Kulung

The Kirat Kulung are one of the indigenous communities of Nepal, as well as parts of northeastern Sikkim and Darjeeling district of India, having their own Kulung language, culture, history and tradition. The Kulung population in Nepal is estimated to be in the region of 150,000-200,000.

The ethno-linguistic region inhabited by the Kulungs is called the "Mahakulung" ("Greater Kulung") and is located in the Solukhumbu district of Sagarmatha Zone of Nepal. It specifically refers to the Hongu valley, comprising Gudel, Chheskam, Bung, Pawai and Sotang, as well as villages in the Sankhuwasawa District and the valleys of the Hongu, Sangkhuwa and Siswa rivers. Presently Mahakulung is located in the Bung, Chheskam, Gudel and Sotang village development committees in the Solukhumbu District in the eastern part of Nepal. There are Kulung communities in 22 districts of Nepal. However, the major settlements are Solukhumbu, Sankhuwasabha, Bhojpur, Khotang, Sunsari, Morang, Jhapa, Illam, Tehrathum and Kathmandu.

They are part of Kirat community, tracing their lineage from the Kirati ruler Khambu. First time in the hunting era four Kitanti ancestors namely Khapdulu, Ratapkhu, Chhemsi and Tamsi had entered Mahakulung through Rawakhola of Khotang. They liked those places and so Ratapkhu inhabited in Sotang, Khapdulu, Tamsi and Chhemsi created Pelmang, Chheskam and Chhemsi villages respectively. Recently generations of those four Kiranti ancestors are known as Kulung and those large area they have been occupying in Solukhumbu are called Mahakulung. With the beginning of modern era, they started to go out from their territory to search better life. In this regards some migrated Sikkim and Darjeeling of India and some in different parts of Nepal. In World War I and World War II, some Kulung youth were admitted into the British Army and then they migrated in more developed cities such as Dharan, Jhapa and Ilam of Nepal.

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