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Buddha statue in the Erdene Zuu monastery, Karakorum.

Gilded stupa and a prajnaparamita, Mongolian from the 18th century CE

Buddhism in Mongolia derives much of its recent characteristics from Tibetan Buddhism of the Gelugpa school. Traditionally, Mongols worshiped heaven (the "eternal blue sky") and their ancestors, and they followed ancient northern Asian practices of shamanism, in which human intermediaries went into trance and spoke to and for some of the numberless infinities of spirits responsible for human luck or misfortune. Although the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty in the 14th and 15th century had already converted to Tibetan buddhism, the Mongols returned to their old shamanist ways after the collapse of their empire. In 1578 Altan Khan, a Mongol military leader with ambitions to unite the Mongols and to emulate the career of Chinggis, invited the head of the rising Yellow Sect of Tibetan Buddhism to a summit. They formed an alliance that gave Altan Khan legitimacy and religious sanction for his imperial pretensions and that provided the Buddhist school with protection and patronage.

Altan Khan gave the Tibetan leader the title of Dalai Lama (Ocean Lama), which his successors still hold. Altan Khan died soon after, but in the next century the Yellow Sect spread throughout Mongolia, aided in part by the efforts of contending Mongol aristocrats to win religious sanction and mass support for their ultimately unsuccessful efforts to unite all Mongols in a single state. Monasteries (mong.datsan) were built across Mongolia, often sited at the juncture of trade and migration routes or at summer pastures, where large numbers of herders would congregate for shamanistic rituals and sacrifices. Buddhist monks carried out a protracted struggle with the indigenous shamans and succeeded, to some extent, in taking over their functions and fees as healers and diviners, and in pushing the shamans to the fringes of Mongolian culture and religion.

Tibetan background[link]

Statuette of Zanabazar, one of the most influential tulku in Mongolia

Thangka showing a mountain deity carrying a sword

Tibetan Buddhism, which combines elements of the Mahayana and the Vajrayana schools of Buddhism with traditional Tibetan rituals of curing and exorcism, shares the common Buddhist goal of individual release from suffering and the cycles of rebirth. The religion holds that salvation, in the sense of release from the cycle of rebirth, can be achieved through the intercession of compassionate Buddhas (enlightened ones) who have delayed their own entry to the state of selfless bliss (nirvana) to save others. Such Buddhas, who also manifest as Bodhisattvas, are not treated a deities in a polytheistic sense, but rise as supramundane or enlightened beings in a universe of humans, mundane deities, opposing demons, converted and reformed demons, wandering ghosts, and that reflects the folk religions of the regions into which Buddhism expanded. Tantrism contributed esoteric techniques of meditation and a repertoire of sacred icons, phrases, and gestures that easily lent themselves to pragmatic (rather than transcendental) and magical interpretation. The religion posits progressive stages of enlightenment and comprehension of the reality underlying the illusions that hamper the understanding and perceptions of those not trained in meditation or Buddhist doctrine, with sacred symbols interpreted in increasingly abstract terms. Thus, a ritual that appears to a common yak herder as a straightforward exorcism of disease demons will be interpreted by a senior monk as a representation of conflicting tendencies in the mind of a meditating ascetic.

In Tibet Buddhism thus became an amalgam, combining colorful popular ceremonies and curing rituals for the masses with the rigorous academic studies of Buddhist canon in the monasteries. The Yellow Sect, in contrast to competing sects, stressed monastic discipline and the use of logic and formal debates as aids to enlightenment. The basic Buddhist tenet of reincarnation was combined with the Tantric idea that Buddhahood could be achieved within a person's lifetime to produce a category of leaders who were considered to have achieved Buddhahood and to be the reincarnations of previous leaders. These leaders, referred to as incarnate or living buddhas, held secular power and supervised a body of ordinary monks, or lamas (from a Tibetan title bla-ma, meaning "the revered one)". The monks were supported by the laity, who thereby gained merit and who received from the monks instructions in the rudiments of the faith and monastic services in healing, divination, and funerals.Though Tibetan influence is prevalent in Mongolia, Mongolian Buddhism is unique and distinct with its own characteristics of Buddhism.

In Mongolia[link]

Early Introduction of Buddhism[link]

Stupa in the Khitan city Bars-Hot

Early introduction of Buddhism into the Mongolian steppes took place during the periods of pre-Mongol states. Buddhism penetrated Mongolia from Nepal via Central Asia. Thus many of the Buddhist terms of Sanskrit origin,which are still used in Mongolia, were adopted via the Soghdian language.

The rulers of the pre-Mongol states such as Xiongnu, Xianbei, Rouran and Gokturk Empires received Buddhist priests and built temples for them. Buddhism prevailed among aristocrats and was patronised by the monarchs of the Northern Wei Dynasty established by Mongolic tribes of Xianbei and of the Liao Dynasty established by Mongolic tribes of Khitans. The Khitan aristocracy regarded Buddhism as culture of the Uighur Kaganate that dominated the Mongolian steppes before the rise of the Khitans. The monarchs of the Jin Dynasty established by nomadic tribes of Jurchens also regarded Buddhism as a Khitan heritage.

Later Introduction of Buddhism[link]

Zezerleg Monastery.

Tibetan Buddhist monasticism made an important impact on the early development of Mongolian Buddhism.^[1] The Buddhist monkhood has always played significant political roles in Central and Southeast Asia, and the Buddhist sangha in Mongolia was no exception. Mongols assisted the Tibetans to unify the country. The activities of the Mongols were conducive to the prominency of the Sakya school and then Gelug, and to the further development of the Tibeto-Mongolian civilisation ^[2]. Church and state supported each other, and the doctrine of reincarnation made it possible for the reincarnations of living Buddhas to be discovered conveniently in the families of powerful Mongol nobles, until this practice was outlawed by the Qianlong Emperor.

The Bogd Khan was the religious and secular head of state at the same time until the 1920's

By the beginning of the twentieth century, Outer Mongolia had 583 monasteries and temple complexes, which controlled an estimated 20 percent of the country's wealth. Almost all Mongolian cities have grown up on the sites of monasteries. Ikh Huree, as Ulaanbaatar was then known, was the seat of the preeminent living Buddha of Mongolia (the Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, also known as the Bogdo Gegen and later as Bogd Khan), who ranked third in the ecclesiastical hierarchy, after the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama. Two monasteries there contained approximately 13,000 and 7,000 monks, and the prerevolutionary Mongol name of the settlement known to outsiders as Urga, Ikh Huree, means "big monastery".

