According to the statistics of the National census 2011, Nepal is home to more than 26.6 million people. Altogether 101 ethnic groups and 92 spoken languages are there. Every group of people has its own mother tongue. All the ethnic and religious communities have equal rights to maintain, practice, promote and preserve their religious practices. In Government as well as private offices, English is used by a majority of educated people. The people in Nepal are divided into Himalayan people, mid-hills people, and terai people on the basis of their inhabitance and origins.
Nepal respects multiculturalism. One of the noticeable features of our community is cultural diversity. The culture of Nepal is different and rich in the world. The culture has been influenced by the religious belief, norms, and values of the country. This multi-dimensional heritage limits the varieties of Nepal's ethnic, and social groups. It also communicates in music and dance, art and craft, languages and literature, festivals and celebration, and foods and drinks. Funs and festivals, as many as the days in a year which has been connected to various castes and ethnic groups and valued by the way of life of Nepalese people. Typical native foods add taste to the different characters of these festivals. Every ethnic group contains customs and traditions which create interest in the visitors. Here religion is a way of life in Nepal where people enjoy unity in diversity. The Hindus visit the temples and at the same time worship in the Buddhist temples as well. Likewise, Buddhists visit the Hindu temples and perform prayers. Therefore, we can see a kind of patience and harmony in society.
People are free to practice religion since the declaration of the country is a secular one. The culture has many symbols from Hindu and Buddhist sources. Positive signs, including the ancient Hindu swastika and Shiva's trident, decorate buses and walls. Other significant symbols are the signs like the tree, plow, and sun used to be the symbols of political parties. Similarly, Nepalese food is influenced by Indian and Chinese foods. But only one can enjoy the varieties of Nepalese foods, especially the Newari and Thakali dishes in all seasons which are known as the best food in Nepal. People do not use knives and forks while eating. They choose to eat with clean hands. As a regular dish, Nepali people eat dal (lentil soup), Bhat (rice), and tarkari (curry) with achar (pickle). On special occasions, people also prefer curried meat. Dumplings (mo: mo), Sel Roti (rounded bread), dhido (millet porridge), etc. are also popular among the people in Nepal. Some of the dishes are the weakening in rural Nepal and preserved in the urban areas as the dishes of particular interest by various hotels and restaurants.
Nepal has a history of obeying different religions living in harmony and feeling of brotherhood among people. Visitors can enjoy not only different cultures but also religious practices and food habits that Nepali society has been enjoying while visiting Nepal.