EASY DESTINATION
        HOME      WORLD TRAVEL GUIDE       INDIA TRAVEL GUIDE      ADVERTISE           TRAVEL FORUM

  INDIAN CUISINE     SKI RESORTS     TREKKING      MEDICAL TOURISM      WORLD CITY GUIDE    CYCLING


                 SIKKIM TRAVEL GUIDE

                     GANGTOK

Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayas. It is the least populous
state in India, and the second-smallest in area after Goa. The thumb-shaped state
borders Nepal in the west, Tibet Autonomous Region of China to the north and east,
and Bhutan in the southeast. The Indian state of West Bengal borders Sikkim to its
south. The official languages are Hindi , Bhutia, Nepali, Lepcha, Limbu, and English.
The language of almost all written transactions is English. The predominant
religions are Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism. Gangtok is the capital and largest
town

Despite its tiny size, Sikkim is geographically diverse, owing to its location on the
Himalaya. The climate ranges from subtropical to high alpine. Kangchenjunga, the
world's third highest peak, is located in the northwestern part of the state on the
boundary with Nepal, and can be seen from most parts of the state. Sikkim is a
popular tourist destination for its culture, scenic beauty and biodiversity.

The most widely accepted origin of the name Sikkim is that it is a combination of two
words in the Limbu Su, which means "new", and Khyim, which means "palace" or
house, in reference to the palace built by the state's first ruler, Phuntsok Namgyal.
The Tibetan name for Sikkim is Denjong, which means the "valley of rice"

The earliest recorded event related to Sikkim is the passage of the Buddhist saint
Guru Rinpoche through the land in the 8th century. The Guru is reported to have
blessed the land, introduced Buddhism to Sikkim, and foretold the era of monarchy
in the state that would arrive centuries later. In the 14th century, according to legend,
Khye Bumsa, a prince from the Minyak House in Kham in Eastern Tibet, had a divine
revelation one night instructing him to travel south to seek his fortunes. His
descendants were later to form the royal family of Sikkim. In 1642, the
fifth-generation descendant of Khye Bumsa, Phuntsog Namgyal, was consecrated
as the first Chogyal (king) of Sikkim by the three venerated Lamas who came from
the north, west and south to Yuksom, marking the beginning of the monarchy.

Phuntsog Namgyal was succeeded in 1670 by his son, Tensung Namgyal, who
moved the capital from Yuksom to Rabdentse. In 1700, Sikkim was invaded by the
Bhutanese with the help of the half-sister of the Chogyal, who had been denied the
throne. The Bhutanese were driven away by the Tibetans, who restored the throne to
the Chogyal ten years later. Between 1717 and 1733, the kingdom faced many raids
by the Nepalese in the west and Bhutanese in the east, culminating with the
destruction of the capital Rabdentse by the Nepalese



GENERAL INFORMATION


Time zone         IST (UTC+5:30)
Area                   7,096 kmē (2,740 sq mi)
Capital              Gangtok
Largest city       Gangtok
District(s)          4
Population        540,493 (28th)
Density              76.17/kmē (197/sq mi)
Language(s)    Nepali