Sankhuwasabha District


Sankhuwasabha District is one of 14 districts of Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. The district's area is 3,480 km² with a population of 159,203 in 2001 and 158,742 in 2011. The administrative center is Khandbari.
Bordering districts are Bhojpur, Terhathum and Dhankuta in Koshi Zone; Solukhumbu in Sagarmatha Zone; and Taplejung in Mechi Zone. Tingri County of Shigatse Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China borders to the north.

Geography and climate

The Arun River enters from Tibet at an elevation of about 3,500 meters and flows south across the district, forming one of the world's deepest valleys relative to 8,481 meter Makalu to the west and 8,586 meter Kangchenjunga to the east.

Demographics

At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Sankhuwasabha District had a population of 158,742. Of these, 46.2% spoke Nepali, 8.8% Tamang, 8.0% Sherpa, 6.6% Kulung, 5.0% Limbu, 4.3% Yakkha, 3.2% Yamphu, 2.9% Gurung, 2.3% Magar, 2.2% Rai, 1.9% Newari, 1.8% Lohorung, 1.6% Mewahang, 1.1% Khaling, 0.9% Chamling and 0.6% Thulung as their first language.
48.3% of the population in the district spoke Nepali as their second language.