Ethnic origin of Nepalese & Sikkimese

Introduction

The Sino-Tibetan tribes are the main East Asian (aka Mongoloid) people in Nepal and Sikkim.

The Sino-Tibetan tribes can be broadly categorised into four groups based on linguistic similarities and period of migration; these four groups are Kirat, Magar-Chepang, Tharu-Newar and Bodic.

The Bodic people are not the natives of Nepal and their origin was told on 'Ethnic origin of Tibetan' article in this blog.

In this article, we will concentrate on the origins of the earliest native groups of Nepal.

Homeland

These three groups are the earliest natives in Nepal and came much earlier than the Bodic group.

Kirat group - Limbu, Rai, Sunwar, Yakkha, Hayu, Khaling, Thulung, Dhimal
Magar-Chepang group - Magar, Kham, Chepang
Tharu-Newar group - Tharu, Newar

Their homeland is on Himalayan mountains in both Nepal and Sikkim. Some linguists group all these groups together as Maha-Kirat (Greater Kirat) people.

The Kirat group live mostly in eastern Nepal whereas the Magar-Chepang group live in central Nepal. The Tharu-Newar group live mostly in southern Nepal on the mid-hills and near the foot of the Himalayan mountains.

Early Kirat kingdom

One of the earliest kingdoms was founded by the native Kirat people. They ruled Nepal from about 900 B.C. to 300 A.D. and Yalambar was its first king.

Statue of King Yalambar in Nepal

This kingdom was called Kiratdesh and extended from eastern Nepal to Sikkim. The various Kirat tribes are the descendants of Kiratdesh kingdom. The Kirat call their homeland Limbuwan which means 'Land of the Limbus'.

Kiratdesh kingdom

Proto-Maha-Kirat

The proto-Maha-Kirat people came from Majiayao Neolithic region in Gansu province of China. They migrated in a southwest direction via the Chumbi valley to reach Sikkim around 3000-2001 BC.

Their ancestors established the Neolithic cultures of Chamdo/Karuo in eastern Tibet and northern Sikkim.

Migration path in purple

After passing Chumbi valley, they spread across the southern flank of the Himalayas in a westward direction from Sikkim into Nepal.

Chumbi valley

Ethnic relationship with Sikkimese

The natives of Sikkim are also of Sino-Tibetan ancestry and can be grouped into Lepcha and Bhutia.

The Lepcha are the original inhabitants of Sikkim and most probably also the descendants of the ancient Kiratdesh kingdom which extended into this region.

However, Bhutia is part of Bodic group and their origin was narrated in 'Ethnic origin of Tibetans' article in this blog.

Origin of Magar-Chepang

Like the Kirat, the ancestors of Magar-Chepang first settled in Sikkim specifically Kangwachen valley around the same time as the ancestors of the Kirat.

Magar people

When the Tibetan army invaded Sikkim and East Nepal, most of the Magar escaped from Kangwachen valley towards the south-west direction into central Nepal (refer to map below).

The exact year of migration from Sikkim to central Nepal is unknown but the first Tibetan army invasion was in 640 AD and the Magar was recorded to be living in central Nepal by 1100 AD. So the migration occurred sometime between these two years after several wars were fought between the Tibetans (Bhutia) and the Magar.

Migration path in purple

After the migration into central Nepal, they were divided into two smaller subgroups; one subgroup led by Phalemi Khan remained in Palpa district to expand in the region known as Magarat (Palpa, Rolpa, Myagdi, Pyuthan etc) where most Magar people live today.

Later, another Magar subgroup led by Yomchammi Khan returned east to Limbuwan and became the Limbu Kirat of Sinjali Thapa clan.

The Chepang also claim they are the offshoot of Kirat people. Similarly, the ancestors of Chepang were attacked by the Tibetan army and ran to hide in the jungles of Mahabharat range in central Nepal; they called the elders as 'Tep-Pang' and youngsters as 'Chup-Pang' which later became pronounced as Chepang.

Maha-Kirat subgroups

Some scholars stated that Magar-Chepang are the close offshoot of the Kirat people and their similar languages and legends have provided evidences.

The Maha-Kirat subgroups are depicted below.

Discrimination by the Indo-Aryan people

The Magars like most of the natives of Nepal were racially discriminated by the invading Gorkha Kingdom in 1769 AD which was led by the Indo-Aryan Pahari Khas people.

This is a video of the Magar people narrating their lifestyle and how they were oppressed by the Indo-Aryan people.

Conclusion

The earliest natives in Nepal and Sikkim are the Kirat, Magar-Chepang and Tharu-Newar who are all Sino-Tibetan people. The Bodic group who came from Tibet are later migrants to Nepal.

Kirat girls

The Indo-Aryan people are the majority ethnic group in Nepal today but most of them came during the past few centuries from India.

A detailed origin of the Tharu-Newar group will be published in another article in this blog.

Sources

A History of Nepal by John Whelpton. pgs 12 to 14
Kirat History and Culture. By Imanshing Chemjong
Researches Into the History and Civilization of the Kirātas. By G. P. Singh
https://studybuddhism.com/en/advanced-studies/history-culture/buddhism-in-tibet/tibetan-history-before-the-fifth-dalai-lama/the-empire-of-the-early-kings-of-tibet
Emergent North-East: A Way Forward by H. C. Sadangi. pgs 262-265
A new theory on the origin of Chinese. Author: George van Driem.
Social Exclusion of the Chepangs in the Era of Post-Political. By Baikuntha Khanal. Department of Social Anthropology. University of Bergen. 2014.

East Asian origin, history, language, culture

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