Archive Nepal: November Issue
In this issue: Himal Magazine, Ban Raja, New Description Feature, ICA Congress Abu Dhabi 2023 and More.
Collection Highlight: Himal Magazine
Our highlight this month is Himal Magazine, a prominent publication in South Asia that focuses on politics, culture and society in region. They are known for their critical analysis, thought provoking essays, and engagement with complex issues facing in the South Asian Region.
This magazine initiated its publication in 1987 as the bimonthly Himal, with a focus on the Himalaya region. Himal became the monthly 'Himal Southasian' in 1996, shifting its focus to include a broader definition of South Asia.
Here’s our pick for the month:
Budiama, Radio grandma fulfills her mission | Vol: 0, May 1987, Page 23
Exchanging Stocks the Nepali Way | Vol: 2, Jan/Feb 1989, Page 6
Psychic Pain of Technology | Vol: 4, Jul/Aug 1991, Page 36
The Next Great Earthquake | Vol: 7, May/Jun 1994, Page 26
Lumbini as Disneyland | Vol: 8, Nov/Dec 1995, Page 24
We are constantly looking for ways to make articles from magazines accessible & searchable through our platform. It is a tedious process, and wouldn’t be possible without the hard work of our data entry volunteers.
Know someone who might be interested in data entry of metadata i.e. enter article titles’ into our database with accuracy? Refer a data entry volunteer to be a part of our team!
Hiring Period: Ongoing. Please email hr@archivenepal.org with relevant experience and a short introduction on why you are interested in this position.
We added 2,600+ new images to our collection. Through Archive Nepal’s platform, you can now search over:
32,646 images,
422 videos,
2084 journals,
69 books,
1,360 objects,
484 documents.
Story behind the Picture
Ban Rajas (वन राजा), A Vanishing Himalayan Tribe
Last month, we featured an article from the journal of the Institute of Nepal and Asian Studies titled “The Ban Rajas - a Vanishing Himalayan Tribe” on our social media.
The article by Johan Reinhard is an ethnographic account that explores culture, lifestyle, and challenges faced by the Ban Rajas, an indigenous tribe in the Himalayan region. They are known for being one of the most ancient and isolated communities in the country. They traditionally lived in the forests of western Nepal, practicing hunting and gathering.
Their language, Kusunda, is an isolated language with very few speakers. Recent research suggests their language is part of the Indo-Pacific family, surprising as this language family is typically found in New Guinea and nearby islands. This finding raises questions about their historical migration and warrants further study from linguistic and genetic perspectives. (Whitehouse, P., Usher, T., Ruhlen, M., & Wang, W. S.-Y. (2004).
Read research article: Kusunda: An Indo-Pacific language in Nepal
Today this tribe is nearly extinct. Of those few Kusunda still alive, most of those married have taken spouses from other castes and many of these Kusunda are themselves offsprings of such unions. Most know little of Kusunda customs. They've faced challenges to their way of life due to deforestation and contact with the outside world.
We encourage our audience to delve deeper into their stories and experiences, and foster an appreciation for preservation of ancient languages. Learn more HERE.
Updates from Archive Nepal
Introducing a New Feature on our Website!
We’re excited to announce Our New “Suggest a Description” Feature - where we welcome our users to contribute your insights & knowledge and be a part of the narrative.
How it works:
Navigate an image or photograph.
Click on “Know more about this image? Suggest a Description”.
Share your suggestions for descriptions.
Our team will review* and implement the best ones!
*You’ll be prompted to a Google Form to suggest correction or add additional description to help us improve our search results. We request your information to ensure we maintain documentation of the metadata entry process into our database. This helps us review and verify data for accuracy and legitimacy.
ICA Congress Abu Dhabi 2023
From October 9 to October 13, 2023, Monish Singh, Executive Director of Archive Nepal, had the privilege of participating in the prestigious International Council on Archives (ICA) 2023 congress held in Abu Dhabi, UAE. This event brought together over 5,000 professionals from 135 countries, fostering a vibrant exchange of ideas and experiences.
The central theme of the congress was 'Enriching Knowledge Societies,' and it revolved around several captivating sub-themes, including:
Peace and Tolerance
Access and Memories
Emerging Technologies: Electronic Records, Electronic Solutions
Sustainable Knowledge, Sustainable Planet: Archives, Records, and Climate Change
Trust and Evidence
Access and Connections
The event featured distinguished keynote speakers, including prominent figures like Francois Hollande, Former President of the French Republic, His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Cabinet Member and Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, UAE, Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament, India, and Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, President and Chief Executive Officer of the UAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA). Their insights and perspectives added immense value to the congress.
Archive Nepal takes great pride in representing Nepal on this global platform and is grateful for the opportunity to share knowledge and collaborate with colleagues from around the world.
Overall it was a great experience learning about the major areas the global archiving community is focusing on. Archive Nepal will be identifying projects that we can undertake in the coming days. Stay tuned!