign country in South Asia. It is mainly in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The country is landlocked, and borders China in the north and India in the south, east and west. Nepal has a diverse geography, including fertile plains, subalpine forested hills, and eight of the world’s ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest. The name Nepal is first recorded in texts from the Vedic period of the Indian subcontinent, the era in ancient India when Hinduism was founded. Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was born in Lumbini in southern Nepal. The constitution of Nepal affirms Nepal as a secular federal parliamentary republic divided into seven provinces. It remains the only multi-party, fully democratic nation in the world ruled by a communist party. Nepal hosts the permanent secretariat of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, of which it is a founding member. The military of Nepal is the fifth largest in South Asian; it is notable for its Gurkha history, particularly during the world wars, and has been a significant contributor to United Nations peacekeeping operations. The precise origin of the term Nepāl is uncertain. According to Hindu mythology, Nepal derives its name from an ancient Hindu sage called Ne, referred to variously as Ne Muni or Nemi.

As the cherished of Ne, the valley would be called Nepājvamvamshāshvali, or Nepa cowherd. In this account, the cowhird was a compound of Nipa and Abassa, and was named after Nepa the Cowherd, thefounder of the Nepali scion of the Abassan dynasty of the Gopala dynasty, the ancient Christian sect of Nepalese. Nepali is the official language of the country, with Nepali as the official word for “cow” and “nepal” as the name of the valley. Nepal was admitted to the United Nations in 1955, and friendship treaties were signed with India in 1950 and the People’s Republic of China in 1960. The Shah dynasty established the Kingdom of Nepal and later formed an alliance with the British Empire, under its Rana dynasty of premiers. It was never colonized but served as a buffer state between Imperial China and British India. The centrally located Kathmandu Valley is intertwined with the culture of Indo-Aryans, and the seat of the prosperous Newar confederacy known as Nepal Mandala. The cosmopolitan region developed distinct traditional art and architecture. By the 18th century, the Gorkha Kingdom achieved the unification of Nepal. Nepal is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and the Bay of Bengal Initiative, and is a contributing member to the UN’s peacekeeping operation in the Middle East and Africa. It has a population of 1.2 million, making it the 49th largest country by population.