Nepal’s recorded history spans over 2,500 years, though human settlements in the region date back at least to the Neolithic age. Ancient texts such as the Mahabharata mention Nepal, and archaeological evidence places the Kathmandu Valley as a center of civilization as early as the 1st millennium BCE. The Licchavi dynasty (circa 400–750 CE) established many of Nepal’s earliest stone temples and water systems, some of which are still functional. In the 12th century, the Malla kings ruled and ushered in a golden age of art and architecture, particularly in the Kathmandu Valley. Modern Nepal was founded in 1768 when King Prithvi Narayan Shah of the Gorkha Kingdom unified various small principalities into a single state. Unlike most South Asian nations, Nepal was never colonized, although it fought the British East India Company in the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814–1816), resulting in the Treaty of Sugauli, where Nepal ceded about one-third of its territory, including parts of present-day India. In the 20th century, Nepal was ruled by a hereditary monarchy, followed by a period of absolute monarchy until the 1990 People’s Movement led to constitutional reforms. A second movement in 2006 led to the end of the monarchy entirely in 2008, transforming Nepal into the Federal Democratic Republic it is today.