Told in the hills
A Limbu borderland under the ridge
The Limbu call themselves Yakthung and their language Yakthungpan. Their homeland, Limbuwan, spreads across eastern Nepal and into West Sikkim, and the Singalila Ridge above Uttarey has never been much of a barrier to families on either side. Limbu life follows the Mundhum, an oral body of scripture that guides rituals, marriage and the farming year. Their main festival is Chasok Tangnam, a harvest thanksgiving. Limbu is also one of the official languages of Sikkim.
The Limbu script is linked to the name Sirijunga. Wikipedia credits its first design to a Limbu king of that name, and in the 18th century the scholar Te-ongsi Sirijunga Xin Thebe worked to revive the script and teach it. He was killed at Martam in West Sikkim. Today the script is taught again in schools in Sikkim, and you may spot it on signboards and in prayer books in Limbu homes around Uttarey.
Above the village, trails climb to the Singalila Ridge and the border pass of Chiwa Bhanjyang, bhanjyang being the Nepali word for a pass. For generations people walked these routes between Sikkim and Nepal for trade, marriage and grazing. Today the pass has an SSB post, and walkers need ID and a local guide. We cannot confirm the current rules for crossing there, so treat it as a ridge walk, not a border crossing, and check current status before you travel.
Pinned to the board
Did you know
Singshore Bridge, on the road from Pelling to Uttarey, is about 240 m long and about 100 m high, and links the Dentam and Uttarey sides of a gorge.
The Limbu people call themselves Yakthung and follow the Mundhum, an oral scripture that guides their rituals.
The 18th-century Limbu scholar Te-ongsi Sirijunga Xin Thebe, who worked to spread the Limbu script, was killed at Martam in West Sikkim.
