‘Himal’ equals Cluster, Chain, Group

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A term developed in the Nepal Himalaya can be extended to cover the whole Himalaya.

The indifference with which the Himalayan peaks were treated by the people of the Himalayan mid-hills is clear from the fact that most of the great massifs did not have names. (Even today, only 20 percent of Nepal's above-6000ers are thus fortunate.) Other than a source of religious folklore, no attempt was made to understand their structure geographically, to find out the peculiarity of a peak or range, or to climb and explore this snowbound environment. All this had to wait for the arrival of the European explorers and climbers.

Conditions have changed a great deal in recent years. Mountain enthusiasts, climbers or otherwise, from either side of the Himalaya have taken to climbing the mountains or exploring their lower reaches. Others are acquainting themselves with mountain literature or brushing up on their knowledge, both useful and esoteric, of the mountains. One related development is that the locals have also taken to naming the peaks.

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Himal Southasian
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