50 Fun Facts About Nepal

What is the capital and largest city of Nepal?

Its valley was the seat of the Newar confederacy known as Nepal Mandala.

Nepal is landlocked between India and which other country?

It touches the Tibet Autonomous Region to the north; Bhutan lies just beyond Sikkim.

How many of the world's ten highest mountains lie wholly or partly in Nepal?

They include Everest, the highest point above sea level on Earth.

What is the Nepali name for Mount Everest?

Across the border it is called Qomolangma, often written Chomolungma.

Everest's height, as measured in a 2020 Nepal-China survey, is what?

An earlier 19th-century survey had put Peak XV at 8,840 m.

Who made the first documented ascent of Everest in 1953?

They climbed by the Southeast Ridge; Mallory and Irvine vanished on the mountain in 1924.

Everest was named in the 19th century after which man?

Andrew Waugh chose to honour his predecessor Sir George Everest because there were too many local names.

Roughly how many people have died on Everest?

Around 200 bodies are thought to remain on the mountain.

Tenzing Norgay wrote that he was born and raised in which Sherpa village in Khumbu?

Tengboche is home to the first celibate monastery in Solu-Khumbu.

The Sherpa people are an ethnic group of what origin?

Their language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman family.

Nepal's three physiographic belts are known by what names?

They run from the high mountains through the hills to the southern plains.

What is the lowland plain along Nepal's southern border with India called?

It forms the northern rim of the Indo-Gangetic Plain and drops to just 60 metres above sea level.

Which Nepali site is revered as the birthplace of the Buddha?

Emperor Ashoka raised a pillar there whose inscription starts Nepal's recorded history.

The Buddha's birthplace became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in which year?

The Ashoka pillar there was rediscovered in 1896.

Which king of Gorkha conquered the valley kingdoms in 1769 and unified Nepal?

The decisive fighting included the Battle of Kirtipur.

Which fact distinguishes Nepal's history from most of South Asia?

It served as a buffer state between imperial China and British India.

The Anglo-Nepali War of 1815-16 ended with which treaty?

Nepal ceded recently captured lands, and the Gurkhas' fighting reputation was born.

Who founded the Rana dynasty of hereditary prime ministers in 1846?

He rose after the Kot massacre wiped out hundreds of rival princes and chieftains.

Britain gifted parts of the western Terai to Nepal in 1860 in thanks for help during what?

The land became known as Naya Muluk, 'new country'.

Nepal was admitted to the United Nations in which year?

It has since sent more than 119,000 peacekeepers to 42 missions.

Which movement launched a violent insurgency in 1996 to replace the monarchy with a people's republic?

It joined mainstream politics after the peaceful revolution of 2006.

Who was named by the official inquiry as the perpetrator of the 2001 royal palace massacre?

He shot himself and died three days later, having been declared king while in a coma.

How many members of the royal family died in the 2001 massacre?

King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya were among them.

Who became king after the 2001 massacre?

He later seized full executive power in 2005 and lost the throne in 2008.

Nepal was declared a federal republic on 28 May of which year, ending the world's last Hindu monarchy?

The current constitution followed in 2015.

The 2015 constitution divides Nepal into how many provinces?

It was promulgated on 20 September 2015 after two constituent assembly elections.

Nepal's flag is unique among national flags for what reason?

It is also the only national flag taller than it is wide.

Until 1962, what did the sun and moon on Nepal's flag have?

They were removed to modernise the flag when the new constitution came in.

The red of Nepal's flag represents bravery and which national flower?

The blue border stands for peace.

Nepal's official language grew out of the tongue of which people?

It became the lingua franca of Nepal and adjoining parts of India; the country has 123 mother tongues.

According to the 2011 census, roughly what share of Nepalis are Hindu?

By share of population, Nepal has the largest Hindu population in the world.

Nepal has the second-largest number of Hindus in the world after which country?

By percentage of population it ranks first.

Which major Hindu temple in the capital stands on the banks of the Bagmati River?

It is dedicated to Shiva and is one of the valley's World Heritage sites.

What is the Kumari?

She is held to embody the goddess Taleju until she menstruates.

What is Nepal's staple meal of dal bhat?

Nepali curries are generally tomato-based and lighter than cream-based Indian ones.

What are Nepali momos?

They are more heavily spiced than their northern cousins.

Which is described as a major Hindu religious festival in Nepal?

Tihar, Teej, Chhath and Holi are among the other big celebrations.

Gurkha soldiers are closely associated with which weapon?

Their reputation as fierce fighters dates from the Anglo-Nepali War.

Besides Nepal, Gurkha units serve in the armies of India, Britain and which city-state's police?

About 42,000 serve in the Indian Army and 4,010 in the British Army.

Which Indian field marshal said a man who claims not to fear death 'is either lying or he is a Gurkha'?

Gurkhas fought on the British side in the 1857 rebellion.

Nepal's rupee has long been pegged to the Indian rupee at what rate?

Remittances from workers abroad made up 28 percent of GDP in 2018.

How many UN peacekeeping missions has Nepal contributed personnel to since 1958?

More than 119,000 Nepali personnel have served in them.

The Hindu practice of sati was banned in Nepal in which year?

Slavery was officially abolished five years later, in 1924.

Which Chinese dynasty went to war with Nepal in the late 18th century over mountain passes in Tibet?

The Nepali were compelled to retreat to their own borders in the north.

Which Nepali national park in the Terai is a UNESCO World Heritage Site famous for tigers and rhinos?

Anti-poaching patrols have cut losses of tigers, elephants and rhinos to effectively zero.

Which SAARC institution does Nepal host?

Nepal was a founding member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.

Which sport was declared the national sport of Nepal in 2017?

Indigenous games such as dandi biyo and kabaddi had long been regarded as the unofficial national sports.

How many Olympic medals has Nepal won?

Nepal has won medals at the South Asian Games and Asian Games in athletics and martial arts, but never at the Olympics.

Which ancient board game, playable with pebbles on a chalk-drawn board, is thought to have originated in Nepal?

Its name means 'tiger moves', and the game remains popular alongside imports such as ludo, snakes and ladders and carrom.

In which year did Nepal's international visitor numbers first pass one million?

The figure excludes Indian tourists arriving by land; tourism employs more than a million Nepalis and contributes about 7.9% of GDP.