History & life in Kathmandu |
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The city’s rich history is nearly 2000 years old, as inferred from an inscription in the valley. Its religious affiliations are dominantly Hindu followed by Buddhism. People of other religious beliefs also live in Kathmandu giving it a cosmopolitan culture.Nepali is the common language of the city, though many speak the Nepal Bhasa as it is the center of the Newar (meaning: citizens of Nepal) people and culture.English and Hindi are understood by all of the educated population of the city. Besides a significant number of the population speaks any of the foreign languages like : French, German, Chinese, Hebrew, Korean etc. The literacy rate is 98% in the city.  The city of Kathmandu is named after a structure in Durbar Square called Kasthamandap. InSanskrit, Kastha (काष्ठ) is "wood" and Mandap (मंडप/मण्डप) is "covered shelter." This unique temple, also known as Maru Sthal, was built in 1596 by King Laxmi Narsingh Malla. The entire structure contains no iron nails or supports and is made entirely from wood. Legend has it that the timber used for this two-story pagoda was obtained from a single tree |
Kathmandu (Nepali: काठमांडौ [kɑːʈʰmɑːɳɖuː]; Nepal Bhasa: येँ देय्) is the capitaland, with close to one million inhabitants, the largest metropolitan city of Nepal. The city is the urban core of the Kathmandu Valley in the Himalayas, which contains two sister cities: Lalitpur (Patan), 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to its south and Bhaktapuror Bhadgaon, 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) to its east, and a number of smaller towns. It is also acronymed as 'KTM' and named 'tri-city'.In the last census (2001), the city of Kathmandu had 671,846 inhabitants. Population estimates for 2005 were 790,612 and for 2010 they stood at 989,273[2]. The municipal area is (50.67 square kilometres (19.56 sq mi)) and the population density is 19,500 per km².  Due to the arrival of disparate settler groups from outside through the ages, it is now a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual country. . Central Nepal was split in three kingdoms from the 15th century until the 18th century, when it was unified under the Shah monarchy. The national language of Nepal is called 'Nepali', a name given - long after unification of Nepal - to the language called Khas Kura. |
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