Over the centuries, the monasteries acquired riches and secular dependents, gradually increasing their wealth and power as the wealth and power of the Mongol nobility declined. Some nobles donated a portion of their dependent families — people, rather than land, were the foundation of wealth and power in old Mongolia — to the monasteries. Some herders dedicated themselves and their families to serve the monasteries, either from piety or from the desire to escape the arbitrary exactions of the nobility. In some areas, the monasteries and their living buddhas (of whom there were a total of 140 in 1924) were also the secular authorities. In the 1920s, there were about 110,000 monks, including children, who made up about one-third of the male population, although many of these lived outside the monasteries and did not observe their vows. About 250,000 people, more than a third of the total population, either lived in territories administered by monasteries and living Buddhas or were hereditary dependents of the monasteries. With the end of Manchu rule in 1911, the Buddhist church and its clergy provided the only political structure available. The autonomous state thus took the form of a weakly centralized theocracy, headed by the Jebtsundamba Khutukhtu in Yehe Kuriye.

By the twentieth century, Buddhism had penetrated deeply into Mongolian culture, and the populace willingly supported the lamas and the monasteries. Foreign observers usually had a negative opinion of Mongolian monks, condemning them as lazy, ignorant, corrupt, and debauched, but the Mongolian people did not concur. Ordinary Mongolians apparently combined a cynical and realistic anticlericalism, sensitive to the faults and the human fallibility of individual monks or groups of monks, with a deep and unwavering concern for the transcendent values of the church.

Situation of Buddhism in the MPR[link]

Ruins of the Ongiin Monastery.

When the revolutionaries took power, determined to modernize their country and to reform its society, they confronted a massive ecclesiastical structure that enrolled a larger part of the population, monopolized education and medical services, administered justice in a part of the country, and controlled a great deal of the national wealth. The Buddhist church, moreover, had no interest in reforming itself or in modernizing the country. The result was a protracted political struggle that absorbed the energies and attention of the party and its Soviet advisers for nearly twenty years. As late as 1934, the party counted 843 major Buddhist centers, about 3,000 temples of various sizes, and nearly 6,000 associated buildings, which usually were the only fixed structures in a world of yurts. The annual income of the church was 31 million Tögrögs, while that of the state was 37.5 million tögrögs. A party source claimed that, in 1935, monks constituted 48 percent of the adult male population. In a campaign marked by shifts of tactics, alternating between conciliation and persecution, and a fe reported uprisings led by monks and abbots, the Buddhist church was removed progressively from public administration, was subjected to confiscatory taxes, was forbidden to teach children, and was prohibited from recruiting new monks or replacing living Buddhas. The campaign's timing matched the phases of Joseph Stalin's persecution of the Russian Orthodox Church. Robert Rupen reports that in the 1920s there were over 112,000 Mongolian Buddhist monks, representing more than 13% of Mongolia's overall population. By the 1940s, nearly every monk was either dead or had apostatized.^[3] In 1938 — amid accusations that the church and monasteries were trying to cooperate with the Japanese, who were promoting a pan-Mongol puppet state — the remaining monasteries were dissolved, their property was seized, and their monks were secularized, interned or executed. Those monastic buildings that had not been destroyed were taken over to serve as local government offices or schools. Only then was the ruling party, which since 1921 gradually had built a cadre of politically reliable and secularly educated administrators, able to destroy the church and to mobilize the country's wealth and population for its program of modernization and social change.

26.4 m statue of Avalokitesvara Megjid Janraisig at Gandan Tegchinling Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, is the tallest indoor statue in the world

Since the late 1940s, one monastery, the Gandan Monastery, with a community of 100 monks, was open in Ulaanbaatar. It was the country's sole monastery and was more for international display than functionality.^[4] A few of the old monasteries survived as museums, and the Gandan Monastery served as a living museum and a tourist attraction. Its monks included a few young men who had undergone a five-year training period, but whose motives and mode of selection were unknown to Western observers. The party apparently thought that Buddhism no longer posed a challenge to its dominance and that — because Buddhism had played so large a part in the country's history, traditional arts and culture, total extirpation of knowledge about the religion and its practices would cut modern Mongols off from much of their past, to the detriment of their national identity. A few aged former monks were employed to translate Tibetan-language handbooks on herbs and traditional medicine. Government spokesmen described the monks of the Gandan Monastery as doing useful work. Today the monastery has been reinvigorated as the Gandantegchinlen Khiid Monastery by the post-Communist governments of the country.

Buddhism, furthermore played a role in Mongolia's foreign policy by linking Mongolia with the communist and the noncommunist states of East and Southeast Asia. Ulaanbaatar was the headquarters of the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace, which has held conferences for Buddhists from such countries as Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan; published a journal for international circulation; and maintained contacts with such groups as the Christian Peace Conference, the Afro-Asian People's Solidarity Organization, and the Russian Orthodox Church. It sponsored the visits of the Dalai Lama to Mongolia in 1979 and 1982. The organization, headed by the abbot of then-Gandan Monastery, advanced the foreign policy goals of the Mongolian government, which were in accord with those of the Soviet Union.

List of Khutukhtus of Khalkha[link]

This section requires expansion.

