Nepal Sambat

Every year after celebrating Tihars’ Dipawali, the day after it Nepal Sambat is celebrated. Historical Nepal Sambat changes to a new year from Kartik Suklapakchya Pratipada which is based on Lunar calculation (Chandraman). Thus, this is a moon-based event or lunar calendar. Therefore, it has 354 days in a year and every 3 years the Adhikmas or maximum monthly arrival is of 13 months making one year.

The Newar community living in the country and abroad celebrate their native New Year (Nhu: daya: Bhintuna) with great fervor and excitement, which is a national holiday like any other day of the Tihar festival. The Nepal Sambat (New year) is celebrated with grand events in Nepal particularly in the settlements and places where the Newar communities live, like Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Banepa, Dhulikhel, Barabise, Dolakha, Palpa, Chitlang.

On this day, programs of preservation and promotion of Newari traditions and cultures, costumes, musical instruments, dances, languages, scripts, cuisine, etc. and greetings are exchanged throughout the day in villages, municipal, cities, and streets along with musical parades and rallies. It is called ‘Nhu: Daya: bhintuna’ in Nepal bhasa.

The promoter of Nepal Samvat is Shankadhar Sakhwa. According to, Man of the century and culturist Dr. Satyamoan Joshi, National Bibhuti Shankhandhar Sakhava repaid all forms of debt for poor Nepali people who were hit by debt towards 880 A.D. In the history it can be found, that the clearance of debt of all the people and made Nepal debt-free, by Sankadhar Sakhwa, the then King Raghavadev of Bhaktapur ordered to establish Nepal Sambat from the year 936 B.S. in this auspicious occasion of happiness of paying back the debt. From that time onwards, in Nepal, Nepal Sambat which had been the sovereignty of governmental affairs, remained until the time of Rana Prime Minister Chandra Shamsher.

Since the lunar months’ change is irregular and created a problem of irregular rotation with a three-year period of 13 months long years, it was changed from the year 1960 B.S. Although presently Nepal Sambat is not as a functioning government calendar, it is still equally adopted and given importance in the current calendar plus in the general practice as well.