Kirtipur
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Kirtipur किर्तीपुर |
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|---|---|
| Municipality | |
Kirtipur with the Himalaya in the background
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 Kirtipur
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| Coordinates: 27°40′41″N 85°16′37″E / 27.67806°N 85.27694°ECoordinates: 27°40′41″N 85°16′37″E / 27.67806°N 85.27694°E | |
| Country |
 Nepal
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| Zone | Bagmati Zone |
| District | Kathmandu District |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 67,171 |
| Time zone | NST (UTC+5:45) |
| Postal code | 44618 |
| Area code(s) | 01 |
| Website | www.kirtipurmun.gov.np |
Kirtipur (Nepali: कीर्तिपुर, Nepal Bhasa: किपू Kipoo) is an ancient city of Nepal. It is located in the Kathmandu Valley 5 km south-west of the city of Kathmandu. It is one of the five municipalities in the valley, the others being Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur and Madhyapur Thimi.
The name Kirtipur comes from sanskrit terms Kirti (glory) and pur (city). The colloquial terms used for the city is Kipoo.
Originally a Newar foundation, Kirtipur is still a center of Newar culture. It has been merged with surrounding villages to form the municipality of Kirtipur with a population of 67,171.
It consists of many temples, gumbas (Buddhist monastery) and churches too. Due to the presence of Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur is also a popular area for out-of-town students and professors to rent houses and they are major contributors to the local economy.
Kirtipur's history dates from 1099 A.D. It was part of the territory of Lalitpur at the time of the invasion of the Kathmandu Valley by the Gorkhali king Prithvi Narayan Shah in the 18th century.
In 1767, Kirtipur was annexed to the Gorkhali kingdom by Prithvi Narayan following the Battle of Kirtipur. He took the town on his third attempt, after entering it by trickery. After this, he cut off the noses of able bodied men in the city.
This was the site of an inspirational peaceful demonstration of the people in the 2006 mass uprising that overthrew the powers of the king. It is considered to be an anti-monarchy city due to its bitter history against the Shah dynasty whose modern founder conquered the city insultingly, which was followed by negligence of the administration and development by subsequent rulers.
Bagh Bhairab temple is one of the most popular temples dedicated to the God Bhairab in the form of a tiger. This god is regarded as the guardian of Kirtipur and the locals call it Ajudeu, a grandfather god. Bhairab, the most terrifying and awful form of Shiva is the destroyer on one hand and the guardian on the other. Ceremonial rituals in relation to the important events of life such as rice-feeding, puberty, marriage and even the construction of houses cannot be done without propitiating this deity in most of the towns and cities of Nepal.
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