On Tuesday, the Foreign Ministers of Nepal and China jointly certified the elevation of Mount Everest at 8,848.86 metres above sea level — 86 cm higher than what was recognised since 1954.
Mount Everest is Earth’s highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point.
Mount Everest attracts many climbers, some of them highly experienced mountaineers. There are two main climbing routes, one approaching the summit from the southeast in Nepal (known as the “standard route”) and the other from the north in Tibet.
While not posing substantial technical climbing challenges on the standard route, Everest presents dangers such as altitude sickness, weather, and wind, as well as significant hazards from avalanches and the Khumbu Icefall. As of 2019, over 300 people have died on Everest, many of whose bodies remain on the mountain.
Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary made the first official ascent of Everest in 1953, using the southeast ridge route.
The Tibetan name for Everest is Qomolangma (Holy Mother), while in the Chinese transcription it is known as Shèngmǔ Fēng (Holy Mother Peak). Many other local names exist, including “Deodungha” (Holy Mountain) in Darjeeling. In the early 1960s, the Nepalese government coined the Nepali name for Everest as Sagar-Matha (Goddess of the sky).
However, in 1865, Everest was given its official English name by the Royal Geographical Society, as recommended by Andrew Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India, who chose the name of his predecessor in the post, Sir George Everest, despite Everest’s objections.