A Bibliographical Conspectus of Indigenous Peoples’ Customary Institutions: From 1990 to 2020 Onwards

Abstract

This bibliographical review traces studies of Indigenous Peoples’ and their customary institutions, showcasing their significance and meaning by charting the larger body of literature published from 1990 to 2025. It locates and assesses these works to foreground the nature and approaches of studies on Nepal’s environmental issues and conservation initiatives, which are intertwined with and inseparable from IPs’ long held customary traditions and institutions. It then engages with the epistemic content of these works, the issues they address, and the themes, perspectives, developed lexicons and narratives, focusing on the positions taken by various researchers in exploring IPs and their customary traditions and practices within a shifting social and political context. These shifts in the national and global spheres have also influenced the study of Nepal’s IPs and their customary practices, as evidenced in publications after 1990. The review, therefore calls for future sociological exploration and a comprehensive assessment of these works published during this period. The study finds a co-relationship between the publications on Indigenous peoples customary institutions and the social, political, and economic shifts in the national and global spheres.