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People of Nepal
 The population of Nepal was recorded to be about 25 million as of July 2002. Eighty-six percent of Nepalis follow Hinduism, while eight percent follow Buddhism and three percent follow Islam. The population comprises various groups of different races which are further divided into different castes. The distinction in caste and ethnicity is understood more easily with a view of customary layout of the population.
Some of the main groups are such: Gurungs and Magars who live mainly in the western region; Rais, Limbus and Sunwars who live in the eastern mid hills; Sherpas, Manangpas and Lopas who live near the mountains of Everest, Annapurna and Mustang respectively; Newars who live in and around the capital valley of Kathmandu; Tharus, Yadavas, Satar, Rajvanshis and Dhimals who live in the Terai region; and Brahmins, Chhetris and Thakuris generally spread over all parts of the country.
Customs
The diversity in Nepal in terms of ethnicity again makes room for various sets of customs. Although some customs have merely been converted to habits without thought, ancient texts justify them with far-fetched reasons, sometimes making sense and sometimes not. Most of these customs go back to the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Among them, the rules of marriage are particularly interesting. In traditional families marriage deals are arranged by  parents after the boy or girl come of age. Child marriage and polygamy that were once upheld and accepted with glee are not allowed by the law anymore. Nepalese do not eat beef. There are several reasons for this, one being that the Hindus worship cow. Cow is also the national animal of Nepal. Buffalo meat is a good substitute but is only eaten by a certain section of the population.
Language
Nepali is the official language of Nepal, with over 30 other languages spoken as mother-tongues in different parts of the country, and as well there are many regional dialects. Nepali is of the Indo-Aryan family of languages brought from central Asia by the Aryans about 1500 BC. The original Old Indo-Aryan language gave rise to Sanskrit from which Nepali derives.
In common with Hindi, Nepali uses the Devanagri script (the script of the city of the gods, sometimes known as Nagari) which derived from the Brahmi script of ancient India. English is spoken, with much of the schooling in the cities in the English medium. As well many in the travel and tourism industry speak German, Spanish, Japanese, French and Italian.
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