Dictionary of Meaning
<<Back
Please select a letter:
A |
B |
C |
D |
E |
F |
G |
H |
I |
J |
K |
L |
M |
N |
O |
P |
Q |
R |
S |
T |
U |
V |
W |
X |
Y |
Z |
0-9
Click here for Shopping
Nepali language
*** Shopping-Tip: Nepali language
{{Infobox Language
|name=Nepali
|nativename=Nepālī
|familycolor=Indo-European
|states=
Nepal,
India,
Bhutan.
|region=
South Asia.
|speakers=35 million ''approx.''
|rank=57
|fam2=
Indo-Iranian languages Indo-Iranian
|fam3=
Indo-Aryan languages Indo-Aryan
|fam4=
Pahari languages Pahari (Northern zone)
|fam5=Eastern Pahari
|nation=
Nepal,
Sikkim (
India)
|agency=
Language Academy of Nepal
|iso1=ne|iso2=nep|iso3=nep|notice=Indic}}
'''Nepali''' (''Khaskura'') is an
Indo-Aryan languages Indo-Aryan language spoken in
Nepal,
Bhutan, and some parts of
India and
Burma. It is the official language of
Nepal. Roughly half the population of Nepal speaks Nepali as a mother tongue, and many other Nepalese speak it as a second language.
Nepali goes by various names. English speakers generally call it Nepali or Nepalese (i.e. the language of Nepal).
It is also called ''Gorkhali'' or ''Gurkhali'', "the language of the
Gurkhas, "and ''Parbatiya'', "the language of the mountains." ''Khaskura'' is the oldest term, literally ''speech of the Khas'' who were rice-growing Indo-Aryan settlers in the Karnali-Bheri basin of far western Nepal since prehistoric or early historic times. Khaskura exists in opposition to ''Khamkura'', a group of Tibeto-Burman dialects spoken by Kham peoples in highlands separating the Kharnali-Bheri basin from the Gandaki basin in central Nepal.
Then perhaps 500 years ago, Khas peoples migrated eastward, bypassing the inhospitable Kham highlands to settle in the lower valleys of the Gandaki basin suited to rice cultivation. One notable extended family settled in Gorkha, a petty principality about halfway between Pokhara and Kathmandu. Then in the late 1700s a scion named Prithvi Narayan raised an army of Gurungs, Magars and possibly other hill tribesmen and set out to conquer and consolidate dozens of petty principalities in the himalayan foothills. Since Gorkha had replaced the original Khas homeland as the center of political and military initiative, Khaskura was redubbed ''Gorkhali'', i.e. ''language of the Gorkhas''.
Prithvi Narayan's especially notable military achievement was conquest of the urbanized Kathmandu Valley, on the eastern rim of the Gandaki basin. This region was also called ''Nepal'' at the time. Kathmandu became Prithvi Narayan's new capital, then he and his heirs extended their domain east into the Kosi basin, north to the Tibetan Plateau, south into the plains of northern India, and west of the Karnali/Bheri basin.
Expansion, particularly to the north, west and south brought the growing state into conflict with British and Chinese territorial ambitions. This led to wars that trimmed it back to roughly Nepal's present borders or less, however both great powers understood the value of a buffer state and did not attempt to reduce the new country further. Since the Kathmandu Valley or ''Nepal'' had become the new center of political initiative, this word gradually came to refer to the entire realm and not just the Kathmandu Valley. And so ''Gorkhali'', language of Gorkha, was again redubbed ''Nepali''.
Nepali is the easternmost of the
Pahari languages, a group of related languages spoken across the lower elevations of the
Himalaya range, from eastern Nepal through the Indian states of
Uttaranchal and
Himachal Pradesh. Nepali developed in close proximity to a number of
Tibeto-Burman languages, most notably
Newari, and shows Tibeto-Burman influences.
Nepali is closely related to Hindi but is more conservative, borrowing fewer words from Persian and English and using more Sanskritic derivations. Today, Nepali is commonly written in the
Devanagari script.
Bhujimol is an older script native to Nepal.
Nepali developed a small literature during the second half of the nineteenth century, which included the
by (1833), Birsikka, an anonymous collection of folk-tales, and a Ramayana by Bhanubhakta. There were also several translations of Sanskrit works, and a version of the Bible.
See also: Lhotshampa
Examples of phrases in Nepali include:
* namaste. नमस्ते -- all-purpose Hindu greeting is often translated as "I salute the god within you".
(Namaste is also used as a salutation between New Age New Agers)
Its literal Sanskrit meaning is "your homage" and in common usage simply means "hello" or "goodbye."
* mero naam aalok ho.मेरो नाम आलोक हो -- my name Alok is -- My name is Alok.
* timi sanchai chau?--How are you?
* khaanaa khaane Thaaun kahaa chha? खाना खाने ठाउँ कहाँ छ? -- food eating place where is - Where is a place to eat?
* kaaThmaandaun jaane baaTo dherai laamo chha. काठमाडौँ जाने बाटो धेरै लामो छ -- Kathmandu going road very long is --The road to Kathmandu is very long.
* nepaalmaa baneko नेपालमा बनेको -- Nepal-in made -- Made in Nepal.
* ma nepaali hoo(n) म नेपाली हूँ -- I Nepali am -- I am Nepali.
* pugyo पुग्यो —[it] arrived/sufficed — That is enough.
See also
* Languages of India
* List of national languages of India
* List of Indian languages by total speakers
External links
{{interwiki|code=ne}}
- Download Nepali Word Processor: Madhyam developed by Balendu Sharma Dadhich
Category:Indo-Aryan languages
Category:Languages of Bhutan
Category:Languages of India
Category:Languages of Nepal
bg:Ð?епалÑ?ки език
br:Nepaleg
da:Nepalesisk
de:Nepali
es:Idioma nepalés
eo:Nepala lingvo
fr:Népalais
gd:Nepali (canan)
ko:네팔어
hi:नेपाली à¤à¤¾à¤·à¤¾
id:Bahasa Nepal
nl:Nepalees
ja:�パール語
pl:Język nepalski
simple:Nepali language
sl:NepalÅ¡Ä?ina
fi:Nepalin kieli
te:నేపాలీ à°à°¾à°·
th:ภาษาเนปาลี
zh:尼泊尔è¯
*** Shopping-Tip: Nepali language
