The population of the district is 8,50,000 approximately, including about 52,689+ living in the town. The colourful people are descended from the Grouches of the eastern Nepal; Tibetans, Lamas in yellow robes and women in striped aprons, ornaments and brocades; Gurungs from western Nepal tending goats and cattle; fair-skinned Sikkim Bhutias and Lepchas; the Dukpas of Bhutan and the plainsmen escaping the sweltering heat.
The Lepchas or Rongpas
A Lepcha or Rongpa man - Photos by courtesy Saom T. NamchuKnown as the 'squatters', these kindly 'ravine people', the inhabitants of Sikkim are of Mongolian origin and have supplanted by the virile Nepalese through inter-marriage.There are some theories which indicate that the Lepchas originally came to Sikkim from the border of Assam and Burma.Other theories speak of the Lepchas having migrated from Southern Tibet. The Lepchas are now predominantly Buddhists, but a large section of the community are also Christians having been converted to this faith by the missionaries. Before adopting Christianity or Buddhism, their faith was basically based on spirits, good and bad - witchcraftry and exorcism was very common. The well known deities of the Lepchas are Itbumoo, Rom, Itbu Debu Rom, Kongchen Konglo and Tamsang Thing, who is also said to have invented the Lepcha script. The major festival of the Lepcha's is the Namsoong which marks the beginning of the New Year. The Lepcha priests are known as Bomthing and they perform intricate ceremonies to invoke the blessings of the spirits.

The male Lepcha wears a dress called a Pagi made of cotton which is striped. The dress comes down to the knees. It is fastened on the shoulder by a pin and a belt is worn round the waist. The Lepcha woman wear two piece dress. The upper garment or the blouse is called the Tago whereas the lower part which resembles a petticoat is called Domdyan. Lepchas are very good at archery. Archery competitions are held very frequently by the Lepchas.

The Nepalese or Gorkhas
A Nepalese Man with a KhukuriThe Nepalese who are immigrants from Nepal, are the dominant people here. They are divided into different castes, speaking various dialects. The short Mongolian type Nepalese, the Gorkhas, renowned for their military prowess the world over, and the first to be decorated with the coveted Victoria Cross, find jobs as security both in the British and Indian armies. Powerfully built, the exploits of the Gorkha Rifles have gone down into legend, literature and lore. They carry the traditional weapon, the Khukuri - a curved ornamental knife put to every conceivable use.

A major sub-cultural stock of the Nepalese community are the Kiratis. The Kiratis include Limbus, Rais, Mangars, Gurungs, Tamangs and some others as well. Originally most of them were hunters and shepherds and semi-nomadic. The Limbus sho are also called Yakthambas (yak-herders or traders) are divided into three sects : Kashigotra, Bhuiphutta and the Lhasagotra (Tsongs). Each Kirati sect has a dialect of its own. Some of the tribes of the Kiratis are animists (attributing the soul to non-living things like mountains), whereas the others are either Hindus or Buddhists. The deities of the Limbu community are Sri Janga, Tagyera, Ningwas Poma and Yuma Shamma. The Mangars are subdivided into the Ranas, Thapas and Allays.

Another class of people, with aquiline noses, broad foreheads and large eyes and tall stature are of Aryan stock and descended from the Rajput refugees who fled India at various stages of her turbulent history. They brought with them, Hinduism. To them belong the Upadhyayas, the Brahmins, the socially prominent Thakurs and the Chettris.

The common language(Nepalese language) spoken is understood by all residing in Darjeeling and its allied areas. It uses the Devnagari script. The great Hindu epic Ramayana has been translated to Nepali by a Nepali poet named Bhanu Bhakta who lived in the last century. The birthday of Bhakta holds a special significance for the Nepalese people. More Information by D.S. Rasaily & R.P. Lama

The Newars
Newari women performing ceremonial ritesNewars are the original inhabitants of the Nepal Valley possessing their own language, script and literature. Besides being good painters, they are also wood-carvers, sculptors and metal workers.

The Newars' Language has a history of its own. According to historian Dr. Dilli Raman Regmi the existence of the Newars in Nepal can be traced back as early as sixth century B. C. In the words of Dr. Kamal Prakash Malla, “The Newari Language is as old as the Newars themselves”. According to Dr. Stenkuno, “The Newari Language belongs to Tibeto-Barman family.”According to Surya Bikram Gnyali, “ Newari Language is, like Chinese and Burmese languages, an ekmatric (mono-syllabic) Language.” Brevity (Laghukaran) is a main characteristic of the Newari Language. It has its own script.”

According to Newari calendar, there are a series of festivals starting from Mhapuja, the new year day in the Newari calendar. After that carnivals like Balkumari Jatra, Degu Puja, Shivaratri, Shree Panchami, Sithi Nakha, Gathemugal, Byanja, Nakegu, Saparu, Matiya, Kumari Jatra(Indra Jatra), Chatha nakha and Mohani (Dashain) come in succession. More Information...

The Bhutias
A Bhutia WomanThese people are of Tibetan origin.These people are found in Darjeeling and Sikkim. They migrated to Sikkim perhaps somewhere after the fifteenth century through Bhutan. The major inhabitants known are the Lachenpas and Lachungpas. The Lachenpas and the Lachungpas respectively have their own traditional legal system known as Zamsa to settle disputes in Sikkim. Zamsa means public meeting place and the village headman, who is also known as the Pion metes out justice and is chosen once in a year by the villagers voting by the show of hands.

Marriage in a Bhutia family is arranged through negotiations by the paternal of maternal uncle of the boy who goes to the bride's house with gifts to ask for the hand in marriage for his nephew.

The men folk have broad face and twinkling eyes which have a habitual jolly expression; earrings and gambling are their chief weaknesses, if we except an an apparent abhorrence of soap and water. The traditional dress of the male member is known as the Bakhu which is a loose cloak type garment with full sleeves and is fastened at the neck on one side and near the waist with a cotton belt. They wear loose trousers. The Bhutia women are broadly built and have fair yellow complexions and ruddy cheeks. The ladies dress consists of a silken Honju which is a full sleeve blouse and a loose gown type garment fastened near the waist tightly with a belt. In the front portion they tie a loose sheet of multi-coloured woollen colth made of special design. This is called Pangdin and is a symbol of a married woman. Ladies are fond of very heavy jewellery made of pure gold. They are continually knitting or spinning their small prayer wheel when not otherwise engaged.