Nepali gifts for foreigners: what to give friends and colleagues in Europe

Good Nepali gifts for foreigners carry a piece of Nepal that a friend or colleague can understand without you there to explain it. If you live in Europe, that rules out most things you would bring back in a suitcase. Our prints put a Nepali or Sanskrit line in Devanagari with the English meaning underneath, or a Nepal trek route with every stop. Here is what we would give, with prices and delivery times.

What is a good Nepali gift for a foreigner?

A good Nepali gift for a foreigner is something with words they can read. A print with a line in Devanagari and its English meaning underneath looks like Nepal on the wall and still says something in their language. For a friend, a colleague or in-laws, वसुधैव कुटुम्बकम्, "the whole world is one family", is a good first choice. It costs from €29.95.

The Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam print is a Sanskrit line, written in the same Devanagari script Nepali uses. Other lines that work for someone who does not read Nepali:

• सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः, Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah: May all beings be happy, may all beings be free from illness. A good housewarming print.
• शान्ति, Shanti: peace. One word, for a calm room.
• एउटा हाते ताली बज्दैन, Euta haate taali bajdaina, the Nepali proverb "one hand alone can't clap". A good one for a colleague who helped you settle in.

What are good traditional Nepali gifts to give abroad?

Our prints are not traditional handicrafts. What they carry is traditional: folk proverbs, उखान टुक्का (ukhan tukka), that grandparents use, and Sanskrit lines, set in Devanagari for a modern wall. If your friend wants something made in Nepal, a print will not replace that.

The proverbs are in our Voices of Home collection. Each has the Nepali large and the English small, so the friend can read the meaning and ask you how to say it. We explain eight of them in Nepali quotes with meanings.

What Nepali gift suits a foreigner who loves the mountains?

A foreigner who loves the mountains will get the most from a map of a trek in Nepal. Our trek route maps show each stop and its altitude, from €29.95. The Everest Base Camp map runs from Lukla at 2,860 m to Base Camp at 5,364 m.

There are ten routes in the Trek Route Maps collection, each in a light and a dark version. If they have trekked, choose the route they walked. If they have not, Everest is probably the name they know best; our Everest Base Camp map guide lists every stop.

Can I buy Nepali gifts for foreigners online and send them directly?

Yes, you can buy these Nepali gifts online and send them directly within the EU. Each print is made to order and posted straight to the address you give. The product page shows the delivery window for your country. Delivery costs €5.95, and is free on orders from €40.

Buying for your own family instead? Our Dashain gift ideas guide covers parents, brothers and sisters. If you are not sure what they would like, a gift card from €10 to €200 lets them choose, and it arrives straight away. Standard prints can be returned within 30 days of delivery, and we pay for the return shipping.

How much do these Nepali gifts cost?

Word, proverb and verse prints start at €29.95 unframed at 30 x 40 cm. On a wood hanger they start at €56.95, and wood framed at €71.95. Trek maps start at €29.95 unframed. Two small prints together come to €59.90 and ship free.