Nepal is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is bordered by China to the north and India to the south, east and west. The Himalaya mountain range runs across Nepal's northern and western parts, and eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including the highest, Mount Everest, are within its territory.
The modern state was formed with the Unification of Nepal by Prithvi Narayan Shah on December 21, 1768. Prior to 2006, Nepal was a kingdom and the only nation with Hinduism as its official religion. At present, Nepal is officially and constitutionally a secular country. Its recent history has involved struggles for democratic government with periods of direct monarchic rule. From 1995 until 2006, Nepal suffered from a Civil War between government forces and Maoist guerrillas of the Communist Party of Nepal.
On December 28, 2007, the Interim Parliament passed a bill and declared Nepal to be a Federal Democratic Republic. The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly officially implemented that declaration on May 28, 2008.
Nepal is a multi-cultural, multi-linguistic and multi religious country. For a relatively small country, Nepal has a diverse landscape, ranging from the humid Terai plains in the south to the mountainous Himalayas in the north, which makes it a major tourist destination. Hinduism is practised by a huge majority of the people, but the country also has a strong Buddhist tradition; Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha Siddhartha Gautama is located in the Terai, one of the three regions of Nepal.
The capital Kathmandu is the largest city in the country. The official language is Nepali and the state currency is the Nepalese Rupee (NPR). Nepal's Flag is the only national flag in the world that is non quadrilateral in shape. It is believed that lord Vishnu had organized the Nepali people and given them this flag, with the sun and moon as emblems on it.