Hillary On Everest Renaming
(Stuff.co.nz | December 10, 2002)
China can call the mountain whatever they like — it's still Everest to the man who conquered it first. Sir Edmund Hillary said today he was not taking seriously a push by China to rename Everest Mt Qomolangma. China said last month westerners should call the 8,848-metre mountain on the border of Nepal and Tibet Mt Qomolangma after the "ignorance and arrogance" of British colonialism continued to refer to it as Everest.
China wanted the name changed in time to mark the 50th anniversary of the first ascent by Sir Edmund and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay on May 29, 1953. Sir Edmund said in Auckland today he had heard the suggestion that the name be changed but different countries had their own name for Everest.
"I don't think it is terribly important which particular name you give to a mountain because I was brought up in the old style — it will always be Everest to me." In 1955, two years after Everest was conquered, Sherpa Tenzing, who was born in Nepal, called his autobiography Man of Everest and constantly referred to the mountain as Everest.
He said it had always been his dream to climb Everest — "which my people call Chomolungma" and the climb with Sir Edmund was his seventh attempt. Sir Edmund said the sherpa community which spent more time on the mountain and made their living from it, called it Mt Everest.
Sir Edmund said he would be very surprised if the Chinese succeeded in changing the name. "It wouldn't worry me at all. The rest of the world is accustomed to Everest so I can see no harm in continuing with that."
The mountain became known as Mt Everest in 1865 in honour of Sir George Everest, the Surveyor-General of India who mapped the peak in 1852. But China said the mountain was first mapped in 1717 by officials from the Qing Dynasty, and uses the claims to support its occupation of Tibet.
Friends of Tibet (INDIA),
PO Box 16674, Bombay 400050
www.friendsoftibet.org