Editing Eight-thousander (section)

==Climbing history==

===First ascents===
[[File:Flight over himalaya annotated.jpg|upright=1.35|thumb|Flight over the [[Khumbu]] region; six eight-thousanders are visible]]
The first recorded attempt on an eight-thousander was when [[Albert F. Mummery]], [[Geoffrey Hastings]] and [[J. Norman Collie]] tried to climb [[Nanga Parbat]] in 1895. The attempt failed when Mummery and two [[Gurkha]]s, Ragobir Thapa and Goman Singh, were killed by an [[avalanche]].<ref name=Mummery1895/>

The [[first ascent#In mountaineering and alpinism|first successful ascent]] of an eight-thousander was by the French climbers [[Maurice Herzog]] and [[Louis Lachenal]], who reached the summit of [[Annapurna]] on 3 June 1950 using [[expedition climbing]] techniques as part of the [[1950 French Annapurna expedition]].<ref name=Herzog1951/> Due to its location in [[Tibet]], [[Shishapangma]] was the last eight-thousander to be ascended, which was completed by a Chinese team led by [[Xu Jing (mountaineer)|Xu Jing]] in 1964 (Tibet's mountains were closed by China to foreigners until 1978).<ref>{{cite web | magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]] | url=https://vault.si.com/vault/2004/11/15/finding-china | title=Finding China | date=14 November 2004 | accessdate=5 August 2022 | author=Yi Wyn Yen}}</ref>

The [[first winter ascent]] of an eight-thousander was by a Polish team led by [[Andrzej Zawada]] on [[Mount Everest]], with [[Leszek Cichy]] and [[Krzysztof Wielicki]] reaching the summit on 17 February 1980;<ref>{{cite journal |title = Mount Everest: The First Winter Ascent|url = https://www.alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents/Contents_1984_files/AJ%201984%2050-59%20Zawada%20Everest.pdf|first = Andrzej |last = Zawada |translator1-first=Ingeborga |translator1-last=Doubrawa-Cochlin|translator2-first=Peter|translator2-last = Cochlin|journal = The Alpine Journal|date = 1984|pages = 50–59}}</ref> all-Polish teams would complete nine of the first fourteen winter ascents of eight-thousanders.<ref name=PM5/> The final eight-thousander to be climbed in winter was K2, whose summit was ascended by a 10-person Nepalese team on 16 January 2021.<ref name=tele1>{{cite news | newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/16/former-gurkha-nirmal-purja-among-nepalese-climbers-complete/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/16/former-gurkha-nirmal-purja-among-nepalese-climbers-complete/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live | title=Former Gurkha Nirmal Purja among Nepalese climbers to complete first winter ascent of deadly K2 | first=Ben | last=Farmer | date=16 January 2021 | access-date=16 January 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Only two climbers have completed more than one first ascent of an eight-thousander, [[Hermann Buhl]] (Nanga Parbat and Broad Peak) and [[Kurt Diemberger]] (Broad Peak and Dhaulagiri). Buhl's summit of [[Nanga Parbat]] in 1953 is notable as being the only solo first ascent of one of the eight-thousanders. The Polish climber [[Jerzy Kukuczka]] is noted for creating over ten new routes on various eight-thousander mountains.<ref name=PM5>{{cite web|first=Nicholas | last=Hobley |title=Remembering Jerzy Kukuczka, the legendary Polish mountaineer |date=24 October 2019 |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/alpinism/remembering-jerzy-kukuczka-the-legendary-polish-mountaineer.html |website=PlanetMountain |access-date=10 December 2021}}</ref> Italian climber [[Simone Moro]] made the first winter ascent of four eight-thousanders (Shishapangma, Makalu, Gasherbrum II, and Nanga Parbat),<ref>{{cite web | magazine=[[Climbing (magazine)|Climbing]] | url=https://www.climbing.com/people/simon-moro-worlds-greatest-winter-mountaneer/ |title="It's a Suffering Game": Simone Moro and the Fine Art of Climbing 8,000m Peaks in Winter | date=13 December 2021 | accessdate=4 August 2022 | first=Marcello | last=Rossi}}</ref> while three Polish climbers have each made three first winter ascents of an eight-thousander, [[Maciej Berbeka]] (Cho Oyu, Manaslu, and Broad Peak), [[Krzysztof Wielicki]] (Everest, Kangchenjunga, and Lhotse) and [[Jerzy Kukuczka]] (Dhaulagiri I, Kangchenjunga, and Annapurna I).<ref name=PM5/>

===All 14===
[[File:Comparison_of_highest_mountains.svg|upright=1.35|thumb|Comparison of the heights of the Eight-thousanders (red triangles) with the [[Seven Summits]] and [[Seven Second Summits]]]]
[[File:30 highest peaks with more than 500m prominence.png|upright=1.35|thumb|The 30–highest peaks in the world with over {{cvt|500.|m}} in [[topographic prominence|prominence]]<ref>[https://www.peakbagger.com/list.aspx?lid=201 PEAKBAGGER: World 7200-meter Peaks (Ranked Peaks have 500 meters of Clean Prominence)]</ref>]]

On 16 October 1986, Italian [[Reinhold Messner]] became the first person to climb all 14 eight-thousanders. In 1987, Polish climber [[Jerzy Kukuczka]] became the second person to accomplish this feat.<ref name=PM5/> Messner summited each of the 14 peaks without the aid of [[Bottled oxygen (climbing)|bottled oxygen]], a feat that was only repeated by the Swiss [[Erhard Loretan]] nine years later in 1995 (Kukuczka had used supplementary oxygen while summiting Everest and on no other eight-thousander<ref name=PM5/>).<ref>{{cite web | website=PlanetMountain | url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/alpinism/erhard-loretan-good-bye-to-a-great-alpinist.html | title=Erhard Loretan, good-bye to a great alpinist | date=29 April 2011 | accessdate=4 August 2022 | first=Vinicio |last=Stefanello}}</ref>

On 17 May 2010, Spanish climber [[Edurne Pasaban]] became the first woman to summit all 14 eight-thousanders.<ref name="explorersOK">{{cite web|url=http://explorersweb.com/everest_k2/news.php?id=19771|title=Oh Eun-Sun report, final: Edurne Pasaban takes the throne|publisher=ExplorersWeb|date=10 December 2010|url-access=subscription|access-date=2014-01-04|archive-date=16 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416151948/http://explorersweb.com/everest_k2/news.php?id=19771|url-status=dead}}</ref> In August 2011, [[Austria]]n climber [[Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner]] became the first woman to climb the 14 eight-thousanders without the use of supplementary oxygen.<ref name="BBC News">{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14641414 |title=Austrian woman claims Himalayas climbing record |access-date=2011-08-24|work=BBC News|date=23 August 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/World/Story/A1Story20110823-295884.html|title=Austrian is first woman to scale 14 peaks without oxygen|publisher=AsiaOne|date=30 August 2011|access-date=2014-01-04}}</ref>

The first couple and team to summit all 14 eight-thousanders were the Italians [[Nives Meroi]] (who was the second woman to accomplish this feat without supplementary oxygen), and her husband {{ill|Romano Benet|it}} on 11 May 2017.<ref name="ansa">{{Cite news|url=https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2017/05/11/italians-become-first-couple-to-scale-all-eight-thousanders_d773a802-f6b2-4d88-b485-b1ce4c015618.html|title=Italians become first couple to scale all eight-thousanders|date=2017-05-11|work=ansa.it|access-date=2023-02-02|language=en}}</ref><ref name=PM10>{{cite web | website=PlanetMountain | url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/alpinism/nives-meroi-and-romano-benet-summit-annapurna-their-14th-8000er.html | title=Nives Meroi and Romano Benet summit Annapurna, their 14th 8000er | accessdate=5 August 2022 | first=Vinicio | last=Stefanello | date=11 May 2017}}</ref> The couple climbed [[alpine style]], without the use of supplementary oxygen or other support.<ref name=PM10/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.repubblica.it/sport/vari/2017/05/11/news/nives_meroi_romano_benet_prima_coppia_su_tutti_ottomila-165156761/|title=Alpinismo, il record di Meroi-Benet: è italiana la prima coppia su tutti gli Ottomila|date=11 May 2017}}</ref>

On 23 May 2023, [[Nepal]]i guide [[Kami Rita]] summitted Everest for the 28th time (a record for Everest), becoming the first-ever person to climb an eight-thousander 38 times.<ref>{{cite web | website=[[Guinness Book of Records]] | url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/384190-most-climbs-over-8-000-m | title=Most climbs over 8,000 metres  | date=23 May 2023 | access-date=2023-08-01}}</ref> In July 2022, [[Sanu Sherpa]] became the first person to summit all 14 eight-thousanders twice.<ref>{{cite web | website=Reuters | url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/nepali-sherpa-sets-climbing-record-pakistan-mountain-2022-07-21/ | title=Nepali Sherpa sets climbing record on Pakistan mountain | first=Gopal | last=Sharma | date=21 July 2022 | accessdate=5 August 2022}}</ref> He started with Cho Oyu in 2006, and completed the double by summiting Gasherbrum II in July 2022.<ref>{{cite web | website=LACrux | url=https://www.lacrux.com/en/alpinism/world-record-sanu-sherpa-has-climbed-all-14-eight-thousanders-twice/  | date=28 July 2022 | accessdate=5 August 2022 | title=World record: Sanu Sherpa has climbed all 14 eight-thousanders twice}}</ref>

On 20 May 2013, [[Demographics of South Korea|South Korea]]n climber [[Kim Chang-ho (climber)|Kim Chang-ho]] set a new speed record of climbing all 14 eight-thousanders, without the use of supplementary oxygen, in 7 years and 310 days. On 29 October 2019, the [[British people|British]]-[[Nepali people|Nepali]] climber [[Nirmal Purja]] set a speed record of 6 months and 6 days for climbing all 14 eight-thousanders with the use of supplementary oxygen.<ref name=GWR>{{cite web | website=[[Guinness World Records]] | url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2021/12/14-peaks-all-the-records-nims-purja-broke-in-new-netflix-documentary-684255 | title=14 Peaks: All the records Nims Purja broke in new Netflix documentary | first=Sanj | last=Atwal | date=3 December 2021 | accessdate=5 December 2021}}</ref><ref name=BBC>{{cite web| url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-50217376 |title=Nirmal Purja: Ex-soldier climbs 14 highest mountains in six months |date=29 October 2019 | access-date=24 December 2019 | website=[[BBC News]] | author= | quote=A Nepali mountaineer and former British Marine has climbed the world's tallest 14 peaks in six months - beating an earlier record of almost eight years.}}</ref><ref name=NG>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/2019/05/climber-record-summits-six-eight-thousand-meter-peaks-one-month/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190524222617/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/2019/05/climber-record-summits-six-eight-thousand-meter-peaks-one-month/|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 May 2019|title=Nepal climber makes history speed climbing world's tallest peaks | author=Freddie Wilkinson | magazine=[[National Geographic]] | access-date=24 December 2019 | quote=On October 29th, Nirmal Purja Magar announced via Instagram that he had summited China's Shishapangma. This marked the fourteenth 8,000-meter peak he had climbed in seven months and the completion of an extraordinary project to speed climb the world's tallest mountains in rapid succession. }}</ref> On 27 July 2023, [[Kristin Harila]] and [[Tenjen Sherpa|Tenjen Lama Sherpa]] set a new speed record of 92 days for climbing all 14 eight-thousanders with supplementary oxygen.<ref name="AlanA2023" /><ref name="K2_2023_1" />

===Deadliest===
{{see also|List of deaths on eight-thousanders}}

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Estimated sample death rates for the 14 eight-thousanders<ref name=8000ersGen>{{cite web|url=http://www.8000ers.com/cms/en/8000ers-mainmenu-205.html |title=General Info|publisher=8000ers.com | author=Eberhard Jurgalski | author-link=:de:Eberhard Jurgalski | access-date=2014-02-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Clarke |first=Owen |date=2025-04-02 |title=Has K2—the Savage Mountain—Been Tamed? |url=https://www.climbing.com/places/k2-worlds-second-highest-mountain/ |access-date=2025-04-20 |website=Climbing |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="economist2013">{{cite web |url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2013/05/daily-chart-18 | title=DAILY CHART: Stairway to heaven, how deadly are the world's highest mountains? | publisher=[[The Economist]] | date=29 March 2013|quote=For every three thrill-seekers that make it safely up and down Annapurna I, one dies trying, according to data from Eberhard Jurgalski of website ''8000ers.com'', collected in his forthcoming book "On Top of the World: The New Millennium", co-authored by Richard Sale.}}</ref>
|-
!rowspan="2" |Eight<br/>thousander
!colspan="3" |From 1950 to March 2012<ref name="economist2013"/>
!rowspan="2" |Climber<br />death rate<br /><ref name="HDB1">{{cite web|url=http://www.himalayandatabase.com/downloads/hbnsampl.pdf|title=The Himalaya by the Numbers: A Statistical Analysis of Mountaineering in the Nepal Himalaya | author1=Elizabeth Hawley | author-link=Elizabeth Hawley | author2=Richard Sailsbury | date=2011 | page=129 |quote=Table D-3: Deaths for peaks with more than 750 members above base camp from 1950–2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/himalayan-death-tolls/2014/04/24/6eafed0e-cbee-11e3-93eb-6c0037dde2ad_graphic.html?noredirect=on|title=Himalayan Death Tolls|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=24 April 2014}}</ref>{{efn|Per ''[[The Himalayan Database]]'' (HDB) tables, the Climber (or Member) Death Rate is the ratio of deaths above base camp, of all climbers who were hoping to summit and who went above base camp, for 1950 to 2009, and is closer to a true ''probability of death''; the data is only for ''Nepalese Himalaya''.  Summary tables from the HDB report for all mountains above 8,000 metres, imply that the death rate for the period 1990 to 2009 (e.g. modern expeditions), is roughly half that of the combined 1950 to 2009 period.<ref name="HDB1"/>}}
|-
!Total<br />ascents{{efn|As recorded by [[:de:Eberhard Jurgalski|Eberhard Jurgalski]]}}
!Total<br />deaths{{efn |name=EBJ1 |As recorded by [[:de:Eberhard Jurgalski|Eberhard Jurgalski]] and being any death (climber or other) above Base Camp.<ref name=EBJ>{{cite web|url=http://www.8000ers.com/cms/en/downloads-info-mainmenu-231.html|title=Fatalities tables|access-date=23 November 2018|quote=Included are only fatalities from, at or above BC or caused from there. Fatalities on approach or return marches are not listed.|publisher=8000ers.com | author=Eberhard Jurgalski | author-link=:de:Eberhard Jurgalski }}</ref>}}
!Deaths as<br />% of ascents{{efn|This should not be mistaken as being a '''death rate'''; it does not imply a ''probability of death'' for a climber attempting to climb an eight-thousander as it includes '''all''' deaths from '''all''' activities undertaken above base camp (e.g. training or reconnaissance trips, camp stocking activities by porters who will not be summiting the mountain, rescue attempts etc.). Thus it compares deaths from the larger group of people who were, and were not, making a summit attempt, with the smaller group who were making a summit attempt. While it is not a probability, the statistic does reflect the ratio of people who died above base camp for each climber who summited.}}

|-
|[[Mount Everest|Everest]]
| style="text-align: right;" |5656|| style="text-align: right;" | 223|| style="text-align: right;" |3.9%|| style="text-align: right;" |1.52%

|-
|[[K2]]
| style="text-align: right;"|800|| style="text-align: right;" |96|| style="text-align: right;" |12%|| style="text-align: right;" |

|-
|[[Lhotse]]
| style="text-align: right;" |461|| style="text-align: right;" |13|| style="text-align: right;" |2.8%|| style="text-align: right;" |1.03%

|-
|[[Makalu]]
| style="text-align: right;" |361|| style="text-align: right;" |31|| style="text-align: right;" |8.6%|| style="text-align: right;" |1.63%

|-
|[[Cho Oyu]]
| style="text-align: right;" |3138|| style="text-align: right;" |44|| style="text-align: right;" |1.4%|| style="text-align: right;" |0.64%

|-
|[[Dhaulagiri|Dhaulagiri I]]
| style="text-align: right;" |448|| style="text-align: right;" |69|| style="text-align: right;" |15.4%|| style="text-align: right;" |2.94%

|-
|[[Manaslu]]
| style="text-align: right;" |661|| style="text-align: right;" |65|| style="text-align: right;" |9.8%|| style="text-align: right;" |2.77%

|-
|[[Nanga Parbat]]
| style="text-align: right;" |335|| style="text-align: right;" |68|| style="text-align: right;" |20.3%|| style="text-align: right;" |–{{efn|name="pak"|Data is not available for the ''Karakoram Himalayas''}}

|-
|[[Annapurna I]]
| style="text-align: right;" |191|| style="text-align: right;" |61|| style="text-align: right;" |31.9%|| style="text-align: right;" |4.05%

|-
|[[Gasherbrum I]]<br />(Hidden Peak)
| style="text-align: right;" |334|| style="text-align: right;" |29|| style="text-align: right;" |8.7%|| style="text-align: right;" |–{{efn|name="pak"}}

