''Tagadhari'' () are members of a Nepalese

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

group that is perceived as historically having a high socio-religious status in society. Tagadhari are identified by a ''sacred thread'' ( Janai) around the torso, which is used for ritualistic purposes in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

. In

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

the sacred thread is called ''yajñopavītam'' and in Nepali '' Janai'' (). The cord is received after the

Upanayana ''Upanayana'' () is a Hindu educational sacrament, one of the traditional saṃskāras or rites of passage that marked the acceptance of a student by a preceptor, such as a ''guru'' or ''acharya'', and an individual's initiation into a school in ...

ceremony. Tagadharis were historically favoured by the

government of Nepal The Government of Nepal () is the central executive authority of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. The government is led by the Prime Minister of Nepal, prime minister (K. P. Sharma Oli, K.P. Oli since 15 July 2024) who selects all the o ...

and various religious and caste-based legal provisions were enacted on their behalf. The legal code of 1854, '' Muluki Ain'', which was introduced by

Chhetri Chhetri (Kshetri, Kshettri, Kshetry or Chhettri), ( ; IAST: ''Kṣetrī'') historically called Kshettriya or Kshetriya or Khas are Nepali language, Nepali speaking people historically associated with the warrior class and administration, some of ...

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

and

Prime Minister of Nepal The prime minister of Nepal (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of Nepal. The prime minister leads the Council of Ministers of Nepal, Council of Ministers and holds the chief executive authority in the country. They must maintain ...

Narsingh Jang Bahadur Kunwar Ranaji, made it impossible to legally enslave Tagadharis and decreed fewer punishments for them in comparison to Matawali (liquor drinkers) and

Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

Background

''Tagadhari'' means "wearers of the sacred thread" or "wearers of the holy cord". The sacred thread called ''Yajñopaveetam'' is bestowed during the

ceremony.

is an elaborate ceremony that includes rituals involving the family, the child, and the teacher.PV Kane
Samskara, Chapter VII
History of Dharmasastras, Vol II, Part I, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, pages 288-300 The ceremony is a rite of passage for the start of formal education in reading, writing, arithmetic,

Vedanga The Vedanga ( ', "limb of the Veda-s"; plural form: वेदाङ्गानि ') are six auxiliary disciplines of Vedic studies that developed in Vedic and post-Vedic times.James Lochtefeld (2002), "Vedanga" in The Illustrated Encyclopedia o ...

s, arts, and other skills.Rajbali Pandey (2013), Hindu Saṁskāras: Socio-religious Study of the Hindu Sacraments, 2nd Edition, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 111-117

Eligibility criteria

Many medieval-era texts discuss the sacred thread ceremony in the context of only three varnas (caste, class):

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

Kshatriya Kshatriya () (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority"; also called Rajanya) is one of the four varnas (social orders) of Hindu society and is associated with the warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...

s, and

Vaishya Vaishya (Sanskrit: वैश्य, ''vaiśya'') is one of the four varnas of the Vedic Hindu social order in India. Vaishyas are classed third in the order of Varna hierarchy. The occupation of Vaishyas consists mainly of agriculture, takin ...

s. In the modern era, the Upanayana rite of passage is open to anyone at any age.Harold Coward et al. (1997), Religious Dimensions of Child and Family Life, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, , page 67

Sacred thread

The "sacred thread" ( ''yajñopavītam'' or ''upavīta'') is a thin cord, composed of three cotton strands. Two ancient Sanskrit texts offer a divergent view in their description of the ''yajñopavītam'' or upavita. The term upavita was originally meant to be any upper garment, as stated in verse 2.2.4.22–2.2.4.23 of ''Apastamba Dharmasutra'' or, if the wearer did not want to wear a top, a thread would suffice. The thread identified a person who was studying at a school or had graduated. The ''Gobhila Gryha Sutra'' similarly states, at verse 1.2.1 in its discussion on Upanayana, that "the student understands the ''yajnopavita'' as a cord of threads, or a garment, or a rope of kusa grass", and it is the method by which the ''yajnopavita'' is worn and its significance that matters. The proper manner of wearing the upper garment or thread, state the ancient texts, is over the left shoulder and under the right arm.PV Kane
History of Dharmasastra
Volume 2.1, 1st Edition, pages 290-293

The ''Dvija'' status of Tagadharis

is a ceremony in which a guru (teacher) accepts and draws a child towards knowledge and initiates the second birth, that is, of the young mind and spirit.PV Kane
Samskara, Chapter VII
History of Dharmasastras, Vol II, Part I, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, pages 268-287 Thus, the person completing the

ceremony and receiving the sacred thread is referred to as

Dvija Dvija (Sanskrit: द्विज) means "twice-born". The concept is premised on the belief that a person is first born physically and at a later date is born for a second time spiritually, usually when he undergoes the rite of passage that initiat ...

