Mongolia
Mongolia (
Mongolian: Монгол Улс), officially the 'Republic of Mongolia' is a
landlocked country in
East Asia and
Central Asia, bordered by
Russia to the north and the
People's Republic of China to the south. Its
capital is
Ulaanbaatar.
It was the center of the
Mongol Empire in the
13th century but was ruled by the
Manchu during the
Qing Dynasty from the end of the
18th century until an independent
government was formed with
Soviet assistance in 1921. Following the
fall of the Soviet Union and after the fall of
communism in Mongolia, Mongolia adopted
democracy through
electoral politics. It is one of the newest democracies in the world, with the movement in the
1990s.
At 1,564,116
square km, Mongolia is the
18th largest country in the world. However, the country contains very little
arable land. Much of its area is
grassland with mountains to the north and west and the
Gobi Desert to the south. With a population of over 2.8
million, a little over 30 percent of the population are
nomadic or semi-nomadic
Tibetan Buddhists of the
Mongol ethnicity. About one-third of the population lives in the capital city
Ulaanbaatar.
A large number of ethnicities have inhabited Mongolia since prehistoric times. Most of these people were nomads who from time to time formed great confederations which have risen to prominence. The first of these, the
Xiongnu, were brought together to form a confederation by
Modun Shanyu in
209 BC. They defeated the
Donghu who once possessed the
hegemony in eastern Mongolia. The
Xiongnu became the greatest enemy of
China for the following three centuries. The
Great Wall of China was built partly as defence against the
Xiongnu. The Marshal
Meng Tian of the
Qin Empire dispersed more than 300,000 soldiers along the
Great Wall to prevent an expected invasion from the North. It is believed that, after their decisive defeat by the Chinese in
428-
431, some of the
Xiongnu migrated West to become the
Huns. After the
Xiongnu migrated west,
Rouran, a close relative of the
Mongols came to power before being defeated by the
Gokturks who dominated Mongolia for centuries.
Early history
During the 7th and 8th centuries, Mongolia was controlled by
Gokturks who were succeeded by the
ancestors of today's
Uigur and then by the
Khitan and
Jurchen. By the
10th century the country was populated predominantly by
Mongols believed to be a branch of the
Xianbei. During this period the country was divided into numerous
tribes linked through transient alliances.
In the late 12th Century, a chieftain named
Temujin united the Mongol tribes after a longer struggle to
Naiman and
Jurchen. Starting in 1206,
Genghis Khan and his successors consolidated and expanded the
Mongol Empire into the largest contiguous land
empire in world history. After Ghengis Khan's death, the empire was divided into four kingdoms, or "Khanates". One of these, the "Great Khanate", comprised the Mongol homeland and
China, and is known as the
Yuan Dynasty. Its founder,
Kublai Khan, set up his centre of administration in present day
Beijing. After more than a century of power, the
Yuan Dynasty was replaced by the
Ming Dynasty in
1368. The Mongol court fled north. The Ming armies pursued and defeated them in Mongolia, but did not conquer Mongolia.
During the next few centuries, Mongolia was split between the
Oirad in the west and the
Khalkha in the east.
Altan Khan united the Mongols briefly in
1571. After failing to defeat the Chinese, he made peace with the
Ming Dynasty and instead attacked
Tibet, eventually becoming a convert to
Tibetan Buddhism.
During the 17th Century, the
Manchus rose to prominence in the east, and they conquered
Inner Mongolia in 1636 and
Outer Mongolia in 1691. For the next 200 years Mongolia was ruled by the
Manchus, who became the
Qing Dynasty. During this time, the Manchus maintained their control over Mongolia with a series of alliances and intermarriages, as well as military and economic control. Several Emperors of the
Qing Dynasty were born to Mongol mothers.
With the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Mongolia declared independence in 1911, covering approximately the territory of the former Outer Mongolia. After the
October Revolution in Russia, Chinese troops led by
Xu Shuzheng attacked and occupied the capital in 1919, but were expelled by the Soviet
Red Army soon after. In 1924, the
Mongolian People's Republic was proclaimed and was backed by the Soviets.
Alignment with Soviet Union
The Mongolian People's Republic was aligned closely with the
Soviet Union. Politicians who demanded a more capitalist course and who dissented against collective prosperity, like Dogsomyn Bodoo or Horloogiyn Dandzan, quickly became unpopular. In 1928,
Horloogiyn Choybalsan rose to power. Under his administration, forced but productive
collectivisation, and the destruction of
Buddhist monasteries in 1937 left more than 10,000 insurgent lamas dead.
During the
Soviet-Japanese Border War of 1939 the USSR defended Mongolia against
Japan during the
Battle of Halhin Gol. Mongolian forces also took part in the Soviet offensive against Japanese forces in Inner Mongolia in August 1945 (see
Operation August Storm). The threat of Mongolian forces seizing parts of Inner Mongolia induced the
Republic of China to recognize Outer Mongolia's independence, provided that a referendum was held. The referendum took place on
October 20 1945, with, according to official numbers, 100% of the electorate voting for independence. After the establishment of the
People's Republic of China, both countries recognized each other on
October 6 1949.
After Choybalsan died in
Moscow on
January 26 1952,
Yumjaagiyn Tsedenbal took power. In 1956 and again in 1962, Choybalsan's
personality cult was condemned. Mongolia continued to closely align itself with the Soviet Union, especially after the
Sino-Soviet split of the late
1950s. While Tsedenbal was visiting Moscow in August 1984, as he was very ill the parliament announced his retirement and replaced him with
Jambyn Batmonh.
In 1990, the Communist Party relinquished control over the government, without a single bullet being fired. A new constitution was prepared in 1992 that abolished the People's Republic and created a
democratic state.
1990 Democratic Revolution
Until
June 27 2004, the predominant party in Mongolia was the ex-communist party
Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party or MPRP, which was formed by Mongolia's communist leaders after the end of the Cold War. The main opposition party was the
Democratic Party or DP, which controlled a governing coalition from 1996 to 2000.
From 2000 to 2004 MPRP was back in power, but results of the 2004 elections required the establishing of the first ever coalition government in Mongolia between the MPRP and MDC (Motherland Democratic Coalition).
The President
The Parliament (State Great Hural)
Mongolia uses a
unicameral parliamentary system where the
president has a symbolic role and the "government" chosen by the legislature exercises the executive power. The legislative arm, the
State Great Khural, has one chamber with 76 seats and is chaired by the speaker of the house.
On
January 14 2006 the parliament's 39 members, mostly MPRP but including 4 Democratic Party members
Mendsaikhan Enkhsaikhan,
Narantsatsralt,
Mishig Sonompil,
J. Batkhuyag, overthrew Democrat
Tsakhiagiyn Elbegdorj's grand coalition government. It has been claimed that this violated the
Constitution as the parliament exceeded its power. The decision to overthrow Elbegdorj's government was based on the MPRP Directing Board's decision, contrary to its three agreements with the Democratic Party. There has been protest against this action.
The Prime Minister
Mongolia maintains friendly relationship with the
United States,
Russia,
Japan and
Republic of China and virtually all countries in the world. It has initiated large foreign investment initiatives and encouraged foreign investment. It supported the
2003 Invasion of Iraq, or "
Operation Iraqi Freedom," and has sent 200 troops to
Iraq.
 |
Map of Mongolia |
The Mongolian heartland consists of relatively flat
steppes. The southern portion of the country is taken up by the
Gobi Desert, while the northern and western portions are mountainous. The highest point in Mongolia is Nayramadlin Orgil (Huyten Orgil) at 4,374 m (14,350
feet).
Uvs Nuur Lake, shared with
Tuva Republic in the
Russian Federation, is a natural
World Heritage Site.
Most of the country is hot in the summer and extremely cold in the winter, with January averages dropping as low as -30°C (-22°F). The country is also subject to occasional harsh climatic conditions known as
zud or
dzud.
Ulaanbaatar has the coldest average temperature of any national capital in the world.
Mongolia is high, cold, and dry. It has an extreme continental climate with long, cold winters and short summers, during which most precipitation falls. The country averages 257 cloudless days a year, and it is usually at the center of a region of high atmospheric pressure. Precipitation is highest in the north, which averages 20 to 35 centimeters per year, and lowest in the south, which receives 10 to 20 centimeters. The extreme south is the Gobi, some regions of which receive no precipitation at all in most years. The name "Gobi" is a Mongol meaning desert, depression, salt marsh, or steppe, but which usually refers to a category of arid rangeland with insufficient vegetation to support marmots but with enough to support camels. Mongols distinguish Gobi from desert proper, although the distinction is not always apparent to outsiders unfamiliar with the Mongolian landscape. Gobi rangelands are fragile and are easily destroyed by overgrazing, which results in expansion of the true desert, a stony waste where not even
Bactrian camels can survive.
|
The southern portion of Mongolia is taken up by the Gobi Desert, while the northern and western portions are mountainous. |
Mongolia is divided into 21
provinces (
aymguud; sing.
aimag or
aymag) and 1
municipality (
khot) with provincial status.
*
Arhangay*
Bayan-Ölgiy*
Bayanhongor*
Bulgan*
Darhan-Uul*
Dornod*
Dornogovĭ*
Dundgovĭ*
Govĭ-Altay*
Govĭsümber*
Hentiy*
Hovd*
Hövsgöl*
Ömnögovĭ*
Orhon*
Övörhangay*
Selenge*
Sühbaatar*
Töv*
Ulaanbaatar (municipality)
*
Uvs*
ZavhanThe Aymags are further sub-divided into
Somon (sing.
Sum).
Mongolia's economy is centered on agriculture and mining. Mongolia has rich mineral resources, and
copper,
coal,
molybdenum,
tin,
tungsten and
gold account for a large part of industrial production. In the 1990s, the disappearance of Soviet aid due to the fall of the Soviet Union accounted for the closing down of many industrial facilities in Mongolia. Following decades of state-run enterprise, the economy began a transition to
capitalism, occassionally painfully; in 2000-2002 opposition to privatization, as well as droughts and other natural disasters, contributed to a negative GDP growth. However, growth picked up in 2004 and 2005 with increases of 10.6% and 5.5%, respectively, largely due to the high price of commodities (gold and copper).
There are currently over 30,000 independent businesses in Mongolia, chiefly centered around the capital city . The majority of the population outside urban areas participate in subsistence herding; livestock typically consists of cows, sheep, goats, horses and Bactrian camels. Agricultural crops include wheat, barley, vegetables, and other forage crops.
GDP per capita in 2005 was $1,900 [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mg.html]. Although GDP has risen steadily since 2002 at the rate of 6.2% in an official 2005 estimate, the state is still working to overcome a sizable trade deficit. A massive ($11 billion) foreign debt to Russia was settled by the Mongolian government in 2004 with a $250 million payment; this reduced value was accepted due to Mongolian hardship and the loss of human lives during the Soviet Era.
["Gift on a New Year Eve". Bizmongolia.com, January 01. 2004] Mongolia joined the
World Trade Organization in 1997, seeking to integrate itself in the Asian regional economies, and now exports
cashmere, minerals, and food products to Russia, the United States, China, Japan, Italy, and other countries.
Despite growth, the population below the poverty line is estimated to be 36.1% in 2004, and both the unemployment rate and inflation rate are high at 6.7% and 10.9%, respectively [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mg.html].
Industrial sector
Industry currently accounts for 21.4% of GDP, incidentally, approximately equal to the weight of the agriculture sector (20.4%). These industries include construction and construction materials; mining (coal, copper, molybdenum, fluorspar, tin, tungsten, and gold); oil; food and beverages; processing of animal products, cashmere and natural fiber manufacturing. The industrial production growth rate is estimated to be 4.1% in 2002. [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mg.html]
Science and technology
Mongolia has increasingly started to develop its technology industry after the democratic revolution of the early 1990s, and many new technology companies were founded. Also, some technology companies in neighboring countries (
Korea,
China) have started to open offices in Mongolia.
Service sector
After the democratic revolution of the early 1990s, Mongolian domestic production has picked up providing basic food production to its residents, through increasingly greater competition among companies. According to the CIA World Factbook, in 2003, the service sector accounted for 58% of the GDP, with 29% of the labor force of 1.488 million involved.
Infrastructure
Mongolia has a relatively small and undeveloped infrastructure in terms of roads and electricity. Due to the nomadic nature of some parts of the population, the vast majority of the roadways are unpaved. However, investment from Korea and other countries have helped add more paved roads and electricity access to remote locations in Mongolia. The
trans-Siberian railway passes through Mongolia between
China and
Russia. It has 48 airports throughout the country and notably one international airport in
Ulaanbaatar, running services to
China,
Korea,
Japan,
Berlin,
Moscow and other countries. The air transport company of Mongolia is
MIAT.
The petroluem products and electricity used to power infrastructure is in large part (80%) imported from Russia, which makes Mongolia vulnerable to supply side shocks, illustrating the influence of Mongolia's neighbors on its economy.
|
Demographics of Mongolia, Data of FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands. |
Most Mongolians are
Mongol in descent: there are also smaller populations of
Kazakh and
Tungus people. As in many developing countries, Mongolia's young and rapidly growing population has put great strains on its economy. According to the [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mg.html CIA World Factbook], 50% of Mongolia's population are Buddhist-Lamaist, which is related to
Tibetan Buddhism. 40% are atheist, 6% are Shamanist or Christian, and 4% are Muslim.
Life in sparsely populated Mongolia has become more urbanized. Nearly half of the people live in the capital,
Ulaanbaatar, and in other provincial centers. Seminomadic life still predominates in the countryside, but settled agricultural communities are becoming more common. Mongolia's population growth rate is estimated at 1.54% (2000 census). About two-thirds of the total population is under age 30, 36% of whom are under 14.