|-
|[[Broad Peak]]
| style="text-align: right;" |404|| style="text-align: right;" |21|| style="text-align: right;" |5.2%|| style="text-align: right;" |–{{efn|name="pak"}}

|-
|[[Gasherbrum II]]
| style="text-align: right;" |930|| style="text-align: right;" |21|| style="text-align: right;" |2.3%|| style="text-align: right;" |–{{efn|name="pak"}}

|-
|[[Kangchenjunga]]
| style="text-align: right;" | 243 || style="text-align: right;" | 40 || style="text-align: right;" | 16% || style="text-align: right;" |3.00%

|- 
|[[Shishapangma]]
| style="text-align: right;" |302|| style="text-align: right;" |25|| style="text-align: right;" |8.3%|| style="text-align: right;" |
|}

The eight-thousanders are the world's deadliest mountains. The extreme altitude and the fact that the summits of all eight-thousanders lie in the Death Zone mean that climber mortality (or ''death rate'') is high.<ref name=SIA>{{cite web | website=[[Statista]] | url=https://www.statista.com/chart/26383/expedition-death-rate-of-mountains-over-8-thousand-meters/ | title=Deadly Peaks | first=Martin | last=Armstrong | date=10 December 2021 | accessdate=13 December 2021}}</ref> Two metrics are quoted to establish a ''death rate'' (i.e. broad and narrow) that are used to rank the eight-thousanders in order of ''deadliest''.<ref name=EBJ/><ref name=MIQ/>

* Broad death rate: The first metric is the ''ratio of total deaths{{efn |name=EBJ1}} on the mountain to successful climbers summiting'' over a given period.<ref name=EBJ/> The ''[[Guinness Book of World Records]]'' uses this metric to name Annapurna I as the deadliest eight-thousander, and the world's deadliest mountain with roughly one person dying for every three people who successfully summit, i.e. a ratio of circa 30%.<ref name=GB>{{cite web | website=[[Guinness Book of World Records]] | url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/deadliest-mountain-to-climb | title=Deadliest mountain to climb | date=2019 | accessdate=13 December 2021}}</ref> Using consistent data from 1950 to 2012, mountaineering statistician [[:de:Eberhard Jurgalski|Eberhard Jurgalski]] (see table) used this metric to show Annapurna is the deadliest mountain (31.9%), followed by K2 (26.5%), Nanga Parbat (20.3%), Dhaulagiri (15.4%) and Kangchenjunga (14.1%).<ref name=EBJ/> Other statistical sources including ''MountainIQ'', used a mix of data periods from 1900 to Spring 2021 but had similar results showing Annapurna still being the deadliest mountain (27.2%), followed by K2 (22.8%), Nanga Parbat (20.75%), Kangchenjunga (15%), and Dhaulagiri (13.5%).<ref name=MIQ>{{cite web | website=MountainIQ | url=https://www.mountainiq.com/guides/eight-thousanders/ | first=Mark | last=Whitman | date=22 December 2020 | accessdate=13 December 2021 | title=Eight Thousanders – The Complete 8000ers Guide}}</ref><ref name=SIA/> Cho Oyu was the safest at 1.4%.<ref name=EBJ/><ref name=MIQ/>
* Narrow death rate: The drawback of the first metric is that it includes the deaths of any support climbers or climbing sherpas that went above base camp in assisting the climb; therefore, rather than being the probability that a climber will die attempting to summit an eight-thousander, it is more akin to the total human cost in getting a climber to the summit.<ref name="HDB1"/> In the ''[[The Himalayan Database|Himalayan Database]]'' (HDB) tables, the climber (or member) "Death Rate" is the ''ratio of deaths above base camp, of all climbers who were hoping to summit and who went above base camp'' (calculated for 1950 to 2009), and is closer to a true ''probability of death'' (see table below).<ref name="HDB1"/> The data is only for the Nepalese Himalaya and therefore does not include K2 or Nanga Parbat.<ref name="HDB1"/> HDB estimates the probability of death for a climber attempting the summit of an eight-thousander is still highest for Annapurna I (4%), followed by Kangchenjunga (3%) and Dhaulagiri (3%); the safest is still Cho Oyu at 0.6%.<ref name="HDB1"/>

The tables from the HDB for eight-thousanders also show that the death rate of climbers for the period 1990 to 2009 (e.g. modern expeditions), is roughly half that of the combined 1950 to 2009 period, i.e. climbing is becoming safer for the climbers attempting the summit.<ref name="HDB1"/>