Jirel people

The Jirels (Nepali: जिरेल जातिlisten ) is an ethnic Nepali group. Jirel are one of the 59 indigenous peoples in Nepal. Jirel people are closely related with sherpa people of Nepal. Some claim that sherpa who migrated to jiri later became jirel.They are the original inhabitants of Jiri and its adjoining villages in Dolkha district, the central region of Nepal. They have their own distinct language, culture, customs, rituals and lifestyles. They follow Buddhist religion, their priest is called Lama. They also worship Jhakri (shamans). Jhakri and Lamas are called pembo and phombo respectively. Their main occupation is agriculture in recent days they have also been involved in business. They either bury or cremate their dead on the recommendations of the Buddhist Lama. They are primarily settled down in Dolakha and Sindhupalchowk districts, alongside of Likhu, Khimti and Jiri Shikri rivers. Jirels have their own mother tongue which is called ‘Jirel Bhasa’ belongs to Tibeto-Burman language family.

Jirel people

Regions with significant populations
Nepal  India  Bhutan  China (Tibet Autonomous Region)
Religion
Hinduism, Buddhism and minorities of Bön , Christianity, Animism, Jainism, predominantly Kiratism, Muslim, Sikhism (by gurudwaras in Nepal)

Footnotes

References

• Maibaum, Anita and Esther Strahm. 2005. Jirel-Nepali-English. Kathmandu: Central Department of Linguistics. Tribhuvan University.