Nepal's weather is generally predictable and pleasant. There are four climatic seasons: March to May (spring), June to August (summer), September to November (autumn) and December to February (winter). The monsoon is approximately from the end of June to the middle of September. About 80% of the rain falls during that period, so the remainder of the year is dry. Spring and autumn are the most pleasant seasons; winter temperatures drop to freezing with a high level of snowfall in the mountains. Summer and late spring temperatures range from 28ºC (83ºF) in the hill regions to more than 40ºC (104ºF) in the Terai. In winter, average maximum and minimum temperatures in the Terai range from a brisk 7ºC (45ºF) to a mild 23ºC (74ºF). The central valleys experience a minimum temperature often falling bellow freezing point and a chilly 12ºC (54ºF) maximum. Much colder temperatures prevail at higher elevations. The Kathmandu Valley, at an altitude of 1,310m (4,297ft), has a mild climate, ranging from 19-27ºC (67-81ºF) in summer, and 2-20ºC (36-68ºF) in winter.
The rupee (Nepali: रूपैयाँ) is the official currency of Nepal. It is subdivided into 100 paisa. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Nepal Rastra Bank. The most commonly used symbol for the Rupee is Rs or ₨. The ISO 4217 code for Nepalese rupee is NPR.
Sandwiched between two Asian giants--China and India--Nepal traditionally has been characterized as "a yam caught between two rocks." Noted for its majestic Himalayas, which in Sanskrit means the abode of snow, Nepal is very mountainous and hilly. Its shape is roughly rectangular, about 650 kilometers long and about 200 kilometers wide, and comprises a total of 147,181 square kilometers of land. It is slightly larger than Bangladesh or the state of Arkansas. Nepal is a landlocked country, surrounded by India on three sides and by China's Xizang Autonomous Region (Tibet) to the north. It is separated from Bangladesh by an approximately fifteenkilometer -wide strip of India's state of West Bengal, and from Bhutan by the eighty-eight-kilometer-wide Sikkim, also an Indian state. Such a confined geographical position is hardly enviable. Nepal is almost totally dependent on India for transit facilities and access to the sea--that is, the Bay of Bengal--even for most of the goods coming from China.
For a small country, Nepal has great physical diversity, ranging from the Tarai Plain--the northern rim of the Gangetic Plain situated at about 300 meters above sea level in the south--to the almost 8,800-meter-high Mount Everest, locally known as Sagarmatha (its Nepali name), in the north. From the lowland Tarai belt, landforms rise in successive hill and mountain ranges, including the stupendous rampart of the towering Himalayas, ultimately reaching the Tibetan Plateau beyond the Inner Himalayas. This rise in elevation is punctuated by valleys situated between mountain ranges. Within this maze of mountains, hills, ridges, and low valleys, elevational (altitudinal) changes rersulted in ecological variations.
Nepal commonly is divided into three broad physiographic areas: the Mountain Region, the Hill Region, and the Tarai Region. All three parallel each other, from east to west, as continuous ecological belts, occasionally bisected by the country's river systems. These ecological regions were divided by the government into development sectors within the framework of regional development planning.
The rhythm of life in Nepal, as in most other parts of monsoonal Asia, is intricately yet intrinsically intertwined with its physical environment. As scholar Barry Bishop learned from his field research in the Karnali region in the northwest, the livelihood patterns of Nepal are inseparable from the environment.
Nepal's recorded history began with the Kiratis, who arrived in the 7th century BC from the east. Little is known about them, other than their deftness as sheep farmers and fondness for carrying long knives. It was during this period that Buddhism first came to the country; it is claimed that Buddha and his disciple Ananda visited the Kathmandu Valley and stayed for a time in Patan. By 200 AD, Buddhism had waned and was replaced by Hinduism, brought by the Licchavis, who invaded from northern India and overthrew the last Kirati king. The Hindus also introduced the caste system (which still continues today) and ushered in a classical age of Nepalese art and architecture.
By 879, the Licchavi era had petered out and was succeeded by the Thakuri dynasty. A grim period of instability and invasion often referred to as the 'Dark Ages' followed, but Kathmandu Valley's strategic location ensured the kingdom's survival and growth. Several centuries later the Thakuri king, Arideva, founded the Malla Dynasty, kick-starting another renaissance of Nepali culture. Despite earthquakes, the odd invasion and feuding between the independent city-states of Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur, the dynasty flourished, reaching its zenith in the 15th century under Yaksha Malla.
The rulers of Gorkha, the most easterly region, had always coveted the Mallas' wealth. Under the inspired leadership of Prithvi Narayan Shah, the Gorkha launched a campaign to conquer the valley. In 1768, after 27 years of fighting, they triumphed and moved their capital to Kathmandu. From this new base the kingdom's power expanded, borne by a seemingly unstoppable army, until progress was halted in 1792 by a brief and chastening war with Tibet. Further hostilities followed in 1814, this time with the British over a territorial dispute. The Nepalese were eventually put to heel and signed the 1816 Sugauli Treaty, which surrendered Sikkim and most of Terai (some of the land was eventually restored in return for Nepalese help in quelling the Indian Mutiny of 1857), established Nepal's present eastern and western boundaries, and installed a British 'resident' in the country.
The Shah dynasty continued in power during the first half of the 19th century until the ghastly Kot Massacre of 1846. Taking advantage of the intrigue and assassinations that had plagued the ruling family, Jung Bahadur seized control by butchering several hundred of the most important men while they assembled in the Kot courtyard. He took the more prestigious title Rana, proclaimed himself prime minister for life and later made the office hereditary. For the next century the Ranas and their offspring luxuriated in huge Kathmandu palaces, while the remainder of the population eked out a living in medieval conditions.
