The context of Kirat in the context of Newar

When discussing the history of Kathmandu Valley or Newar, the context of Kirat also comes up. Newar history cannot be advanced by ignoring Kirat. But if history is not viewed as a whole, there is a risk of getting lost in confusion. The Kirat community, who live in the eastern part of present-day Nepal, claim that they were driven east by the Lichchhavi. According to them, the first Kirat king Yalambar established a kingdom in the Kathmandu Valley and that his ancestral land is the Kathmandu Valley. This statement itself contradicts the Kirat interpretations. It is necessary to consider this ego question of history.

According to the Kirat legend, this community climbed the mountains from the south. While they were climbing south along the banks of the Arun River, the context of Khuwalung comes up and that Khuwalung opened the way for them to go further up. After that, they were able to enter the eastern part of present-day Nepal, such as Bhojpur, Khotang, Diktel, etc. That is why they want to link the large rock called Khuwalung in the middle of the Arun River with their identity. The Kirat community had opposed the then Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli when he planned to break it, saying that Khuwalung narrowed the river and hindered the operation of motorboats. This means that the Kirats did not go east from the Kathmandu Valley.

When did the Kirat community enter the present eastern region via Khuwalung? The main question here is when did the Kirats enter Kathmandu. Before the Kirats entered the Kathmandu Valley, this land was not uninhabited. There was a community of people who had already come and settled here. It is said that there was a large lake at the beginning of the Kathmandu Valley, and after the water in that lake dried up, it became a habitable land. But geographically speaking, it is understood that the entire valley was not submerged. Only a part of the south was submerged and the rest of the land was habitable. People could come and go in this area from the north and south. Although it is popular in the Buddhist world that Manjushri came and made the water of the Chobhar Galchhikati and made it habitable for humans and made a person named Dharmakara who came with him the king, it has no historical basis. It is also said that Krishna came after Manjushri, as described in the epic Mahabharata, but that too has no historical basis. According to the genealogies, the Gopalvanshi people established a kingdom here. The context of the Gopalvanshi kingdom cannot be ignored. Those who have been living in Kathmandu for a long time and have identified themselves as Sapu are now found in Newar. They live in Kilagal, an old settlement in Kathmandu. Sapu means a human community that raises cows. This Sapu is translated into Sanskrit as Gopal. There is evidence that this community lived in Kirtipur and Thankot in ancient times. Similarly, this community is found in the majority in the areas of Chitlang, Tistung, Palung, etc. beyond Thankot. When addressing the inhabitants of that region during the Lichchhavi period, they are often referred to as ‘Nepals’. Here, ‘Nepal’ means Newar. The inhabitants of that region are identified as Newar.

The description of the establishment of the Mahishpal dynasty by the Mahishpal dynasty after the long rule of the Sapu or Gopal dynasty is found in the genealogy. The one who raises sheep or goats is called Meypu in Newar and Meypu means Mahishpal. These Sapu and Meypu are not Kirats. According to the genealogy, the Mahishpal dynasty was defeated by the Kirats who came from the east and established the Kirat dynasty. The change of dynasty does not mean that the people will also change. One group of the Kirats who had become Khuvalung and started living in the hills above, moved west and reached Kathmandu, and it can be understood that the leader of that group defeated the Mahishpals and established a new kingdom. It is possible that the person called Yalambar, the first king of the Kirats, was that leader. According to the genealogy, the Kirats ruled the Kathmandu Valley for about six hundred years. It is not difficult to understand that Kathmandu was already inhabited and that Kirats from the east were also added to it. It can be said that not all Kirats came to Kathmandu from the east, but a group came and settled here. After establishing the kingdom and creating a certain state system, they gradually ‘assimilated’, and it is natural for them to consider other Kirats as outsiders or not to allow them to encroach on their territory. The Kirats, who were the natives of Kathmandu, have ruled here for six hundred years.

The genealogy mentions the kingdom of the Lichchhavi dynasty here after the Kirats. This is not a very old story. Many things in history are revealed at this time. Buddhist sources say that the Kathmandu Valley became famous as a trading center in the sixth century BC. People of various ethnic groups had also started settling here permanently. The genealogy's description that the Lichchhavi came from India and drove the Kirats eastward is a bit inconsistent. The Lichchhavi dynasty did not once establish itself here after the Kirats. It is found that the Burmese dynasty established a kingdom before the Lichchhavi dynasty. Many questions can be raised about the statement that the Kirats returned to the east after the change of kingdom. Why would the Kirats, who had been permanently settled for six hundred years, easily return to the east? If they were to go eastward, there should have been some attraction there, which is unlikely. If we argue that they had already returned to the east, the question can be raised, what customs, culture and other customs did the Kirats who went east take with them from Kathmandu? Looking at the current eastern social and cultural life, there is no influence of Kathmandu.

Even after the loss of the Kirat kingdom, the Kirat community did not move elsewhere and seems to have settled in Kathmandu. They had already been 'assimilated' in the Kathmandu Valley before the loss of the kingdom. It is very difficult to find out who those Kirats are now among the Newars. It is also said that the Jyapu are Kirats, but it is very possible that not all Jyapu are Kirats, but the Kirats have merged into the Jyapu. The faces and measurements of the Kirat community of the east, who are currently identified as Kirats, do not match all the Jyapu.

When considering linguistically, there are many similarities between the Kirat and Newar languages. It is not logical to say that about two hundred and fifty non-Sanskrit words used in inscriptions placed during the Lichchhavi period are from the Kirat language. Some of those non-Sanskrit words are still prevalent in the Nepali language of Newar today. The Tibeto-Burman language family is not limited to the Kirant language, it includes many other languages. Since it is natural that many other languages ​​​​are close to those words, it is not appropriate to call the non-Sanskrit words found in the inscriptions of the Lichchhavi period Kirant language.

Newar is not a society of a single race. Newar is the name of a civilization that developed through the intermixing of the ethnic community that lived in the valley in ancient times and the various races, languages, religions, customs, and cultures that came later. Surprisingly, people who came from all over Kathmandu are found here, they are not found returning from here. In this context, although Kirant has its own history, Kirant is a part of Kathmandu Valley or Newar, not separate from Newar because the Kirants of that time are living within Newar.