(''twice-born'').

History

After the Gorkhali conquest of the

Kathmandu valley The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...

, King

Prithvi Narayan Shah Prithvi Narayan Shah (; 7 January 1723 – 11 January 1775), was the last king of the Gorkha Kingdom and first king of the Kingdom of Nepal (also called the ''Kingdom of Gorkha''). Prithvi Narayan Shah started the unification of Nepal. He is a ...

expelled the Christian Capuchin missionaries from Patan and renamed Nepal as ''Asil

Hindustan ''Hindūstān'' ( English: /ˈhɪndustæn/ or /ˈhɪndustɑn/, ; ) was a historical region, polity, and a name for India, historically used simultaneously for northern Indian subcontinent and the entire subcontinent, used in the modern day ...

'' (pure land of

Hindus Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

). The Tagadharis enjoyed a privileged status in the Nepalese capital and greater access to the authorities following these events. Subsequently, Hinduisation became the main policy of the

Kingdom of Nepal The Kingdom of Nepal was a Hindu monarchy in South Asia, founded in 1768 through the unification of Nepal, expansion of the Gorkha Kingdom. The kingdom was also known as the Gorkha Empire and was sometimes called History of Asal Hindustan, ...

. Prof. Harka Gurung speculates that the presence of Islamic

Mughal rule The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

and Christian

British rule in India The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

compelled the foundation of Brahmin Orthodoxy in Nepal for the purpose building a haven for Hindus in the

. The Nepali

civil code A civil code is a codification of private law relating to property law, property, family law, family, and law of obligations, obligations. A jurisdiction that has a civil code generally also has a code of civil procedure. In some jurisdiction ...

, ''Muluki Ain'', was commissioned by

Jung Bahadur Rana Jung Bahadur Rana, , was born Bir Narsingh Kunwar (1817-1877). His mother, Ganesh Kumari, was the daughter of Kaji Nain Singh Thapa, the brother of Mukhtiyar Bhimsen Thapa from the prominent Thapa dynasty. During his lifetime, Jung Bahadur eli ...

after his European tour and enacted in 1854. It was rooted in traditional

Hindu Law Hindu law, as a historical term, refers to the code of laws applied to Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs in British India. Hindu law, in modern scholarship, also refers to the legal theory, jurisprudence and philosophical reflections on the na ...

and codified social practices for several centuries in Nepal. The law also comprised ''

Prāyaścitta ''Prāyaścitta'' () is the Sanskrit word which means "atonement, penance, expiation". In Hinduism, it is a ''dharma''-related term and refers to voluntarily accepting one's errors and misdeeds, confession, repentance, means of penance and expiat ...

'' (avoidance and removal of sin) and ''

Ācāra Ācāra () is a concept used in the context of Classical Hindu law that refers to the customary laws or community norms of a particular social group. These community norms are delineated and put into practice by people who have earned the resp ...

'' (the customary law of different castes and communities). It was an attempt to include the entire Hindu as well as the non-Hindu population of Nepal of that time into a single hierarchic civic code from the perspective of the

Khas Khas peoples or Khas Tribes, (; ) popularly known as Khashiya are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, in what is now the South Asian country of Nepal, as well as the Indian stat ...

rulers. The ''Muluki Ain'' divided the Nepalese into five main castes: # Tagadhari (the cord-wearing high caste Hindus), # Namasinya Matwali (non-enslavable drinking castes), # Masinya Matwali jat (enslavable drinking castes), # Pani Na Chalne Chhoichito Halnu Naparne (water non-acceptable but ritually not polluting caste), # Pani Na Chalne Chhoichito Halnu Parne (water non-acceptable and ritually polluting caste). The Nepalese ''jati'' arrangement in terms of

varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city ** Varna Province ** Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna ** Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis * Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy * Varna (Šabac), a village in Serbia Asia * Var ...

takes the Tagadhari to be the highest in the hierarchy. The ethnolinguistic group of people of