• Bogda Jebtsundamba Khutukhtu (Богд Жавзандамба хутагт)
• Bambar Erdeni Hubilgan (Бамбар Эрдэнэ хувилгаан)
• Blama-yin Gegegen (Ламын гэгээн)
• Ching Sujigtu Nomun Khan Khutukhtu (Чин Сүжигт Номун Хан хутагт)
• Dilova Khutukhtu (Дилав хутагт)
• Doghshin Noyan Khutukhtu (Догшин ноён хутагт)
• Heuhen Khutukhtu (Хүүхэн хутагт)
• Ilghaghsan Khutukhtu (Ялгасан хутагт)
• Ilaghughsan Khutukhtu (Ялгуусан хутагт)
• Jalkhantsa Khutukhtu (Жалханз хутагт)
• Khamba Nomun Khan Khutukhtu (Хамба Номун Хан хутагт)
• Mantsusri Khutukhtu (Манзушри хутагт)
• Naro Panchen Khutukhtu (Нар Ванчин хутагт)
• Shavron Khutukhtu (Шаврон хутагт) the last reincarnation Gombosuren born in 1925 is living
• Yogachara Khutukhtu (Егүзэр хутагт)
• Zaya Pandita Khutukhtu (Зая Бандида хутагт)
• Kanjurwa Khutukhtu (Ганжуурва хутагт)
• Jasrai Gegegen (Жасрай гэгээн)
• Vajradhara Hubilgan (Очирдар хувилгаан)
• Bari Yonjan Damtsag Dorje (Бари Ёнзин Дамцагдорж)

Khutukhtus from other Mongolian regions[link]

• Arjia Rimpoche (Ажиа гэгээн), Kukonor

See also[link]

• Buddhism
• Zanabazar
• Drogön Chögyal Phagpa
• Siddharta

References[link]

1. ^ Michael Jerryson, Mongolian Buddhism: The Rise and Fall of the Sangha, (Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 2007), 12.
2. ^ Кузьмин С.Л. 2010. Скрытый Тибет. История независимости и оккупации. С.Петербург: изд. А. Терентьева
3. ^ Michael Jerryson, Mongolian Buddhism: The Rise and Fall of the Sangha, (Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 2007), 90.
4. ^ Michael Jerryson, Mongolian Buddhism: The Rise and Fall of the Sangha, (Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 2007), 96.

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Library of Congress Country Studies.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Buddhism in Mongolia

External links[link]

• Documentation on Mongolian monasteries and temples (mainly in Mongolian)

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Mongolia Монгол улс Mongol uls Mongγol ulus
Flag Emblem
Anthem:  "Монгол улсын төрийн дуулал" National anthem of Mongolia
Capital (and largest city)		Ulan Bator 47°55′N 106°53′E / 47.917°N 106.883°E / 47.917; 106.883
Official language(s)		Mongolian
Official script(s)		Mongolian Cyrillic Mongolian script[1]
Ethnic groups (2010)		95.35% Mongol, 3.86% Kazakh 0.8% others[2]
Demonym		Mongol, Mongolian[3]
Government		Parliamentary republic
-	President	Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj
-	Prime Minister	Sükhbaataryn Batbold
Legislature		State Great Khural
Formation
-	Formation of the Xiongnu confederation	209 BC
-	Formation of the Mongol Empire	1206
-	Independence declared (from Qing Dynasty)	December 29, 1911
Area
-	Total	1,564,115.75 km2 (19th) 603,909 sq mi
-	Water (%)	0.43[4]
Population
-	2010 census	2,754,685[5]
-	Density	1.76/km2 (236th) 5.03/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2011 estimate
-	Total	$13.264 billion[6]
-	Per capita	$4,743[6]
GDP (nominal)		2011 estimate
-	Total	$8.506 billion[6]
-	Per capita	$3,042[6]
Gini (2005)		33.0[7] (medium)
HDI (2011)		0.653[8] (medium) (100th)
Currency		Tögrög (MNT)
Time zone		(UTC+7 to +8[9][10][11])
Date formats		yyyy.mm.dd (CE)
Drives on the		right
ISO 3166 code		MN
Internet TLD		.mn
Calling code		976

Mongolia ⁱ/mɒŋˈɡoʊliə/ (Mongolian:  Монгол улс (help·info), literally Mongol country/state) is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest city, is home to about 45% of the population. Mongolia's political system is a parliamentary republic.

The area of what is now Mongolia has been ruled by various nomadic empires, including the Xiongnu, the Xianbei, the Rouran, the Gökturks and others. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in 1206. After the collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols returned to their earlier pattern of constant internal conflict and occasional raids on the Chinese borderlands. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Mongolia came under the influence of Tibetan Buddhism. At the end of the 17th century, all of Mongolia had been incorporated into the area ruled by the Qing Dynasty. During the collapse of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, Mongolia declared independence, but had to struggle until 1921 to firmly establish de facto independence from the Republic of China, and until 1945 to gain international recognition.

The country came under strong Russian and Soviet influence; in 1924, the Mongolian People's Republic was declared, and Mongolian politics began to follow the same patterns as the Soviet politics of the time. After the breakdown of communist regimes in Eastern Europe in late 1989, Mongolia saw its own Democratic Revolution in early 1990, which led to a multi-party system, a new constitution in 1992, and transition to a market economy.

At 1,564,116 square kilometres (603,909 sq mi), Mongolia is the 19th largest and the most sparsely populated independent country in the world, with a population of around 2.75 million people. It is also the world's second-largest landlocked country after Kazakhstan. The country contains very little arable land, as much of its area is covered by steppes, with mountains to the north and west and the Gobi Desert to the south. Approximately 30% of the population are nomadic or semi-nomadic. The predominant religion in Mongolia is Tibetan Buddhism, and the majority of the state's citizens are of Mongol ethnicity, though Kazakhs, Tuvans, and other minorities also live in the country, especially in the west. About 20% of the population live on less than US$1.25 per day.^[8] Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization in 1997 and seeks to expand its participation in regional economic and trade regimes.^[12]

History[link]

Prehistory and antiquity[link]

Deer stones in Mongolia

Sites such as Tsagaan Agui (White Cave) in Bayankhongor Province show that Homo erectus inhabited Mongolia from 800,000 years ago.^[13] Modern humans reached Mongolia approximately 40,000 years ago during the Upper Paleolithic. The Khoid Tsenkher Cave^[14] in Khovd Province shows lively pink, brown and red ochre paintings (20,000 years ago) of mammoths, lynx, bactrian camels and ostriches, earning it the nickname "the Lascaux of Mongolia". The Mal'ta Venus (21,000 years ago) testifies to the level of Upper Paleolithic art in northern Mongolia, though Mal'ta is now part of Russia.

Neolithic agricultural settlements (c. 5500–3500 BC) such as those at Norovlin, Tamsagbulag, Bayanzag and Rashaan Khad predated the introduction of horse-riding nomadism, a pivotal event in the history of Mongolia as it became the dominant lifestyle. Horse-riding nomadism is first seen in Mongolia during the Copper and Bronze Age Afanasevo culture (3500–2500 BC) which stretched to the Khangai Mountains in Central Mongolia. The wheeled vehicles found in the burials of the Afanasevans have been dated to before 2200 BC.^[15] Pastoral nomadism and metalworking became more and more developed with the later Okunev Culture (2nd millennium BC), Andronovo culture (2300–1000 BC) and Karasuk culture (1500–300 BC), culminating with the Iron Age Xiongnu Empire in 209 BC. Monuments of the pre-Xiongnu Bronze Age include deer stones, keregsur kurgans, square slab tombs and rock paintings.

