The Himalayas is a mountain range located on the Asian continent , and extends through the countries of Bhutan , China , Nepal , Tibet , India and Pakistan , forming an arc from west to east of 2,600 kilometers and from north to south of 350 kilometers. Its name comes from Sanskrit and means valley of snows .
It is the highest mountain range on earth , with fourteen peaks over 8,000 meters high, with Everest , at 8,888 meters, being the highest mountain on earth. Others, like K2 (8,611 m) and Kanchenjunga (8,598 m), are also in the Himalayas.