Alternate Names: Ban Raji, Janggali, Rajibar, Rawati, Rjya
Dialects: Barh Bandale, Naukule, Purbiya. Reportedly similar to Rawat ,. Speakers of Barh Bandale and Purbiya have difficulty in understanding the Naukule variety. Lexical similarity: From 84% and 86% between the three varieties; 55% with Raute ,.
Status Notes: Language of recognized indigenous nationality: Rajhi.
Genealogy:
Demographics: 3,760 (2011 census), decreasing. Ethnic population: 4,000.
Language Use: In one village in Kailali District, Khailad VDC, speakers under 6 years of age and over 60 years old are monolingual. Religion; mixed use: Home, friends, work. Some use among all ages. Negative attitudes. Also use Hindi [hin], Nepali [npi].
Language Development: Literacy rate in L2: 22% (1991 census). Literacy in Nepali [npi] is increasing since parents have started sending their children to school. Poetry. Dictionary.
Writing System: Devanagari
Nation of Origin: Nepal
Other Comments: The Raji were a nomadic group, but now settled. Sharma (1990) identifies Raji in India (perhaps Bodo Gadaba ,) as a Munda language with borrowings from Tibeto-Burman and Indo-Aryan. Barh Bandale dialect is the most prestigious. May be the same as Rawat , in India. Traditional religion, Buddhist.