| Type: | District |
| Kailali District | |
| Coordinates: | 28.6833°N 132°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Sudurpashchim Province |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Seat Type: | Admin HQ. |
| Seat: | Dhangadhi |
| Leader Title: | Head |
| Leader Title1: | Deputy-Head |
| Leader Title2: | Parliamentary constituencies |
| Leader Title3: | Provincial constituencies |
| Government Type: | Coordination committee |
| Governing Body: | DCC, Kailali |
| Area Total Km2: | 3235 |
| Population Total: | 911,155 |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Density Km2: | 281.7 |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Households |
| Blank Name Sec1: | Main Language(s) |
| Blank Info Sec1: | Tharu, Nepali language, Doteli |
| Blank Name Sec2: | Major highways |
| Timezone1: | NPT |
| Utc Offset1: | +05:45 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal Codes |
| Postal Code: | 10900 |
| Area Code: | 91 |
Kailali District (Nepali: [[:ne:कैलाली जिल्ला|कैलाली जिल्ला]]), a part of Sudurpashchim Province in Terai plain, is one of the 77 districts of Nepal. The district, with Dhangadhi as its district headquarters, covers an area of 3235km2 and has a population of 911,155 (2021 census) and (775,709 in 2011 census), (616,697 in 2001 census).
Before the reunification of Nepal by Gorkha King Prithvi Narayan Shah, this district was part of the Doti Kingdom. Nepal lost it to the East India Company after the Anglo-Nepalese war (1814-1816) between the then Kingdom of Nepal and the East India Company followed by territorial concessions under the Sugauli Treaty. Later on after the treaty of 1860, Nepal recovered this land along with Kanchanpur, Banke and Bardiya.
| Climate zone | Elevation range | % of area | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Tropical | below 300 meters (1,000 ft) | 59.3% | |
| Upper Tropical | 300 to 1,000 meters 1,000 to 3,300 ft. | 25.9% | |
| Subtropical | 1,000 to 2,000 meters 3,300 to 6,600 ft. | 13.8% |
At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, Kailali District had a population of 775,709.
As their first language, 41.5% spoke Tharu, 27.3% Nepali, 18.7% Doteli, 6.3% Achhami, 1.4% Magar, 0.9% Maithili, 0.8% Hindi, 0.5% Bajureli, 0.4% Bajhangi, 0.3% Baitadeli, 0.3% Dailekhi, 0.2% Kham, 0.2% Raji, 0.2% Tamang, 0.2% Urdu, 0.1% Bhojpuri, 0.1% Darchuleli, 0.1% Gurung, 0.1% Jumli, 0.1% Newar and 0.1% other languages as their first language.[1]
Ethnicity/caste: 41.9% were Tharu, 20.8% Chhetri, 12.4% Hill Brahmin, 8.4% Kami, 3.9% Thakuri, 3.8% Magar, 2.2% Damai/Dholi, 1.1% other Dalit, 0.9% Sarki, 0.6% Musalman, 0.5% Lohar, 0.5% Sanyasi/Dasnami, 0.4% Badi, 0.4% Newar, 0.3% Raji, 0.3% Tamang, 0.2% Gurung, 0.2% other Terai, 0.1% Terai Brahmin, 0.1% Halwai, 0.1% Kathabaniyan, 0.1% Rai, 0.1% Yadav and 0.1% others.[2]
Religion: 94.9% were Hindu, 2.0% Buddhist, 1.9% Christian, 0.6% Muslim, 0.2% Prakriti and 0.3% others.[3]
Literacy: 65.9% could read and write, 2.7% could only read and 31.4% could neither read nor write.[4]
The district consists of 13 Local Levels, of which one is a sub-metropolitan city, six are urban municipalities and six are rural municipalities. These are as follows:[5]