The world’s highest mountain is Mount Everest, measured at 8,848.86 metres above sea level.
Everest stands in the Himalayas on the border between Nepal and Tibet, an autonomous region of China. Nepal calls it Sagarmatha, while Tibetans call it Chomolungma. The English name honours George Everest, a former Surveyor General of India.
Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay of Nepal made the first confirmed ascent on 29 May 1953. Climbers usually approach the summit from Nepal’s southeast ridge or Tibet’s north side. Everest is sometimes confused with mountains that have greater base-to-summit height, but the standard global ranking uses elevation above sea level. Its official height was jointly announced by Nepal and China in 2020.