It's time for the English-speaking community to start getting the name of our community correct, Nepal’s Foreign Minister, Prakash Sharan Mahat said in Sydney this week.
Mahat has made it something of a personal mission to ensure people from Nepal are called Nepali not Nepalese, as they are often referred to in English language.
"People who live in Nepal, we call them Nepali," Mr Mahat said at a press conference in Sydney this week.
"Let us start saying Nepali in English as well, instead of saying Nepalese."
Mr Mahat says his department has started the process of replacing the word "Nepalese" from all official documents.
So, what's the difference between Nepali vs Nepalese?
Dr Ahmar Mahboob, a Professor of Linguistics at Sydney University tells SBS, "the difference lies in how the words are formed."
"The association of the suffix (-ese and -i). ‘-ese’ is an English suffix which is often used to refer to people/language/food of a particular group; for example, Japan —> Japanese, Portugal —> Portuguese."
On the other hand, Dr Mahboob says, "'–i' is a common South Asian suffix (including Nepali) and does the same job, for example, Sindh —> Sindhi, Gujrat —> Gujrati."
"So, the choice between the two is often one of identity," he says.
"Nepali (and South Asian) people tend to prefer ‘Nepali' as it reflects local morphology (as well as heritage and identity), whereas other people tend to use ‘Nepalese’ as it is influenced by and used in English."
"The choice between the two is often one of identity."
Journalist Kunda Dixit, the Editor of the Nepali Times concurs, "The British always used Nepalese as an adjective. They still do."
"But more and more, people are using Nepali for both the people and the language as well as an adjective," Mr Dixit tells SBS.
"The rationale is if it is Bengali and not Bengalese, why Nepalese? This is why we chose to use 'Nepali' it for The Nepali Times."
Community organisations in many countries still use Nepalese within their registered name and Minister Mahat also urged the members of the Nepali diaspora to help adopt Nepali as the only way to refer to the people from Nepal.
The call for a change in the way people from Nepal are referred to still needs to happen inside Nepal. The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs describes the diplomatic missions overseas as "Nepalese" instead of "Nepali".
This screen shot was taken on 25th November 2016.
During his first visit to Australia as a foreign minister, this week Minister Mahat met his Australian counterpart, Ms. Julie Bishop and Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Minister for International Development and the Pacific.
Nepalese vs Nepali Source: MOFA
Minister Mahat urged Ms Bishop to allow the Australian Embassy in Kathmandu to issue visas to Nepali students and visitors willing to visit Australia. Currently, Nepalis need to request their visas through Australia's embassy in New Delhi, India.
He also invited his counterpart for an official visit to Nepal.
Dr. Mahat assumed his office on 26 August 2016 after a political career of more than 30 years that started in the 1970s through his involvement in the students political movement. He was the General Secretary of Nepal Students’ Union from 1983 to 1997.
The Nepali minister is also known for his role in the Constitution drafting process which has been transformed into the Legislature-Parliament after the promulgation of Constitution of Nepal on 20 September 2015.
Listen to Mr Mahat's full interview with SBS Radio Nepali below:
Mr Mahat's visit also coincided with the 2016 Nepal Festival in Sydney this weekend, which SBS Radio Nepali attended. See photos and a wrap up of the event below:
