Bista ( ne, बिष्ट) is a family name of people of Nepal belonging to

Khas people Khas people (; ne, खस) popularly known as Khas Arya are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the Himalayan region of South Asia, what is now present-day Nepal, Indian states of Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Sikkim. Historica ...

group under the caste

Chhetri Chhetri (Kshetri, Kshettri, Kshetry or Chhettri), ( ne, क्षेत्री ; IAST: ''Kṣetrī'') historically called Kshettriya or Kshetriya or Khas are Nepali speakers of Khas community, some of whom trace their origin to migration from ...

, sub-groups of

Kshatriya Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...

varna and the

Bahun Bahun ( ne, बाहुन) or Khas Brahmin ( ne, खस ब्राह्मण) is a caste ( ''Varna'') among Khas people of Nepal. Their origins are from the Indo-Aryan Khasa tribe of Nepal and South Asia. According to the 2011 Nepa ...

caste of

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...

varna. They are

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

with a local Masto deity. They speak

Nepali language Nepali (; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Himalayas region of South Asia. It is the official, and most widely spoken, language of Nepal, where it also serves as a '' lingua franca''. Nepali has official status in the Indian st ...

as mother tongue. In India, Bista/Bistas are spelled as Bisht/Bishts or Bist/Bists and are titled as

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

s. They are mostly found in Indian state of Uttarakhand. Bista is also a surname belonging to the Brahmins of the Kumain Bahun subcaste.

Naming and Status

Bundesarchiv Bild 135-S-16-05-39, Tibetexpedition, Gesandte Nepals mit Sekretären

Bista is literally translated as ''Baron'' or ''landholder''. For example; Chauhan in Eastern Nepal were referred as ''Bista'' in an explanation of assault of a Chauhan man by a

Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...

man where governmental orders of capital punishment was given to the Dalit man on Poush Badi 12, 1882 V.S. (1826 A.D.) on the grounds of assaulting a high caste citizen. The excerpts from the royal orders to ''Bichari'' (Judge) Shivanidhi Padhya and ''Bichari'' (Judge) Parath Khadka on Poush Badi 12, 1882 V.S.:

Notable people with surname Bista

Anjan Bista Anjan Bista ( ne, अञ्जन विष्ट; born 15 May 1998) is a Nepalese footballer who plays as a forward for I-League club Mumbai Kenkre and the Nepal national football team. He made his first appearance for the Nepal national footba ...

, Nepalese footballer * Bikash Bista, Nepalese academician *

Deepak Bista Deepak Bista ( ne, दीपक विष्ट, born 2 July 1976) is a male Nepalese taekwondo former player and practitioner. One of the most popular and highly popular sportsperson in Nepal, he competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics. On August 8 ...

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

gold medalist *

Dor Bahadur Bista Dor Bahadur Bista (born ca. 1924-1928) is a Nepalese anthropologist, social scientist and activist. Bista is considered the Father of Nepalese anthropology, and has published popular books such as '' Fatalism and Development'' and ''People of Ne ...

, Nepalese anthropologist * Gokarna Bista, Nepalese politician *

Kirti Nidhi Bista Kirti Nidhi Bista ( ne, कीर्तिनिधि विष्ट; 15 January 1927 – 11 November 2017) was a Nepali politician and 25th Prime Minister of Nepal. Biography Bista was born in Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal in 1927. He served as p ...

, former PM of Nepal *

Om Bikram Bista Om Bikram Bista () is popular musician, singer and composer of Nepalese music field. He is son of writer Daulat Bikram Bista. He is considered "King of Pop" in Nepal. He competed in "All Nepal Music Competition" at the age of 10 years. He also p ...

, Nepali pop singer * Raju Bista, member of Indian parliament from Darjeeling. * Ranjan Bista , Nepalese footballer

Notable people with title Bista

Jigme Dorje Palbar Bista Jigme Dorje Palbar Bista (Tibetan: འཇིག་མེད་རྡོ་རྗེ་དཔལ་འབར།, Nepali: जिग्मे दोर्जे पलवर विष्ट; 1930– 16 December 2016) was the unofficial King of Mus ...

, Former Titular King of Mustang

References

Books

* * {{Bahun communities Surnames of Nepalese origin Nepali-language surnames Khas people Brahmin communities of Nepal Hindu communities