The Rana's antiquated regime came to an end soon after WWII. In 1948 the British withdrew from India and with them went the Rana’s chief support. Around the same time a host of insurrectional movements bent on reshaping the country's polity emerged. Sporadic fighting spilled onto the streets and the Ranas, at the behest of India, reluctantly agreed to negotiations. King Tribhuvan was anointed ruler in 1951 and struck up a government comprised of Ranas and members of the newly formed Nepali Congress Party. But the compromise was short-lived. After toying with democratic elections - and feeling none too pleased by the result, King Mahendra (Tribhuvan's son and successor) decided that a party less panchayat system would be more appropriate for Nepal. The king selected the prime minister, cabinet and appointed a large proportion of the national assembly, which duly rubber-stamped his policies. Power, of course, remained with only one party - the king's.
Cronyism, corruption and the creaming-off of lucrative foreign aid into royal coffers continued until 1989. The Nepalese, fed up with years of hardship and suffering under a crippling trade embargo imposed by the Indians, rose up in popular protest called the Jana Andolan or 'People's Movement'. In the ensuing months, detention, torture and violent clashes left hundreds of people dead. It all proved too much for King Birendra, leader since 1972. He dissolved his cabinet, legalised political parties and invited the opposition to form an interim government. The panchayat system was finally laid to rest. The changeover to democracy proceeded in an orderly, and leisurely fashion, and in May 1991 the Nepali Congress Party and the Communist Party of Nepal shared most of the votes. Since then Nepal has discovered that establishing a workable democratic system is an enormously difficult task. The situation has been further exacerbated by a wafer-thin economy, massive unemployment, illiteracy and an ethnically and religiously fragmented population that continues to grow at an alarming rate.
The fractured political landscape in Nepal was torn apart in June 2001 with the massacre of most of the royal family, including King Birendra, by Crown Prince Dipendra. Civil strife erupted again in Kathmandu with a curfew imposed to quell street violence. Prince Gyanendra, the brother of King Birendra, ascended to the throne. He has had to face many challenges, in particular the Maoist rebellion against the government, which has claimed over 5000 lives since it began in 1996. Numerous peace talks and ceasefires failed to hold.
Nepal's bumpy trek into democracy continued when in 2002 (and again in 2003) Gyanendra dissolved the government and appointed his own cabinet. The country has seen more than a dozen governments since 1991 and in 2003 Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand resigned, continuing the political uncertainty facing Nepal.
In May 2006 Nepal’s political landscape changed at lightening pace with King Gyanendra surrendering absolute power, reinstating parliament, a new constitution is in the works, a ceasefire has been reached with the Maoists and a first-round of peace talks held. For the first time in a long time Nepal is calm and seems to be on the road to real stability and recovery.
Jan/Feb* Basanta Panchami.
30 Jan Martyrs' Day.
19 Feb Rashtriya Prajatantra Divas (National Democracy Day).
4 Apr Ghode Jatra (Festival of Horses).
Mar* Holi.
Mar* Ram Nawami (Birthday of Lord Ram).
6 Mar Shivaratri (in honour of Lord Shiva).
8 Mar Nepalese Women's Day.
Mar/Apr* Chaite Dashain.
14 Apr Navabarsha (New Year's Day).
2 May Buddha Jayanti (Birthday of Lord Buddha).
Aug* Rakshya Bandhan (Janai Purnima).
20 Aug Children's Day.
Aug/Sep* Krishna Janmashtami.
Sep* Fulpati Saptami.
Sep* Maha Asthami.
Sep* Maha Nawami.
Sep* Vijaya Dashami.
Oct* Laxhmi Puja.
Oct* Ghatasthapana.
Oct* Gobardhan Puja.
9 Nov Constitution Day.
* Dates to be confirmed.
Note
Some of the above are Hindu festivals, which are declared according to local astronomical observations. It is not possible to predict the exact dates of festivals occuring and the dates published are approximations. Travellers should check locally nearer the time for precise dates.
At the time of the 1981 census, the total population of Nepal was 15,022,839, the average family was made up of 5.8 persons, and life expectancy at birth was close to fifty years. As of July 1990, the population was estimated at 19,145,800 persons. The annual population growth rate increased from less than 2 percent during the 1950s to more than 2.6 percent in 1990, suggesting that despite a trend toward increasing acceptance of family planning, the program did not have much influence on reducing the population growth rate. The Central Bureau of Statistics forecast that the total population would increase to 23.6 million by 2001.
The 1981 census reveals a significant variation in regional growth rates. Although the Tarai Region's annual growth rate of 4.2 percent was much higher than the national average, the Hill and Mountain regions, respectively, posted growth rates of 1.7 and 1.4 percent. In terms of regional distribution, 43.6 percent (6,556,828 persons) of the country's population resided in the Tarai, whereas the shares of the Hill and Mountain regions totaled 7,163,115 (47.7 percent) and 1,302,896 (8.7 percent), respectively.
About 70 percent of the total population was of working age, or between the ages of fifteen and fifty-nine years. More than 65 percent of this segment of the population was considered economically active in 1981. In terms of employment structure, more than 91 percent of the economically active population was engaged in agriculture and allied activities, and the rest in the secondary (industrial) and tertiary (service) sectors, including government employment. In 1981 males and females who were widowed or separated constituted only a tiny fragment of the population--0.4 percent for each sex.
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