Although cultivation of crops has continued since the Neolithic it always remained small in scale compared to pastoral nomadism, which may have first been introduced from the west or arose independently in the region. The population during the Copper Age has been described as paleomongoloid in the east of what is now Mongolia, and as europoid in the west.^[14] Tocharians (Yuezhi) and Scythians inhabited western Mongolia during the Bronze Age. The mummy of a Scythian warrior, which is believed to be about 2,500 years old, was a 30-to-40 year-old man with blond hair and was found in the Altai, Mongolia.^[16] As horse nomadism was introduced into Mongolia, the political center of the Eurasian Steppe also shifted to Mongolia, where it remained until the 18th century CE. The intrusions of northern pastoralists (e.g. Guifang, Shanrong, Donghu) into China during the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BC) and Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BC) presaged the age of nomadic empires.

Mongolia, since prehistoric times, has been inhabited by nomads who, from time to time, formed great confederations that rose to prominence. The first of these, the Xiongnu of undetermined ethnicity, were brought together to form a confederation by Modu Shanyu in 209 BC. Soon they emerged as the greatest threat to the Qin Dynasty, forcing the latter to construct the Great Wall of China, itself being guarded by up to almost 300,000 soldiers during marshal Meng Tian's tenure, as a means of defense against the destructive Xiongnu raids.

The vast Xiongnu empire (209 BC-93 AD) was followed by the Mongolic Xianbei empire (93–234) which also ruled more than the entirety of present-day Mongolia. The Mongolic Rouran Khaganate (330–555), of Xianbei provenance, ruled a massive empire before being defeated by the Göktürks (555–745) whose empire was even bigger (laid siege to Panticapaeum, present-day Kerch, in 576). They were succeeded by the Uyghur Khaganate (745–840) who were defeated by the Kyrgyz. The Mongolic Khitans, also descendants of the Xianbei, ruled Mongolia during the Liao Dynasty (907–1125) after which the Khamag Mongol (1125–1206) rose to prominence.

Middle Ages to independence[link]

This map shows the boundary of 13th century Mongol Empire compared to today's Mongols.

In the chaos of the late 12th century, a chieftain named Temüjin finally succeeded in uniting the Mongol tribes (belonging to the Shiwei branch of the Mongolic Xianbei) between Manchuria and the Altai Mountains. In 1206, he took the title Genghis Khan, and waged a series of military campaigns – renowned for their brutality and ferocity – sweeping through much of Asia, and forming the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous land empire in world history. Under his successors it stretched from present-day Poland in the west to Korea in the east, and from Siberia in the north to the Gulf of Oman and Vietnam in the south, covering some 33,000,000 square kilometres (13,000,000 sq mi),^[17] (22% of Earth's total land area) and having a population of over 100 million people. The emergence of Pax Mongolica also significantly eased trade and commerce across Asia during its height.^[18][19]

After Genghis Khan's death, the empire was subdivided into four kingdoms or Khanates which eventually became quasi-independent after Möngke's death in 1259. One of the khanates, the "Great Khaanate", consisting of the Mongol homeland and China, became the Yuan Dynasty under Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan. He set up his capital in present day Beijing but after more than a century of power, the Yuan was replaced by the Ming Dynasty in 1368, with the Mongol court fleeing to the north. As the Ming armies pursued the Mongols into their homeland, they successfully sacked and destroyed the Mongol capital Karakorum among a few other cities, although some of these attempts were repelled by the Mongols under Ayushridar and his general Köke Temür.

Altan Khan (1507-1582) founded the city of Hohhot, helped introduce Buddhism and originated the title of Dalai Lama

Castle built in northern Mongolia by Tsogt Taij in 1601.

After the expulsion of the Yuan Dynasty rulers from China, the Mongols continued to rule Mongolia, also referred to as the Northern Yuan. The next centuries were marked by violent power struggles among various factions, notably the Genghisids and the non-Genghisid Oirads, as well as by several Chinese invasions (like the five expeditions led by the Yongle Emperor). In the early 15th century, the Oirads under Esen Tayisi gained the upper hand, and even raided China in 1449 in a conflict over Esen's right to pay tribute, capturing the Ming emperor in the process. However, Esen was murdered in 1454, and the Borjigids recovered.

Batumöngke Dayan Khan and his khatun Mandukhai reunited the entire Mongol nation under the Genghisids in the early 16th century. In the mid-16th century, Altan Khan of the Tümed, a grandson of Dayan Khan – but no legitimate Khan himself – became powerful. He founded Hohhot in 1557 and his meeting with the Dalai Lama in 1578 sparked the second introduction of Tibetan Buddhism to Mongolia. Abtai Khan of the Khalkha converted to Buddhism and founded the Erdene Zuu monastery in 1585. His grandson Zanabazar became the first Jebtsundamba Khutughtu in 1640.

The last Mongol Khan was Ligden Khan in the early 17th century. He got into conflicts with the Manchus over the looting of Chinese cities, and managed to alienate most Mongol tribes. He died in 1634 on his way to Tibet, in an attempt to evade the Manchus and destroy the Yellow Hat sect of Buddhism. By 1636, most Inner Mongolian tribes had submitted to the Manchus, who founded the Qing Dynasty. The Khalkha eventually submitted to Qing rule in 1691, thus bringing all of today's Mongolia under Beijing's rule. After several wars, the Dzungars (the western Mongols or Oirats) were virtually annihilated during the Qing conquest of Dzungaria in 1757–58.^[20] Some scholars estimate that about 80% of the 600,000 or more Dzungars were destroyed by a combination of disease and warfare.^[21] Outer Mongolia was given relative autonomy, being administered by the hereditary Genghisid khanates of Tusheet Khan, Setsen Khan, Zasagt Khan and Sain Noyon Khan. The Jebtsundamba Khutuktu of Mongolia had immense de-facto authority. The Manchus also forbade mass Chinese immigration, allowing the Mongols to keep their culture.

