The Newars: The indigenous population of the Kathmandu Valley in the modern state of Nepal

The Newars are the 'traditional' inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley, whose population comprises 1,041,090 i.e. 5.6 percent of the total population of Nepal, i.e. 18,491,092 in 1991. Although the Newars are spread throughout the country and beyond its boundaries in different parts of India, the majority of them are still concentrated in the valley of Kathmandu, which is the capital of modern Nepal. Previously, only the valley of Kathmandu was known by the name 'Nepal', and for many people the word 'Nepal' still continues to mean it. The Newars speak Nepalbhasa, a Tibto- Burman language..