It’s not surprising that Tibet and India affected the Newar People. What is surprising is their creativity reaction to this stimulus, which in fact led to a real exchange with their gigantic neighbours. Mediaeval Near society has left a unique and spectacular, by any standard, religious architectural and artistic heritage.
Despite the fact that most Newars have Mongolian physical characteristics, some don’t, so their origins are covered in mystery. It is now usually recognized that they are a combination of many distinct peoples attracted to the valley, potentially originating with the Kiratis, or an previous group, their love of community life may be the most striking feature of the Newars. Newar houses have invariably been grouped together, generally around religiously important locations.
Although their economy was focused on agriculture and trade, they created sophisticated urban communities that were rarely matched to a wide range of human needs.
Today the Kathmandu Valley is mainly focused around 600,000 Newars. The Newars continues to fill this position throughout the kingdom, always traders and merchants. They have also been disproportionately influenced by their closeness to the core of authority in the Kathmandu bureaucracies. Many are now living in heartbreaking hideous bungalows on the outskirts of the town itself, and many of their traditions are dwindling.