Mongoloid Mongoloid () is an obsolete racial grouping of various peoples indigenous to large parts of Asia, the Americas, and some regions in Europe and Oceania. The term is derived from a now-disproven theory of biological race. In the past, other terms ...

origin were tagged under the title ''Matwali'' ("Liquor Drinkers"), while those of Indo-Aryan origin were termed ''Tagadhari'' ("Wearers of the Sacred Thread"). The Tagadhari castes consisted of the three upper

and

. The civil code stated that if members of the Tagadhari castes consumed food and water touched by a person from the ''Pani Na Chalne Chhoichhito Halnuparne'' (Impure and Untouchable) category, then the member should undergo a purification process. Assault upon Tagadhari castes was fined heavily and a perpetrator from lower in the social hierarchy could be punished with enslavement per the ''Muluki Ain''. The Tagadhari castes could not be enslaved following any criminal punishment unless they had been expelled from the caste. The main broad caste categories in Nepal are Tagadharis (sacred thread bearers), Matwalis (liquor drinkers) and

s (or untouchables).

Tagadhari castes

The 1854 Muluki Ain codification of entire Nepalese society into a single hierarchical fold

Within the Tagadharis, Tarai Brahmins were ranked below Newar Brahmin while Newar Brahmin were ranked below Chhetri. The hierarchy was more favourable to Parbattias within the Tagadharis. Tagadhari castes in Nepal according to ''Muluki Ain'' (1854):Gurung, H. (2005). Social exclusion and Maoist insurgency. Paper presented at National Dialogue Conference on ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, Kathmandu, 19–20 January 2005.

Diet and tradition

The main diet of the Tagadhari consists of

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

while Matwali prefer

millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most millets belong to the tribe Paniceae. Millets are important crops in the Semi-arid climate, ...

. The Tagadhari eat more milk-based foods in comparison to the Matwali preference for meat-based foods. The Tagadhari follow

festivals while the Matawali follow

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

festivals. Brahmins and Chhetris do not practice any kind of

cousin marriage A cousin marriage is a marriage where the spouses are cousins (i.e. people with common grandparents or people who share other fairly recent ancestors). The practice was common in earlier times and continues to be common in some societies today. ...

s while Thakuris practice maternal cross-cousin marriages frequently and paternal cross-cousin marriage is also allowed among them.

Status and culture

The three Tagadhari and

castes among the Parbattias are

Thakuri The Thakuri (Nepali: ठकुरी) . This term is Nepalese title ""Thakuri"", which translates to 'master of the estate'. The term denotes the royal descendants of kings of Baise Rajya and Chaubisi Rajya. During the height of their influence ...

and

. These three Tagadhari castes were influential in political, social and religious developments in the

. The royal

Shah dynasty The Shah dynasty (), also known as the Shahs of Gorkha or the Royal House of Gorkha, was the ruling Chaubise Thakuri dynasty and the founder of the Gorkha Kingdom from 1559 to 1768 and later the unified Kingdom of Nepal from 1768 to 28 May ...

and their allied aristocrats are drawn from

and

families. Among the Parbattia Tagadharis, Brahmins (Bahun) enjoy the highest hierarchical rank, with their major occupations being governmental services, agriculture and priestly works. Most of the Brahmins are, however, cultivators and are generally more economically backward than other

Newar Newar (; , endonym: Newa; , Pracalit script: ), or Nepami, are primarily inhabitants in Kathmandu Valley of Nepal and its surrounding areas, and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation. Page 15. Newars are a distinct linguisti ...

and Magar farmers. Thakuris are politically and socially ahead of others and have been developed from the miscegenation of

Magars The Magars, also spelled Mangar and Mongar, are the largest ethnic group native to Nepal and Northeast India, representing 6.9% of Nepal's total population according to the 2021 Nepal census. They are one of the main Gurkha tribes. The first ...

and some possible Indian

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

immigrants. Chhetris have same genealogy as the Kumaoni and Garhwali Rajputs of

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...

