ScriptLookup

Nepali

Q: What alphabet or script does Nepali use?

Nepali is written using the Devanagari (Nagari) script (Deva).

Q: What direction is Nepali written?

Nepali is written Left-to-right, the same direction as most European languages.

नेपाली

ne 16M speakers

Nepali (नेपाली) is a Indo-European language with approximately 16M speakers speakers. It is written using the Devanagari (Nagari) script. Its BCP 47 language code is ne.

Nepali (नेपाली) is an Indo-Aryan language and the official language of Nepal. It is also spoken in parts of India and Bhutan. With approximately 16 million native speakers, it serves as a lingua franca in Nepal, which has over 120 languages.

Nepali is written in the Devanagari script, which it shares with Hindi, Sanskrit, and Marathi. Nepali is mutually intelligible to some degree with Hindi but has distinct grammatical features and vocabulary influenced by Tibetan and indigenous Nepali languages.

Writing Systems Used for Nepali

Frequently Asked Questions

What alphabet or script does Nepali use?

Nepali is written using the Devanagari (Nagari) script (ISO 15924 code: Deva). Devanagari (Nagari) is written left-to-right.

What direction is Nepali written?

Nepali is written Left-to-right. Text runs from left to right, the same direction as most European languages.

How many people speak Nepali?

Nepali has approximately 16M speakers speakers worldwide. It is a member of the Indo-European language family.

What language family does Nepali belong to?

Nepali belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is written with the Devanagari (Nagari) script.

What is the language code for Nepali?

The BCP 47 language code for Nepali is "ne". This code is used in software, web standards (the HTML lang attribute), and internationalization contexts.

Language Facts

BCP 47 Code: ne
ISO 639-3: nep
Status: living
Scope: macrolanguage
Speakers: 16M speakers
Language Family: Indo-European
Scripts: 1
Primary Script: Devanagari (Nagari)

Other Devanagari (Nagari) Languages

Angika Awadhi Bhojpuri Bodo Braj Dogri Fiji Hindi Gondi Haryanvi Hindi Kangri Kashmiri Konkani Kurukh Magahi Maithili Marathi Marwari Newari Rajasthani

Data sourced from Unicode CLDR and ISO 639-3. Last updated April 20, 2026.