The Lhomi caste is one of the 125 castes of Nepal and 59 indigenous tribes listed. This caste, also known as Shingsaba or Bhotia, belongs to the majority of the minority community here.The Lhomi people have been living in the upper Arun and Barun valleys of the northern Sankhuwasabha district under Province One of Eastern Nepal since time immemorial. At that time there was a barter trade between the Feruk (Kharta) region of Tibet and the Lhomi. Bilateral relations and reciprocity were maintained. The word ‘Lhomi’ is defined as the combination of two local words: Lho ‘South’ and Me or Mi ‘Manis’ in the understanding of the Feruk (Kharta) region of Tibet.

According to another argument, the two different Lhomi words for Lheme are 'a definite Hocho geography', and the May / Mi 'man' by adding or merging Lheme, Lhemey, Lhome and finally Lhomi means 'geography lower than the Pherok region of Tibet or the people living in the upper Arun valley'. It is called 'Lhomi'.

(Himalayan trader’s life in highland Nepal, 1957). Geographically, it falls in the lowlands to the south of the Arun Valley, above the Feruk region of Tibet. Even the local Naba tribes call this community 'Lheme' and 'Lhomi'.

The Lhomi caste has been included in the list of 59 Adivasi Janajatis listed in the schedule of Article (2) of the Government of Nepal Adivasi Janajati Utthan Rashtriya Pratisthan Act 2058 BS. In which Lhomi (Shingsaba) is listed and classified as a very marginalized language group.The tribe has also been given the surnames of Shingsaba and Karbhote, and the Lhomi live not only in Nepal but also in other parts of India, including the Dendang, Lundek region of Tibet, and the Darjeeling and Kalimpong areas of West Bengal in India.

Within the Lhomi (Shingsaba) dynasty, there are two dozen other tharas, namely, Thikepa, Nuppa, Pongsyu, Khumbuwa, Bhochyab, Jyavasyaringapratak, Lingbo, Feknak, Monang, Changba, Khamba, Dhakratokpa, Lhorung, Gandokpa and Ghukmuwa. There are also stones like Pubukamma, Uchyentesi, Bhisingchyem, Dhongmep, Thujyib, Pechiring, Raptemb, Dhongdepp, Pejyaba, Seknepeden, Hamuwa, Bakuchchhatra etc. within the Thekepa Thar.Similarly, rocks like Sonaringjen (Dhongdopapp), Yugokp, Hamov, Sechya, Gambukp, ‍laptrang, Lalinswa, Lhamuchiring, Yangjanuppu, Peruv, Bhalung-Lobang are also found in Nuppa Thar.

The Lhomi Shingsabas call their language 'Lhoket'. This language belongs to the Bhote-Burmese language family.Hatiya (Damdamamuk), Honggong (Pandok), Chepuwa (Thangmuchhri), Chyamtang (Damdangm), Chyamtang (Damdangm), Gumba (Gomb), Linggang (Linggam), Rukum (Rukuma), Saksimu (Nama) , Siprung (Chigulung) etc. The Lhomi language is spoken as a monolingual community in the villages.

Apart from minor differences in these villages, there is no clear regional distinction, but the dialect spoken in Chepuwa village, which is the center of Lhomi settlement, is considered as the standard language. The Lhomi language is closely related to the Sherpa, Naba, Lhowa, Dolpo, Hyolmo, Nuptri, etc. languages spoken in the Himalayan region.

The Lhomi people, who consider the Upper Arun Valley as their abode or ancestral abode, are now leaving their abode in search of employment or opportunity and settling permanently or temporarily in the district headquarters Khandbari or other urban areas: Dharan, Damak, Kathmandu etc. The population of Lhomi is estimated to be around 20,000 in Nepal. However, according to the National Census 2068, their population is only 1,614, while the total number of speakers of Lhomi language is only 800. Therefore, Lhomi language is definitely one of the endangered language groups of Nepal.

SIL International - Nepal

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