Ethnic Mongols account for about 85% of the population and consist of Khalkha and other groups, all distinguished primarily by dialects of the Mongol language. Mongol is an Altaic languageand is related to Turkic (
Uzbek,
Turkish,
Tatar and
Kazakh), and possibly
Korean and
Japanese. The
Khalkha make up 90% of the ethnic Mongol population. The remaining 10% include Durbet Mongols and others in the north and Dariganga Mongols in the east. Turkic speakers (Kazakhs,
Tuvans, and
Uyghurs) constitute 7% of Mongolia's population, and the rest are Tungusic-speakers,
Chinese, and
Russians. Most, but not all, Russians left the country following the withdrawal of economic aid and collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Language
The official language of Mongolia is
Khalkha Mongol, but there are variety of different dialects across the country. In the more western parts of the country, where there is more ethnic diversity, primarily due to populations of ethnic
Tuvans and
Kazakhs, the
Tuvan language and
Kazakh language, among others, are also spoken. In the norther parts of the country,
Russian is frequently spoken among the Russian populations. Furthermore, the Mongolian government has worked to encourage the learning of
English as a second language by having it replace the teaching of Russian in schools.
Religion
Aside from brief periods of
Islam and
Christianity, various forms of
shamanism have been widely practiced throughout the history of what is now modern day Mongolia as such beliefs were common among nomadic people in Asian history. Such beliefs gradually gave way to
Tibetan Buddhism, but shamanism has left a mark on Mongolian religious culture. Indeed, some shamanistic practices and traditions are still practiced in rural areas.
Throughout much of the 20th century, the
communist government ensured the religious practices of the Mongolian people were largely repressed. The fall of communism in 1991 allowed for religious practice to once again be made public and, as such,
Tibetan Buddhism, which had been the predominant religion in the region before the rise of Communism, rose to once again become the most widely practiced religion in Mongolia. The end of religious repression in the 1990s also allowed for other religions, such as
Christianity, to spread in the country.
Education
During the
communist government during much of 1970s and 1980s, the government emphasized large education initiatives and as a result
public school system was very powerful and prevalant with emphasis in
chemistry,
Russian language and
mathematics. After the 1990 democratic revolution, the studying of different foreign languages start to pick up speed. Mongolia has a very high literacy rate with around 96% able to
read and
write. After the democratic revolution, many private colleges and schools were created offering wide variety of studies especially the
English language. Mongolia has named
English language as the second official language of Mongolia replacing
Russian language.
Mongolia also has large national universities and colleges such as
Mongolian National Technical University and
Mongolian National University and many other military institutions and satelite colleges throughout the city
Ulaanbaatar.
Health
The culture of Mongolia can be described as
homogeneous. 96% of the Mongolia's
population are Vajrayana
Buddhists in the
Tibetan tradition. The official language,
Khalkha Mongol, is spoken by 90% of the population. Mongolia has its own ethnic group, which comprises 85% of the country's population.
Mongolia's population is about 2.6 million. 65% are in the 16-64 age bracket and about 4% are over 64. HIV/AIDS has not made a significant impact, with only about 16 reported cases in the whole country.
Childbirth is 2.26 per woman, and the increase rate is high. The life expectancy is 63 years and the infant mortality rate is at 6%.
The main festival is Revolution Day, also known as
Naadam, which celebrates the anniversary of Mongolian independence from China. It is held on July 11.
In Mongolia, the khoomii, or
throat singing, style of music is popular, particularly in Western Mongolia.
Sports and recreation
The most famous sports competition is held during the
Naadam festival in the summer for 3 days that includes
horse racing,
archery and
Mongolian wrestling. These three sports are the most widely watched and practiced throughout the country.
Skiiing and other winter sports are also common, many of which were introduced during the communist era.
*
Communications in Mongolia*
Foreign relations of Mongolia*
Military of Mongolia*
Mongoliyn Skautiyn Holboo*
Public holidays in Mongolia*
Transportation in Mongolia*
Greater Mongolia region*
Inner MongoliaThis article incorporates text from the
Library of Congress Countries Study, which is in the
public domain.
General
*
News and Information Association of Mongolia - www.moninfo.org Online daily news in English and Mongolian
*
Open Directory Project - Mongolia*
Encyclopaedia Britannica's Mongolia Country Page* [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/mg.html CIA World Factbook -
Mongolia]
*
Encyclopedia of the Nations - Mongolia*
Flags of the Mongolian aymags*
The UB Post Independent English Weekly News
Official
*
Mongolia Open Government from the Office of the Prime Minister
*
Mongolia Ministry of Foreign Affairs official site
*
Mongolian Tourist Board*
US Department of State - Mongolia includes Background Notes, Country Study and major reports
Reports and pictures
*
Photographical reportages by Michel Setboun
*
Plants of Mongolia*
Birds of Mongolia*
Collection of pictures from Mongolia sorted by province*
21 Days In Mongolia Gallery and diary of a backpackers trip to Mongolia
