Limbu people
ᤕᤠᤰᤌᤢᤱ | |
|---|---|
Limbu people celebrating chasok tangnam | |
| Total population | |
| Nepal India Bhutan UK | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Nepal: 4,14,704 (2021)
Koshi: 3,87,515 Madhesh: 528 Bagmati: 23,893 Gandaki: 1,493 Lumbini: 642 Karnali: 221 Sudurpashchim: 412 Bhutan: 1,800 | India: 1,63,000 (2011)
Sikkim: 60,000 West Bengal: 56,000 Assam: 37,000 Uttarakhand: 1,800 Meghalaya: 1,200 Manipur: 1,100 Arunachal: 1000 UK: 15,000 (2015) |
| Languages | |
| Limbu language
Others Nepali | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly: Kirat Mundhum 81% Minorities: Hinduism 14%, Christianity 5% | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
The Limbu (Limbu: ᤕᤠᤰᤌᤢᤱ) are a major Sino-Tibetan ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Himalayan region of eastern Nepal, northeastern India and western Bhutan. In India, the Limbus live in the states of Sikkim, Assam, Nagaland and northern West Bengal, i.e. North Bengal.
Subba is a title given by the Shah Kings only to Limbu village chiefs. Subba was not part of the indigenous Limbu terminology, but now the two terms are almost interchangeable. It was how the village chiefs were distinguished from other villagers in Limbu tribe. Family lineage of the village chiefs are often found with their surname as Subba.
Their history is said to be written in a book called Bangsawoli (Genealogy), also known as Bansawali. Some ancient families have kept copies. There are hundreds of Limbu clans and tribes, classified under their tribe or subnational entity or according to their place of origin.
The Chinese text Po-ou-Yeo-Jing, translated in 308 AD, refers to the Yi-ti-Sai (barbarians bordering on the north), a name which is an exact equivalent of The Limbu, were also one of the earliest inhabitants of Sikkim. The name of the Indian state itself is a combination of two Limbu words: su, which means "new", and khyim, which means "palace" or "house".