and

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

,collectively these three are known as Khas Rajputs in old times but today it is used very less.Major occupations of Chhetris include governmental services, agriculture and military. Chhetris and Thakuris claim descent from the ancient Indian

s and form the ruling and warrior classes of Nepal. The ethnicities of the officers at and above the Under-Secretary level in governmental positions of Nepal in 1969 showed Chhetri and Brahmin as dominant in the top two highest positions, with 102 (35.17%) and 97 (33.45%) officers respectively among the total of 290 officers. As per the Public Service Commission of Nepal, Brahmins (33.3%) and Chhetris (20.01%) were two largest caste group to obtain governmental jobs in the fiscal year 2017-18 even though 45% governmental seats are reserved for women, indigenous groups, Madhesis, Dalits, people with disability and those from the backward regions. Chhetris are highly dominant in the military sector of Nepal. Of the senior officers of the Nepal Army, 74.4% of the total in 1967 consisted of Chhetris. Similarly, Chhetris were 38.1%, 54.3% and 55.3% of the senior officers in the years 2003, 2004 and 2007 respectively.

Income and wealth

Tagadhari (NRs. 33,130.0) had the highest annual income (1991), followed by Matwalis (NRs.30,300.0) and untouchables (NRs. 25,910.0).

Demographics

The population of Tagadhari castes as per

2011 Nepal census Nepal conducted a widespread national census in 2011 by the Nepal Central Bureau of Statistics. Working in cooperation with the 58 municipalities and the 3,915 Village Development Committees at a district level, they recorded data from all the m ...

are as below:

Dominance in civil services

As per the Public Service Commission of Nepal,

Brahmins Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

(33.3%) and

s (20.01%) were two largest caste group to obtain governmental jobs in the fiscal year 2017-18 even though 45% of governmental seats are reserved for women, indigenous groups, Madhesis,

s, people with disability and those from the backward regions. Bahuns have a representation in the civil service which is 3.2 times that of their presence in the population; the fourth largest ratio in Nepal. The caste with the largest ratio,

s, have a presence in the civil service that is 5.6 times that of their presence in the population.

Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in parts of southern Nepal and northern India that lies to the south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by ...

s also have a presence in the civil service that is 3.2 times that of their presence in the population; this is the third highest ratio in Nepal.

Districtwise statistics

According to the

Bahun Bahun (), also known as Hill Brahmins, are a Brahmin varna among the Khas of Nepal. They are a sub-caste of the Kanyakubja Brahmin while their origins are from Kannauj and the Himalayan belt of South Asia. According to the 2011 Nepal censu ...

or Brahmin-Hill appear as the second most populous group after

with 12.2% of Nepal's population (or 32,26,903 people). Bahun (Hill-Brahmins) are the second largest

group with a population of 3,212,704 (99.6% of Bahuns). Hill-Brahmins are the largest group in 11 districts in Nepal:

Jhapa Jhapa District (; ) is a district of Koshi Province in eastern Nepal named after a Rajbanshi Surjapuri language word "Jhapa", meaning "to cover" (verb). The 2021 Nepal Census, puts the total population of the district at 994,090. The total a ...

, Morang,

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

Chitwan Chitwan District (, , ) is one of seventy-seven districts of Nepal, and takes up the southwestern corner of Bagmati Province. Bharatpur, largest city of Nepal after Kathmandu, is its administrative centre. It covers , and in 2011 had a popul ...

, Nawalparasi,

Rupandehi Rupandehi District (; ), a part of Lumbini Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal and covers an area of . The district headquarter is Bhairahawa. As per the national census 2011, the population of Rupandehi was 880,196. Etymol ...

, Kaski, Syangja, Parbat,

Gulmi Gulmi District (), a part of Lumbini Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Tamghas as its headquarters, covers an area of , had a population of 296,654 in 2001, 280,160 in 2011 and 268,597 in 2016. Introd ...

and

Arghakhanchi Arghakhanchi ( ) is one of the districts of Lumbini Province in Nepal. The district headquarter is Sandhikharka. The district covers an area of and has a population (2011) of 197,632. Its neighboring districts are Palpa District, Palpa in the ea ...

. Among these, Bahuns in Parbat (35.7%),

(32.8%), Syangja (30.9%),

(28.6%), Kaski (27.8%) and

(25.2%) consist more than 25% of the district population.

has largest Bahun population with 410,126 people (23.5%).

s are largest caste group in 21

districts of Nepal Districts in Nepal are second level of administrative divisions after provinces. Districts are subdivided into municipalities and rural municipalities. There are seven provinces and 77 districts in Nepal. After the 2015 reform of administrat ...

as per the

2001 Nepal census The 2001 Nepal census () was conducted by the Nepal Central Bureau of Statistics.National Report 2001 -> Introduction Nepal Central Bureau of Statistics According to the census, the population of Nepal in 2001 was 23,151,423. Working with Nepal's ...

and 24 districts as per the

. These twenty-four districts are: Dhankuta district, Sankhuwasabha district,

Okhaldhunga district Okhaldhunga District () is one of 14 districts of Koshi Province in eastern Nepal. The district, with the municipality of Okhaldhunga as its district headquarters, covers an area of and had a population of 156,702 in 2001 and 147,984 in 2011.

