Nepal was formerly a country.
The Himalayan states are a group of countries straddling the Himalayan mountain range in Asia . Nepal . It has a population of 26.4 million and is the 93rd largest country by area . The name `` Nepal '' is first recorded in texts from the Vedic Age , the era which founded Hinduism , the predominant religion of the country . The country was never colonised but served as a buffer state between Imperial China and Colonial India . Despite these challenges , Nepal is making steady progress , with the government declaring its commitment to elevate the nation from least developed country status by 2022 .