Kirati peopleThe Kirati people, also spelled as Kirant or Kiranti, are a Sino-Tibetan ethnic group. They are Indigenous peoples of the Himalayas, mostly the Eastern Himalaya extending eastward from Nepal to North East India (predominantly in the Indian state of Sikkim and the northern hilly regions of West Bengal, that is, Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts). Kirat means lion-hearted people or people of a lion nature. It also means mountain people. The word Kirata is a derivation from Kirati or Kiranti to name the group of people in Eastern Nepal and Northeast India.
Tamang peopleThe Tamang (; Devanagari: तामाङ; tāmāṅ), are a Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group of Nepal, Southern Bhutan and North India. In Nepal Tamang/Moormi people constitute 5.6% of the Nepalese population at over 1.3 million in 2001, increasing to 1,539,830 as of the 2011 census. The Tamang people are concentrated in the central hilly region of Nepal. Indian Tamangs are found in significant numbers in the state of Sikkim and the districts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong in West Bengal state.
Rai peopleThe Rai are an ethnolinguistic group belonging to the Kirat family and primarily Tibeto-Burman linguistic ethnicity. They mainly reside in the eastern parts of Nepal, the Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal (predominantly Darjeeling and Kalimpong Hills) and in south western Bhutan. The Rais are a set of groups one of the oldest tribes of Nepal . They inhabited the area between the Dudh Koshi and Tamur River in Nepal. They claim that their country alone called (Kiratdesh) in modern times, they have spread over Nepal, Sikkim and West Bengal.
Limbu peopleThe Limbu (exonym; लिम्बु जाति) or Yakthung (endonym) are a Tibeto-Burman indigenous tribe of the Himalayan region of eastern Nepal, Sikkim, and western Bhutan. The original name of the Limbu is Yakthung (ᤕᤠᤰᤌᤢᤱ) or Yakthum. Limbu males are called Yakthungba or Yakthumba and Limbu females are called "Yakthumma" or "Yakthungma". Ancient texts state that "Yakthung" or "Yakthum" is a derivative of Yaksha and some interpret its meaning as the "Yaksha winner".
Limbu languageLimbu (Limbu: ᤕᤠᤰᤌᤢᤱ ᤐᤠᤴ, yakthuṅ pan) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Limbu people of Nepal and Northeastern India (particularly Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Sikkim, Assam and Nagaland) as well as expatriate communities in Bhutan. The Limbu refer to themselves as Yakthung and their language as Yakthungpan. Yakthungpan has four main dialects: Phedape, Chhathare, Tambarkhole and Panthare dialects. Among four dialects , the Phedape dialect is widely spoken and well understood by most Yakthungpan speakers.
