Languages spoken in Nepal: map, families and speakers

Languages of Nepal at a glance

113living languages
3language families
31.1 millionpeople (CLDR estimate)
26with a CLDR share

Tap the map to list every language whose area covers a spot in Nepal. Areas are generalisations from published atlases and overlap, and a language that is mapped here is not necessarily spoken everywhere inside its area.

The 40 most widely spoken languages in Nepal

Languages with a Unicode CLDR share come first, biggest first by estimated speakers; the rest follow A to Z. Estimated speakers are the share applied to CLDR’s own population figure for the country.

Language	Family	Share of population	Estimated speakers	Status
Nepali	Indo-European	44%	13,693,856	Not endangered
Maithili	Indo-European	11%	3,423,464	Not endangered
Bhojpuri	Indo-European	6.8%	2,116,323	Not endangered
Kathmandu Valley Newari	Sino-Tibetan	3.3%	1,027,039	Not endangered
Jumli	Indo-European	3.2%	995,917	Not endangered
English	Indo-European	3%	933,672	Not endangered
Dotyali	Indo-European	2.5%	778,060	Not endangered
Awadhi	Indo-European	2.2%	684,693	Not endangered
Dangaura Tharu	Indo-European	2%	622,448	Not endangered
Bantawa	Sino-Tibetan	1.5%	466,836	Shifting
Western Tamang	Sino-Tibetan	1.3%	404,591	Threatened
Rana Tharu	Indo-European	1.2%	373,469	Not endangered
Eastern Magar	Sino-Tibetan	1.1%	342,346	Shifting
Limbu	Sino-Tibetan	1.1%	342,346	Shifting
Kochila Tharu	Indo-European	1%	311,224	Not endangered
Western Magar	Sino-Tibetan	0.8%	258,316	Shifting
Bagheli	Indo-European	0.5%	168,061	Not endangered
Solu-Khumbu Sherpa	Sino-Tibetan	0.5%	161,836	Shifting
Rajbanshi	Indo-European	0.4%	136,939	Not endangered
Eastern Tamang	Sino-Tibetan	0.4%	133,826	Threatened
Hindi	Indo-European	0.4%	130,714	Not endangered
Gurung	Sino-Tibetan	0.3%	90,255	Shifting
Kathoriya Tharu	Indo-European	0.2%	74,694	Not endangered
Tibetan	Sino-Tibetan	0.2%	74,694	Not endangered
Sunwar	Sino-Tibetan	0.1%	40,459	Shifting
Thulung	Sino-Tibetan	0.1%	37,347	Moribund
Aimol	Sino-Tibetan			Shifting
Angika	Indo-European			Threatened
Athpariya	Sino-Tibetan			Shifting
Bahing	Sino-Tibetan			Nearly extinct
Baraamu	Sino-Tibetan			Nearly extinct
Belhariya	Sino-Tibetan			Moribund
Bengali	Indo-European			Not endangered
Bodo-Mech	Sino-Tibetan			Threatened
Bote	Indo-European			Threatened
Bujhyal	Sino-Tibetan			Threatened
Byangsi	Sino-Tibetan			Shifting
Camling	Sino-Tibetan			Threatened
Chantyal	Sino-Tibetan			Shifting
Chaudangsi	Sino-Tibetan			Shifting

Language families in Nepal

Sino-Tibetan (81 languages)
Indo-European (28 languages)
Austroasiatic (3 languages)
Isolate (1 language)

All 113 languages in Nepal, A to Z

About these numbers

The list of languages in Nepal comes from the overlap of Glottography and Glottolog language areas and positions with the country outline, together with the languages Glottolog assigns to the country. The shares come from Unicode CLDR release 48 and are estimates. See every source and licence.

Questions about languages in Nepal

How many languages are spoken in Nepal?

113 living languages are mapped in Nepal, from 3 families, plus 1 language isolate. The number depends on how a catalogue decides where one language ends and another begins, so other sources give other totals.

What is the most spoken language in Nepal?

By Unicode CLDR's estimate, Nepali is spoken by 44% of the population, about 13,693,856 people, followed by Maithili (11%). Shares are approximate, can add up to more than 100% because many people speak several languages, and only cover languages CLDR has a figure for.

Which language families are found in Nepal?

Sino-Tibetan (81 languages), Indo-European (28 languages) and Austroasiatic (3 languages).