page_title: Nepalis in China
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Nepalis in China / Tibet / Nepali community in Lhasa / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Group photo of members of the Nepalese Chamber of Commerce, Lhasa, Tibet in 1955.
context_page_description: The community of Nepalis in China consists of Nepalese immigrants and expatriates to China as well as Chinese citizens of Nepalese descent.
context_section_description: The first Nepalis to arrive in Tibet were Newar merchants. In the early Malla period (1100-1480), evidence of Newar expansion emerges. Trade routes to Tibet via Humla, Mustang, Kyirong, Khasa and Olangchung Gola channeled north-south relations. Following the Shah conquest of the Newars, Prithvi Narayan Shah cut off the flow of trade through Kathmandu, depriving the Malla kings of revenue and undermining the Newar traders' support of their own. After the British Younghusband Expedition opened up the shorter trade route to Tibet through Kalimpong, by 1908 Newar traders had lost their advantaged position in the Lhasa trade. 
  To trade effectively in Tibet, Newar families sent their brothers or sons to the major cities of Lhasa, Shigatse and Gyantse to live for years at a time. Overtime, these men learned to speak Tibetan, took part in the cultural life centered on Buddhism, and many married Tibetan women. In 1943, Nepalese traders based in Lhasa formed the Nepalese Chamber of Commerce in order to promote trade and coordinated among its members to set uniform prices for their merchandise besides lobbying with the government for business-friendly policy.
caption: Nepalese Chamber of Commerce, Lhasa in 1955.
exif: {"Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "150", "Image YResolution": "150", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS Windows", "Image DateTime": "2011:07:23 10:49:21", "Image ExifOffset": "164", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "302", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6194", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1500", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1050"}