Names
Kangchenjunga is the official spelling adopted by Douglas Freshfield, A.M. Kellas, and the Royal Geographical Society that gives the best indication of the Tibetan pronunciation.
The name Kangchenjunga is derived from Sanskrit काञ्चनगंगा kanchana ganga: kanchana means gold and ganga is the river which flows in the region. The river shines like gold and hence the name Kanchana Ganga was given to this mountain. Its name in Nepali is कञ्चनजङ्घा Kanchanjaŋghā. Its name in the local Limbu language is Sewalungma, meaning "mountain that we offer greetings to". Sewalungma is considered sacred by adherents of the Kirant religion.
There are a number of alternative spellings which include Kangchen Dzö-nga, Khangchendzonga, Kanchenjanga, Kachendzonga, Kanchenjunga or Kangchanfanga. The final word on the use of the name Kangchenjunga came from His Highness Sir Tashi Namgyal, the Maharaja or chogyal of Sikkim, who stated that "although junga had no meaning in Tibetan, it really ought to have been Zod-nga (treasure, five) Kang-chen (snow, big) to convey the meaning correctly". Following consultations with a Lieutenant-Colonel J.L.R. Weir (British political agent to Sikkim), he agreed that it was best to leave it as Kangchenjunga, and thus the name remained so by acceptance and common usage.
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