Baburam Acharya (
Nepali: बाबुराम आचार्य) (1888–1971 AD) was a
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...
ese historian and literary scholar. He is known as the historian laureate () of Nepal. The four part biography of
King Prithivi Narayan Shah, founder of Modern Nepal is a key series of work he created. He is known for the study of ancient Nepalese inscriptions.
Sagarmatha
Nepal’s eminent historian late Baburam Acharya is credited with the Nepali name Sagarmatha () for
Mount Everest
Mount Everest (; Tibetic languages, Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is List of highest mountains on Earth, Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border ru ...
that straddles Nepal-China
border
Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...
. Previously, Nepal had no official name of its own for the world’s tallest peak in Nepali, although official name among many
Nepalese people
Nepalis ( English: Nepalese ; ne, नेपाली) are the citizens of Nepal under the provisions of Nepali nationality law. The country is home to people of many different national origins who are the descendants of immigrants from India, ...
-
Sherpa Sherpa may refer to:
Ethnography
* Sherpa people, an ethnic group in north eastern Nepal
* Sherpa language
Organizations and companies
* Sherpa (association), a French network of jurists dedicated to promoting corporate social responsibility
* ...
,
Limbu, etc. existed long ago. What may not be true however is that he coined the name for the mountain.
Baburam wrote an essay in the late 1930s in which he said that among the local population of the remote Everest region the mountain was popular by the name Sagarmatha (meaning the Head of the Earth touching the Heaven); some even called it Jhomolongma. In his own words:
The then rulers of Nepal took exception of publication of the essay and its publication, and the historian was admonished. In his book ''A Brief Account of Nepal'', Baburam wrote
In his another book ''China, Tibet and Nepal'' Baburam wrote: "The name Sagarmatha already existed; I only discovered it; it is not that I christened the mountain with a new name."
Two decades after the publication of the essay, the Nepalese government gave official recognition to the name.
Publications
* The Bloodstained Throne: Struggles for Power in Nepal (1775-1914)
* Chin, Tibet ra Nepal
* Purana Kavi ra Kabita
* General Bhimsen Thapa: Yinko Utthan ra Patan
* Nepalko Sanskritic Parampara
* Hamro Rastrabhasa Nepali
* Shree Panch Pratapsingh Shah
* Prachinkaalko Nepal
* Nepalko Samchhipta Britanta
* Shree Panch Prithvi Narayan Shah ko Samchhipta Jeewani
* Baburam Acharya ra Unka Kriti
Recognition
Stamp issued by the Government of Nepal 12 March 1973
Further Studies
* Sahitya ra Srasta.
References
1888 births
1971 deaths
20th-century Nepalese historians
{{Nepal-academic-bio-stub
Khas people
Nepalese non-fiction writers