Gurungs, Goorkhalis, Gurkhas: Speculations on a Nepalese ethno-history

The Gurungs are a Tibeto-Burman people who have for centuries inhabited the southern slopes of the Himalaya in central Nepal. Outside Nepal, they have gained recognition along with Magar, Limbu, and Rai peoples as tough soldiers in Gurkha regiments of the Indian and British armies. Their homeland is a contact zone between Indian Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, and both these have overlaid an ancient shamanistic religion, to become part of the Gurung culture.