Nepal

Nepal, the landlocked multiethnic, multilingual, multi-religious country, is situated north of India in the Himalayas, in the region where, about 40 to 50 million years ago, the Indian subcontinent has crashed into Asia. Because of that accident, Nepal has some of the world's highest mountains including Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest, 8848m, which it shares with Tibet (by now a province of China). The highest mountain on Earth is towering above populated valleys and forested plains.
Somewhere here in the Kapilavastu district, there is a place called Lumbini where in about 500 B.C.E. Queen Mayadevi is said to have given birth to Siddhartha Gautama, better known as Buddha.

Nepal can be divided broadly into three ecological zones: the lowland, the midland and the highland.
The altitude of the Himalayan Region (the highland) ranges between 4877 m - 8848 m, It includes 8 of the highest 14 summits in the world, which exceed altitude of 8000 meters including Mount Everest.

The mountain region accounts for about 64 percent of total land area, which is formed by the Mahabharat range that soars up to 4877 m and the lower Churia range.
The lowland Terai occupies about 17 percent of the total land area of the country.

border countries: China (Tibet Autonomous Region (Xizang), India

other countries close to Nepal: Bhutan, Bangladesh

Official Name:
Sanghiya Loktāntrik Ganatantra Nepāl
Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
short form: Nepal
formerly: Kingdom of Nepal (Nepal Adhirajya)

ISO Country Code: np

Time:
Local Time = UTC + 5:45h

Country Calling Code: +977

Capital City: Kathmandu (pop 1.5 million)

Other Cities:
Biratnagar, Patan, Pokhara, Birganj, Dharan, Nepalganj.

Government:
Type: Republic

Geography:
Location: Southern Asia, between China and India
Area: 147 181 sq. km
Terrain: Tarai or flat river plain of the Ganges in south, central hill region, rugged Himalayas in north.

Climate: The climate in Nepal varies with elevation, tropical in the lower southern part Tarai, mid-hills alpine and the high mountains polar; elevation ranges from 90 to 8848 meters.

People:
Nationality: noun: Nepalese (singular and plural), adjective: Nepalese or Nepali.
Population: 25 million.
Refugee Population: Bhutanese (94 000), Tibetans (20 000 approx.)
Ethnic Groups: sixty ethnic groups, major groups are Sherpas, Kirats or Limbus, Rais, Magars, Newars, Tamangs, Gurungs, the Bahuns and Chhetries and the Tharus the inhabitants of the Tarai.
Religions: Hinduism (predominant 86%), Buddhism 8%, Tibetan Lamaism (Bon)
Languages: Nepali (official and lingua franca of the country), sixty ethnic groups, who speak seventy different dialects and eleven major languages like Tibeto-Burman, Lhotsamkha, Nepalbhasa, Tamang languages.
Literacy: 40%

Natural resources: Quartz, water, timber, hydropower, scenic beauty, small deposits of lignite, copper, cobalt, iron ore.

Agriculture products: Rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops; milk, water buffalo meat.

Industries: Tourism, carpet, textile; small rice, jute, sugar, and oilseed mills; cigarette; cement and brick production.

Currency: Nepalese Rupee (NPR)

(Source: Nepal Embassy and others)

Nepal in Figures
Nepal key statistical data.