Until 1911, the Qing Dynasty maintained control of Mongolia with a series of alliances and intermarriages, as well as military and economic measures. Ambans, Manchu "high officials", were installed in Khüree, Uliastai, and Khovd, and the country was subdivided into ever more feudal and ecclesiastical fiefdoms. Over the course of the 19th century, the feudal lords attached more importance to representation and less importance to the responsibilities towards their subjects. The behaviour of Mongolia's nobility, together with the usurious practices of the Chinese traders and the collection of imperial taxes in silver instead of animals, resulted in poverty becoming ever more rampant.

Post-independence[link]

The eighth Jebtsundamba Khutuktu

With the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Mongolia under the Bogd Khaan declared independence in 1911. However, the newly established Republic of China considered Mongolia to be part of its own territory. The area controlled by the Bogd Khaan was approximately that of the former Outer Mongolia during the Qing period. In 1919, after the October Revolution in Russia, Chinese troops led by Xu Shuzheng occupied Mongolia.

However, as a result of the Russian Civil War, the White Russian adventurer Baron Ungern led his troops into Mongolia in October 1920, defeating the Chinese forces in Niislel Khüree (Ulaanbaatar) in early February 1921. In order to eliminate the threat posed by Ungern, Bolshevik Russia decided to support the establishment of a communist Mongolian government and army. This Mongolian army took the Mongolian part of Kyakhta from Chinese forces on March 18, 1921, and on July 6 Russian and Mongolian troops arrived in Khüree. Mongolia's independence was declared once again on July 11, 1921.^[22] These events led to Mongolia's close alignment with the Soviet Union over the next seven decades.

In 1924, after the death of the religious leader and king Bogd Khan, a Mongolian People's Republic was proclaimed with support from the Soviet Union.

Damdin Sükhbaatar, ca 1920–1922

In 1928, Khorloogiin Choibalsan rose to power. He instituted collectivisation of livestock, the destruction of Buddhist monasteries and the Mongolia's enemies of the people persecution resulting in the murder of monks and other people. In Mongolia during the 1920s, approximately one third of the male population were monks. By the beginning of the 20th century, about 750 monasteries were functioning in Mongolia.^[23] The Stalinist purges in Mongolia that began in 1937 affected the Republic by killing more than 30,000 people. Japanese imperialism became even more alarming after the invasion of neighboring Manchuria in 1931. During the Soviet-Japanese Border War of 1939, the Soviet Union successfully defended Mongolia against Japanese expansionism.

In August 1945 Mongolian forces also took part in the Soviet Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation in Inner Mongolia. The Soviet threat of seizing parts of Inner Mongolia^{[citation needed]} induced China to recognize Outer Mongolia's independence, provided that a referendum be held. The referendum took place on October 20, 1945, with (according to official numbers) 100% of the electorate voting for independence.^{[citation needed]} After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, both countries confirmed their mutual recognition on October 6, 1949.

On January 26, 1952, Yumjaagiin Tsedenbal took power. In 1956 and again in 1962, Choibalsan's personality cult was condemned at the ruling Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee plenums. Mongolia continued to align itself closely with the Soviet Union, especially after the Sino-Soviet split of the late 1950s. In the 1980s, an estimated 55,000 Soviet troops were based in Mongolia. While Tsedenbal was visiting Moscow in August 1984, his severe illness prompted the parliament to announce his retirement and replace him with Jambyn Batmönkh.

The introduction of perestroika and glasnost in the USSR by Mikhail Gorbachev strongly influenced Mongolian politics, leading to the peaceful Democratic Revolution and the introduction of a multi-party system and market economy. A new constitution was introduced in 1992, and the "People's Republic" was dropped from the country's name. The transition to market economy was often rocky. The early 1990s saw high inflation and food shortages. The first election wins for non-communist parties came in 1993 (presidential elections) and 1996 (parliamentary elections). The signing of the Oyu Tolgoi mine contract is considered a major milestone in modern Mongolian history. The Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party renamed itself the Mongolian People's Party in 2010.

Geography and climate[link]

The southern portion of Mongolia is taken up by the Gobi Desert, while the northern and western portions are mountainous.

Bactrian camels by sand dunes in Gobi Desert.

At 1,564,116 km² (603,909 sq mi),^[24] Mongolia is the world's 19th-largest country (after Iran). It is significantly larger than the next-largest country, Peru. It mostly lies between latitudes 41° and 52°N (a small area is north of 52°), and longitudes 87° and 120°E.

The geography of Mongolia is varied, with the Gobi Desert to the south and with cold and mountainous regions to the north and west. Much of Mongolia consists of steppes. The highest point in Mongolia is the Khüiten Peak in the Tavan bogd massif in the far west at 4,374 m (14,350 ft). The basin of the Uvs Lake, shared with Tuva Republic in Russia, 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).^[25]

The country is also subject to occasional harsh climatic conditions known as zud. The annual average temperature in Ulan Bator is 0°C, making it the world's coldest capital city.^[25] Mongolia is high, cold, and windy. It has an extreme continental climate with long, cold winters and short summers, during which most of its annual 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 (average of 200 to 350 millimeters (7.9 to 13.8 in) per year) and lowest in the south, which receives 100 to 200 millimeters (3.9 to 7.9 in) annually. The highest annual precipitation of 622.297mm occurred in the forests of Bulgan Province close to the border with Russia and the lowest of 41.735mm occurred in the Gobi Desert (period 1961-1990).^[26] The sparsely populated far north of Bulgan Province averages 600mm in annual precipitation which means it receives more precipitation than Beijing (571.8mm) or Berlin (571mm).

The name "Gobi" is a Mongol term for a desert steppe, 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.

Demographics[link]

Apartment complexes in Bayangol district in Ulaanbaatar

In settlements, many families live in ger quarters

Mongolia's total population as of July 2007 is estimated by U.S. Census Bureau^[27] at 2,951,786 people, ranking at around 138th in the world in terms of population. But the U.S. Department of State Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs uses the U.N. estimations^[28] instead of the U.S. Census Bureau estimations. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division^[29] estimates Mongolia's total population (mid 2007) as 2,629,000 (11% less than the U.S. Census Bureau figure). UN estimates resemble those made by the Mongolian National Statistical Office (2,612,900, end of June 2007). Mongolia's population growth rate is estimated at 1.2% (2007 est.).^[29] About 59% of the total population is under age 30, 27% of whom are under 14. This relatively young and growing population has placed strains on Mongolia's economy.

