OFFICIAL NAME: Sanghiya Loktantrik Ganatantra Nepal (Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal)
CAPITAL CITY: Kathmandu
POPULATION: 26,490,000 (2011)
AREA: 147,200 km²
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE (S): Nepali, more than 100 Indo-Aryan and Tibeto-Burmese languages
RELIGION: Hindus 87%, Buddhists 8%, Muslims 4%, others 1%
COIN: rupee
CURRENCY CODE: NPR
ENGLISH NAME: Nepal
POPULATION COMPOSITION: Nepalese 53%, bihari 18%, tharu 5%, tamang 5%, newar 3%, others 16%
GDP PER residents: 1300 $ (2012)
LIFE EXPECTANCY: men 65 years, women 68 years (2012)
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, HDI: 0.463
INDEX OF LIVING CONDITIONS, POSITION: 157
INTERNET DOMAIN NAME: .np
Nepal, Republic of the Himalayas. The country contains the world’s highest mountains, but to the south, below the Himalayas, also fertile and densely populated lowland areas.
Nepal was for a long time quite isolated from the outside world; only in the 1950’s and with Indian support, the first road connections to the south were established, and the traditional orientation towards Tibet via difficult caravan routes was outcompeted by closer political and trade relations with India. With stunning mountain landscapes and numerous cultural monuments, Nepal is a popular tourist destination. Until 2008, the country was a kingdom. A geological fault line runs through the country, which is often hit by earthquakes.
- Countryaah: Do you know how many people there are in Nepal? Check this site to see population pyramid and resident density about this country.
Nepal (National Flag)
The flag was officially adopted in 1962. It is the only non-rectangular national flag in the world. In the late 1800’s. the flag was created by sewing two pennants together. The moon at the top is the emblem of the royal family, the sun symbolizes the Rana family, who until 1951 inherited the post of prime minister. The blue color stands for peace, while the chamomile red is the country’s national color after the national flower, rhododendron.
Nepal – Constitution
Nepal got a temporary constitution in 2007, which replaced the constitution from 1990. The temporary constitution initially handed over the post of head of state to the prime minister. At an election in 2008, a Constituent Assembly was elected and the King was replaced by a President.
According to the 1990 constitution, which was drafted with Danish assistance, Nepal was a constitutional monarchy, a Hindu kingdom, a multi-party parliamentary democracy and a multi-ethnic state. For culture and traditions of Nepal, please check aparentingblog.
The legislature was in parliament, which consisted of two chambers, the lower house with 205 members elected by first-past-the-post for a five-year term, and the upper house with 60 members, 35 of whom were appointed by the lower house, 10 by the king, and 15 were elected by indirect election of an electoral college; 1/3 of the members elected every two years for a six-year period. In elections to the House of Commons, at least 5% of the parties’ candidates must be women.
Nepal – education
The education system is characterized by the country’s poverty and complex ethnic situation as well as by the difficult transport conditions. Illiteracy is estimated to cover 72% of all adults (1995), but a national literacy campaign is being pursued. Many of the teachers are still not teacher trained.
The school system includes a voluntary preschool for 3-5-year-olds that is only applied for by a few. The five-year compulsory schooling is fulfilled in the public and free primary school, but approximately 20% of children, especially girls, do not go to school at all. Continuing schooling, which is not free, is divided into a two-year and then a three-year level; the first is started by 36% of a cohort (1993). In addition, there are vocational youth educations. The country’s university, Tribhuvan University (1959), is located in Kathmandu.
Nepal – visual arts and architecture
Nepalese art has received its strongest impulses from India, but influence from Tibet and China has also played a significant role. Buddhist and Hindu elements are often mixed in the art.
Stone sculptures of both Hindu and Buddhist deities from the 500’s and 600’s exist. Around the 13th century, a period of glory began for the Newar artists, who, among other things, are famous for their bronze sculptures of tantric deities.
Several shrines date from the first centuries AD, but are in their present form much younger, thus the two famous stupas in the Kathmandu Valley : Swayambhunath from the mid-17th century and Bodhnath.
There are two types of temples in Nepal. One is modeled on the North Indian temples with temple towers, such as the Mahabuddha Temple from the end of the 16th century and the Krishna Temple (1637) in Patan.
The second type, which is the most common, constitutes a particular Nepalese style: the pyramid-shaped temple or pagoda temple, eg Changu Narayan (rebuilt 1698) at Bhaktapur and Pashupatinath (rebuilt 1702) east of Kathmandu, as well as Nyatapola (1703) at Bhaktapur.
The traditional Nepalese visual art, which enjoys a high reputation everywhere, is expressed in illuminated manuscripts, the earliest from the beginning of the 1000’s, as well as beautifully decorated wooden cover plates and magnificent thangkas, painted on fabric.
Nepal – literature
Three languages are used in Nepali literature: Sanskrit, Newari and Nepali. The oldest literary monuments in Nepal are inscriptions in Sanskrit from 400 BC. Sanskrit was both a literary language and a court language. For a time, Newari dominated. Existing Newari manuscripts date back to the 1300’s.
The classical literature of Newari includes historical chronicles and adaptations of works in Sanskrit. Under the Rana regime (1846-1951), Newari had poor conditions and was for a time even banned as a written language. Modern Newari literature, which uses traditional genres as well as novel and short story, is strongly influenced by Hindu literature.
After 1768, the country’s official language, Nepali, was the leading literary language. The first significant writer in Nepali is Bhanubhakta (1814-68), best known for his retelling of the Indian epic Ramayana.
Recent Nepalese literature has received strong impulses from both India and Europe, in particular the various European genres have been the subject of experiments.
