As a trans-border phenomenon, the Nepalis have contributed to the history of state formation in the entire Himalayan region, especially the eastern half which stretches from central Nepal to north-eastern India. An undeniable fact, albeit one often considered politically inconvenient by Indian-Nepalis, is their historical and cultural links with Nepal. The frequent denial of this connection by Indian-Nepalis shapes political action of Nepalis in Sikkim and the Darjeeling hills, where such identification as a Nepali, even strictly in the cultural sense of sharing a common heritage, has lent a distinct political status to the Nepali groups that inhabit Sikkim, Darjeeling, and east Nepal. This ethnic label has, in turn, produced many challenges and opportunities for the Nepalis of the area, thereby leading to the exploitation of this identity in different ways in a bid to secure material as well as cultural prosperity.

It is, therefore, imperative to revisit the socio-economic history of the region in order to contextualise how group identity formation in the eastern hills was triggered by political changes in the Kingdom of Gorkha in the early seventeenth century. This cultural, historical, and social connection and the ethnic group that was subsequently formed – continues to play an important role in how Nepalis see themselves today. Moreover, these connections continue to shape how the intricacies within this ethnic group enable the proliferation of contemporary ethnic politics.

The first half of the chapter engages in a historical narration of ethnic group formation, which begins in the Kingdom of Gorkha and ends in Darjeeling and Sikkim during a period when social, cultural, and religious boundaries defined the life chances of people more than any geographical or political borders (that is, if such borders existed at all). What is discussed in the first half of this chapter, then, is the history of becoming a Nepali, a process that illustrates the socially constructed nature of ethnic groups and their inherent potential for politicisation. The second half of the chapter focuses on being a Nepali in the eastern Himalaya and discusses the contemporary political movements of the region that are based on ethnic identity.