Since the end of socialism, Mongolia has experienced a decline of total fertility rate (children per woman) that is steeper than in any other country in the world, according to recent UN estimations:^[29] in 1970–1975, fertility was estimated to be 7.33 children per woman, but 2005–2010 prospects are 1.87 (4 times less).

Ethnic Mongols account for about 95% of the population and consist of Khalkha and other groups, all distinguished primarily by dialects of the Mongol language. The Khalkha make up 86% of the ethnic Mongol population. The remaining 14% include Oirats, Buryats and others. Turkic peoples (Kazakhs, Tuvans, and Chantuu (Uzbek) constitute 4.5% of Mongolia's population, and the rest are Russian, Chinese, Korean and American nationalities.^[30]

Languages[link]

The official language of Mongolia is Mongolian, and is spoken by 95% of the population. A variety of dialects of Oirat and Buryat are spoken across the country, and there are also some speakers of Mongolic Khamnigan. In the west of the country, Kazakh and Tuvan, both Turkic languages, are also spoken.

Today, Mongolian is written using the Cyrillic alphabet, although in the past it was written using the Mongolian script. An official reintroduction of the old script was planned for 1994, but has not yet taken place as older generations encountered practical difficulties. ^[31] The traditional alphabet is being slowly reintroduced through schools. ^[32]

The Russian language is the most frequently spoken foreign language in Mongolia, followed by English, though English has been gradually replacing Russian as the second language.^{[citation needed]} Korean has gained popularity as tens of thousands of Mongolians work in South Korea.^[33] Interest in Chinese, as the language of the other neighbouring power, has been growing; according to Uradyn E. Bulag, anthropologist at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, USA, Mongols are displaying significant linguistic anxiety about losing their language and linguistic identity to powerful Chinese nationalistic and cultural forces.^[34] Japanese is also popular among the younger people. A number of older educated Mongolians speak some German, as they studied in the former East Germany, while a few speak other languages from the former Eastern Bloc. Besides that, many younger Mongolians are fluent in the Western European languages as they study or work in foreign countries including Germany, France and Italy.

Deaf people in Mongolia use Mongolian Sign Language.

Religion[link]

According to the National Census 2010, among Mongolians aged 15 and above, 53% were Buddhists, and 39% were Atheists:

Various forms of Tengriism and 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, and it continues to be practiced. The Kazakhs of western Mongolia traditionally practice Islam.

Throughout much of the 20th century, the communist government ensured that the religious practices of the Mongolian people were largely repressed.^{[citation needed]} It targeted the clergy of the Mongolian Tibetan Buddhist Church, which had been tightly intertwined with the previous feudal government structures (e.g. from 1911 on, the head of the Church had also been the khan of the country).^[36] In the late 1930s, the regime, then led by Khorloogiin Choibalsan, closed almost all of Mongolia's over 700 Buddhist monasteries and killed at least 18.000 lamas.^[37] The number of Buddhist monks dropped from 100,000 in 1924 to 110 in 1990.^[36]

The fall of communism in 1991 restored the legality of public religious practice, and Tibetan Buddhism, which had been the predominant religion in the region before the rise of communism, again rose to become the most widely practiced religion in Mongolia. The end of religious repression in the 1990s also allowed for other religions, such as Baha'i Faith and Christianity, to spread in the country. According to the Christian missionary group Barnabas Fund, the number of Christians grew from just four in 1989 to around 40,000 as of 2008.^[38]

Administrative divisions[link]

Zavkhan Govi-Altai Khovd Bayan- Ölgii Uvs Bayan. Övör. Ömnögovi Dundgovi Dornogovi Arkhangai Khövsgöl Töv Khentii Sükhbaatar Dornod Selenge Darkh. Bulgan Orkhon Ulan Bator Govisum.

Mongolia is divided into 21 aimags (provinces), which are in turn divided into 329 sums (districts).^[39] The capital Ulaanbaatar is administrated separately as a capital city (municipality) with provincial status. The aimags are:

Major cities[link]

About 40% of the population lives in Ulaanbaatar, and in 2002 a further 23% lived in Darkhan, Erdenet, the aimag centers and sum-level permanent settlements.^[40] Another share of the population lives in the sum centers.

v t e Largest cities or towns of Mongolia 2008
	Rank	City name	Province	Pop.	Rank	City name	Province	Pop.
Ulaanbaatar Erdenet	1	Ulaanbaatar	Ulaanbaatar	1,340,000	11	Sükhbaatar	Selenge	25,626
	2	Erdenet	Orkhon	157,996	12	Sainshand	Dornogovi	24,210
	3	Darkhan	Darkhan-Uul	121,304	13	Dalanzadgad	Ömnögovi	24,856
	4	Altai	Govi-Altai	98,150	14	Tsetserleg	Arkhangai	19,900
	5	Mörön	Khövsgöl	86,582	15	Uliastai	Zavkhan	19,640
	6	Khovd	Khovd	73,691	16	Choibalsan	Dornod	16,338
	7	Ölgii	Bayan-Ölgii	66,855	17	Züünkharaa	Selenge	15,000
	8	Bayankhongor	Bayankhongor	49,252	18	Öndörkhaan	Khentii	14,800
	9	Arvaikheer	Övörkhangai	36,622	19	Zuunmod	Töv	14,568
	10	Ulaangom	Uvs	29,996	20	Baruun-Urt	Sükhbaatar	13,994

Economy[link]

Capital Ulan Bator is the hub of most domestic and international trade and relations

Economic activity in Mongolia has traditionally been based on herding and agriculture, although development of extensive mineral deposits of copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold have emerged as a driver of industrial production.^[41] Besides mining (21.8% of GDP) and agriculture (16% of GDP), dominant industries in the composition of GDP are wholesale and retail trade and service, transportation and storage, and real estate activities.^[41] The grey economy is estimated to be at least one-third the size of the official economy.^[41] As of 2006, 68.4% of Mongolia's exports went to the PRC, and the PRC supplied 29.8% of Mongolia's imports.^[42]

Mongolia is ranked as lower middle income economy by the World Bank.^[43] 22.4% of the population lives on less than US $1.25 a day.^[8] GDP per capita in 2011 was $3,100.^[12] Despite growth, the proportion of the population below the poverty line was estimated to be 35.6% in 1998, 36.1% in 2002–2003, 32.2% in 2006.^[44]

Because of a boom in the mining sector, Mongolia had high growth rates in 2007 and 2008 (9.9% and 8.9%, respectively).^[41] In 2009, sharp drops in commodity prices and the effects of the global financial crisis caused the local currency to drop 40% against the U.S. dollar. Two of the 16 commercial banks were taken into receivership.^[41] GDP growth in 2011 was expected to reach 16.4%. However, inflation continued to erode GDP gains, with an average rate of 12.6% expected in Mongolia at the end of 2011.^[41] Although GDP has risen steadily since 2002 at the rate of 7.5% in an official 2006 estimate, the state is still working to overcome a sizable trade deficit. The Economist expects this trade deficit of 14% of Mongolia's GDP to transform into a surplus in 2013.^[45]

Mongolia was never listed among the Emerging markets countries until February 2011 when Citigroup analysts determined Mongolia to be one of Global Growth Generators countries which being countries with the most promising growth prospects for 2010–2050.^[46] The Mongolian Stock Exchange, established in 1991 in Ulan Bator, is among the world's smallest stock exchanges by market capitalisation.^[47][48] In 2011, it had 336 companies listed with a total market capitalization of US$2 billion after quadrupling from US$406 million in 2008.^[49]

Mineral industry[link]

Oyu Tolgoi employs 18,000 workers and will be producing 450,000 tonnes of copper a year by 2020^[50]

Minerals represent more than 80% of Mongolia's exports, a proportion expected to eventually rise to 95%.^[45] About 3,000 mining licences have been issued.^[45] Mining is continuing to rise as a major industry of Mongolia as evidenced by number of Chinese, Russian and Canadian firms opening and starting mining business in Mongolia.^[12]

In summer 2009 the government negotiated an “Investment Agreement” with Rio Tinto and Ivanhoe Mines to develop the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold deposit,^[41] the biggest foreign-investment project in Mongolia, expected to account for one-third of Mongolia’s GDP by 2020.^[45] In March 2011, six big mining companies prepared to bid for the Tavan Tolgoi area, the world's largest untapped coal deposit. According to Erdenes MGL, the government body in-charge of Tavan Tolgoi, ArcelorMittal, Vale, Xstrata, U.S. coal miner Peabody, a consortium of Chinese energy firm Shenhua and Japan's Mitsui & Co, and a separate consortium of Japanese, South Korean and Russian firms are the preferred bidders.^[51]

Agriculture[link]

In 2002, about 30% of all households in Mongolia lived from breeding lifestock.^[52] Most herders in Mongolia follow a pattern of nomadic or semi-nomadic pastoralism. Due to the severe 2009-2010 winter, Mongolia lost 9.7 million animals, or 22% of total livestock. This immediately affected meat prices, which increased twofold; GDP dropped 1.6% in 2009.^[41]

Transportation[link]

Train in Zamyn-Üüd station in Dornogovi aimag

The Trans-Mongolian Railway is the main rail link between Mongolia and its neighbors. It begins at the Trans-Siberian Railway in Russia at the town of Ulan-Ude, crosses into Mongolia, runs through Ulaanbaatar, then passes into China at Erenhot where it joins the Chinese railway system. A separate railroad link connects the eastern city of Choibalsan with the Trans-Siberian Railway. However, that link is closed to passengers after the Mongolian town of Chuluunkhoroot.^[53]

Mongolia has a number of domestic airports. The only international airport is the Chinggis Khaan International Airport near Ulaanbaatar. Direct flight connections exist between Mongolia and South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and Germany. MIAT is Mongolia's largest carrier.

Many overland roads in Mongolia are only gravel roads or simple cross-country tracks. There are paved roads from Ulaanbaatar to the Russian and Chinese border, from Ulaanbaatar east- and westward (the so-called Millenium Road), and from Darkhan to Bulgan. A number of road construction projects are currently underway.

Politics[link]

Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, current President of Mongolia.

Mongolia is a parliamentary republic. The parliament is elected by the people and in turn elects the government. The president is elected directly. Mongolia's constitution guarantees full freedom of expression, religion, and gives other freedoms. Mongolia has a number of political parties, the biggest ones being the Mongolian People's Party (MPP or MPRP) and the Democratic Party (DP).

The MPRP formed the government of the country from 1921 to 1996 (until 1990 in a one-party system) and from 2000 to 2004. From 2004 to 2006, it was part of a coalition with the DP and two other parties, and since 2006 it has been the dominant party in two other coalitions. Both changes of government after 2004 were initiated by the MPRP. The DP was the dominant force in the ruling coalition between 1996 and 2000, and also an approximately equal partner with the MPRP in the 2004–2006 coalition. The MPRP won the last round of parliamentary elections, held in June 2008.

The President of Mongolia has a largely symbolic role, but can block the Parliament's decisions. The parliament, in response, can then overrule the veto by a two-thirds majority vote. Mongolia's constitution provides three requirements for taking office as president; the candidate must be a native-born Mongolian, be at least 45 years of age, and have resided in Mongolia for five years prior to taking office. The president is also required to formally resign his or her party membership. The current president is Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, a former two-time prime minister and member of the Democratic Party. He was elected as president on May 24, 2009 and inaugurated on June 18.

State Great Khural chamber in session

Mongolia uses a unicameral parliamentary system in which the president has a symbolic role and the government chosen by the legislature exercises executive power. The legislative arm, the State Great Khural, has one chamber with 76 seats and is chaired by the speaker of the house. It elects its members every four years by general elections. The State Great Khural is powerful in the Mongolian government with the president being largely symbolic and the prime minister being chosen by the parliament from among its own membership.

The Prime Minister of Mongolia is elected by the State Great Khural. The current prime minister is Sükhbaataryn Batbold, who assumed the office on 29 October 2009. The deputy prime minister is Norovyn Altankhuyag. There are ministers for each department (finance, defense, labor, agriculture, etc.), and those officers constitute the prime minister's cabinet.

The cabinet is nominated by the prime minister in consultation with the president and confirmed by the State Great Khural.

