The name Makalu is derived from the Sanskrit Maha Kala, a name for the Hindu god Shiva that translates “Big Black.” The Chinese name for the peak is Makaru.
Makalu is the fifth highest mountain in the world. The dramatic four-sided, pyramid-shaped mountain rises 14 miles (22 kilometers) southeast of Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world, and Lhotse, the fourth highest mountain in the world, in the Mahalanger Himalaya. The isolated peak straddles the border of Nepal and Tibet, a region currently governed by China. The summit itself lies directly on the international boundary.
Makula has two lower subsidiary summits. Chomolonzo (25,650 feet / 7,678 meters) is two miles northwest of the main Makalu summit. Chomo Lonzo (25,603 feet / 7,804 meters) northeast of Makalu's summit in Tibet is an impressive peak in its own right that towers above the Kangshung Valley. The mountain was first climbed by Lionel Terray and Jean Couzy during a reconnaissance expedition to Makalu in 1954 via its gentle southwest ridge. The mountain did not see a second ascent until 1993 when a Japanese expedition climbed it.
Location: Mahalangur Himalayas, Nepal, Asia
Elevation: 27,765 feet (8,462 meters)
Coordinates: 27.889167 N / 87.088611 E
First Ascent: Jean Couzy and Lionel Terray (France), May 15, 1955
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