, Udayapur district,

Ramechhap district Ramechhap District (), a part of Bagmati Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, also known as Wallo Kirat Ramechhap, has its district headquarters in Manthali and covers an area of . In 2011, the district had a ...

Dolakha District Dolakha, often known as Dolkha or Dholkha (Nepal Bhasa:दोलखा जिल्ला)), a part of Bagmati Province, is one of the List of districts of Nepal, seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Charikot as its district headqu ...

, Salyan district,

Surkhet district Surkhet District (, ) is a district in Karnali Province of mid-western Nepal. Surkhet is one of the ten districts of Karnali located about west of the national capital Kathmandu. The district's area is . It had 288,527 population in 2001 and 350 ...

, Dailekh district,

Jajarkot district Jajarkot District () a part of Karnali Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Khalanga as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population of 171,304 in 2011 Nepal census. Introduction J ...

Dolpa district Dolpa District (), is a district, located in Karnali Province of Nepal, It is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal and one of ten district of Karnali. The district, with Dunai as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a p ...

Jumla district Jumla District (), is one of the ten districts of Nepal, districts of the Karnali Province, Karnali province of Nepal. This district has Jumla (town), Jumla as its headquarters, an area of ; it had populations of 89,427 and 108,921, respectivel ...

, Mugu district,

Humla district Humla District (), a part of Karnali Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Simikot as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has population of 50,858 as per the census of 2011. Namkha is the larg ...

Bajura district Bajura District ( ), a part of Sudurpashchim Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Martadi (today part of Badimalika municipality) as its district headquarters, covers an area of and had a population of 1 ...

, Bajhang district, Achham district,

Doti district Doti District ( ), part of Sudurpashchim Province, is one of the 77 List of districts of Nepal, districts of Nepal. This district, with Dipayal Silgadhi, Silgadhi as its headquarters, covers an area of with a population of 207,066 in 2001 and in ...

Kailali district Kailali District (), a part of Sudurpashchim Province in Terai plain, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. The district, with Dhangadhi as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population of 911,155 (2021 census) and (775,709 ...

, Dadeldhura district,

Baitadi district Baitadi District ( ), historical name “Bairath” (बैराथ), a part of Sudurpashchim Province, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. It is a Hill district. Baitadi, with Dasharathchand as its headquarters, covers an area of and has ...

, Darchula district, Kalikot district and

Kanchanpur district Kanchanpur District ( ), a part of Sudurpashchim Province in the Terai plain, is one of seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Bhimdatta as its district headquarters, covers an area of and had a population of 134,868 in 2001 and ...

. Among these, Chhetris in Bajhang (66.5%), Darchula (64.5%), Jumla (61.2%),

Bajura Bajura District ( ), a part of Sudurpashchim Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Martadi (today part of Badimalika municipality) as its district headquarters, covers an area of and had a population o ...

(57.8%),

Doti Doti (), also known as Dotigarh (डोटीगढ़) or the Far-Western Development Region was a development region of Nepal situated between River Kali bordering Kumaon division of Uttarakhand, India in the west and the Karnali river on t ...

(57.7%),

Kailali Kailali District (), a part of Sudurpashchim Province in Terai plain, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. The district, with Dhangadhi as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population of 911,155 (2021 census) and (775,709 in ...

(57.7%), Salyan (57.0%), Achham (55.5%), Dadeldhura (53.6%) and Baitadi (52.2%) consist more than 50% of the district population. The district with largest Chhetri population is

Kathmandu district Kathmandu District (; Nepal Bhasa: ये: जिल्ला) is a district located in Kathmandu Valley, Bagmati Province of Nepal. It is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal, covers an area of , and is the most densely populated dist ...

with 347,754 people (i.e. 19.9% of the total district population). The literacy rate among Chhetris is 72.3% as per the

References

Footnotes

Notes

Books

* * * * * * * * * * {{Chhetri communities Brahmin communities Hinduism in Nepal Kshatriya communities