Nepalese Muslims

Nepalese Muslims
नेपाली मुसलमान
Total population
1,483,060[1]
(5.09% of the country's population)Increase[2]
Regions with significant populations
   Nepal
Languages
NepaliAwadhiBhojpuriMaithili (majority) • Urdu (lingua-franca)
Religion
Islam
Related ethnic groups
Kashmiri Muslims, Bihari Muslims, Madheshis,[3] Gorkhali Muslims

Nepalese Muslims (Nepali: नेपाली मुसलमान; Nepali/Nepalese Musalman/Muslims) are Nepalis who follow Islam. Their ancestors arrived in Nepal from different parts of South Asia, Central Asia and Tibet during different epochs, and have since lived amidst the numerically dominant Hindus and Buddhists. About 80% of the Muslim community live in the Terai region, while the other 20% are found mainly in the city of Kathmandu and Gorkha and the western hills. The community numbers 1,483,060, about 5.09% of the total population of Nepal. Districts with large Muslim population include Sarlahi (9.9%), Rautahat (17.2%), Bara (11.9%), and Parsa (17.3%) and Banke (16%) in the western Terai and Siraha (7%) and Sunsari (10%) and Saptari (10%) hill.[4]

  1. ^ National Statistics Office (2021). National Population and Housing Census 2021, Caste/Ethnicity Report. Government of Nepal (Report).
  2. ^ "Religions in Nepal | PEW-GRF".
  3. ^ https://www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/ind/muslimsofnepal.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  4. ^ Understanding Nepal : Muslims in a plural society by Mollica Dastider ISBN 978-81-241-1271-7