The Sherpa people (Standard Tibetan: ཤར་པ།, romanized: shar pa) are a Tibetan ethnic group native to the mountainous regions of Nepal, India, and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China.Most Sherpas live in eastern Nepal: the provinces of Bagmati (mainly in the districts of Dolakha, Sindhupalchok and Rasuwa) and Koshi (mainly in the districts of Solukhumbu, Sankhuwasabha and Taplejung). Some live north of Kathmandu, in the Bigu and Helambu regions. They can also be found in Tingri County, Bhutan, and the Indian states of Sikkim and northern West Bengal (the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts). Sherpas establish monasteries known as gompas in these regions, where they follow their local traditions. Tengboche was the first celibate monastery in Solu-Khumbu.
The Sherpa language is part of the southern branch of the Tibeto-Burman languages, mixed with eastern (Khams Tibetan) and central Tibetan dialects. This language is separate from Lhasa Tibetan, and is unintelligible to Lhasa speakers.