Foreign relations[link]

A Mongolian soldier, with an SA-7 man-portable air-defense system on the Pacific Alaskan Range Complex during Red Flag-Alaska 07-3 in Alaska, United States.

Mongolia maintains positive relations and has diplomatic missions in many countries such as Russia, the People's Republic of China, India, North and South Korea, Japan, and the United States. The government has focused a great deal on encouraging foreign investments and trade.

Mongolia has embassies in Almaty, Ankara, Bangkok, Berlin, Beijing, Brussels, Budapest, Cairo, Canberra, Warsaw, Washington, D.C., Vienna, Vientiane, Havana, Delhi, Kuwait City, London, Moscow, Ottawa, Paris, Prague, Pyongyang, Seoul, Sofia, Stockholm, Tokyo, Hanoi, and Singapore, a consulate in Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude, and diplomatic missions to the United Nations in New York City and in Geneva.^[54]

Military[link]

Mongolia supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and has sent several successive contingents of 103 to 180 troops each to Iraq. About 130 troops are currently deployed in Afghanistan. 200 Mongolian troops are serving in Sierra Leone on a UN mandate to protect the UN's special court set up there, and in July 2009, Mongolia decided to send a battalion to Chad in support of MINURCAT.^[55]

From 2005 to 2006, about 40 troops were deployed with the Belgian and Luxembourgish contingent in Kosovo. On November 21, 2005, George W. Bush became the first-ever sitting U.S. President to visit Mongolia.^[56] In 2004, under the Bulgarian chairmanship, The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), invited Mongolia as its newest Asian Partner. In August, 2011, U.S. vice president Joe Biden made the first visit by a sitting vice president to Mongolia since Henry Wallace toured the region in 1944.^[57]

Culture[link]

Riders during Naadam festival

Naadam is the largest summer celebration

The main festival is Naadam, which has been organised for centuries, consists of three Mongolian traditional sports, archery, horse-racing (over long stretches of open country, not the short racing around a track practiced in the West), and wrestling. Nowadays it is held on July 11 to July 13 in the honour of the anniversaries of the National Democratic Revolution and foundation of the Great Mongol State. Another very popular activity called Shagaa is the "flicking" of sheep ankle bones at a target several feet away, using a flicking motion of the finger to send the small bone flying at targets and trying to knock the target bones off the platform. This contest at Naadam is very popular and develops a serious audience among older Mongolians. In Mongolia, the khoomei (or throat singing), style of music is popular, particularly in parts of Western Mongolia.

The ornate symbol in the leftmost bar of the national flag is a Buddhist icon called Soyombo. It represents the sun, moon, stars, and heavens per standard cosmological symbology abstracted from that seen in traditional thangka paintings.

Sports[link]

Mongolia's Naadam festival takes place over three days in the summer and includes horse racing, archery, and Mongolian wrestling. These three sports, traditionally recognized as the three primary masculine activities, are the most widely watched and practiced sports throughout the country.

Horse riding is especially central to Mongolian culture. The long-distance races that are showcased during Naadam festivals are one aspect of this, as is the popularity of trick riding. One example of trick riding is the legend that the Mongolian military hero Damdin Sükhbaatar scattered coins on the ground and then picked them up while riding a horse at full gallop.

Other sports such as table tennis, basketball, and association football are increasingly getting popular. More Mongolian table tennis players are competing internationally.

Bökhiin Örgöö, main arena of the Mongolian wrestling in Ulaanbaatar

Mongolian wrestling is a common sport

Wrestling is the most popular of all Mongol sports. It is the highlight of the Three Manly Games of Naadam. Historians claim that Mongol-style wrestling originated some seven thousand years ago. Hundreds of wrestlers from different cities and aimags around the country take part in the national wrestling competition.

There are no weight categories or age limits. Each wrestler has his own attendant herald. The aim of the sport is to knock one's opponent off balance and throw him down, making him touch the ground with his elbow and knee.

The winners are honored with ancient titles: the winner of the fifth round gets the honorary title of nachin (falcon), of the seventh and eighth rounds zaan (elephant), and of the tenth and eleventh rounds arslan (lion). The wrestler who becomes the absolute champion is awarded the title of avarga (Titan). Every subsequent victory at the national Naadam-festival will add an epithet to the avarga title, like "Invincible Titan to be remembered by all". Beginning in 2003, the Mongolian parliament adopted a new law on Naadam, making amendments to some of the wrestling titles. The titles of iarudi and Khartsaga (Hawk) were added to the existing above-mentioned rules.

The traditional wrestling costume includes an open-fronted jacket, tied around the waist with a string. This is said to have come into use after the champion of a wrestling competition many years ago was discovered to be a woman. The jacket was introduced to ensure that only men could compete.

Mongolia's traditional wrestlers have made the transition to Japanese sumo wrestling with great success. Asashōryū Akinori was the first Mongolian to be promoted to the top sumo rank of yokozuna in 2003 and was followed by his countryman Hakuhō Shō in 2007.

Naidangiin Tüvshinbayar won Mongolia's first ever Olympic gold medal in the men's 100-kilogram class of judo.^[58]

Association football is also played in Mongolia. The Mongolia national football team began playing again in the 1990s; it has yet to qualify for a major tournament. The Mongolia Premier League is the top domestic competition.

Several Mongolian women have excelled in pistol shooting: Otryadyn Gündegmaa is a silver medalist of the 2008 Olympic Games, Munkhbayar Dorjsuren is a double world champion and Olympic bronze medal winner (now representing Germany), while Tsogbadrakhyn Mönkhzul is, as of May 2007, ranked third in the world in the 25 m Pistol event.^[59]

Architecture[link]

A ger in front of the Gurvan Saikhan Mountains

Gandantegchinlen Khiid Monastery has many Buddhist architecture temples

Ulaanbaatar Opera House

The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a ger. In the past it was known by the Russian term yurt, but this is changing as the Mongolian term becomes better known among English-speaking countries. According to Mongolian artist and art critic N. Chultem, the ger was the basis for development of traditional Mongolian architecture. In the 16th and 17th centuries, lamaseries were built throughout the country. Many of them started as ger-temples. When they needed to be enlarged to accommodate the growing number of worshippers, the Mongolian architects used structures with 6 and 12 angles^{[clarification needed]} with pyramidal roofs to approximate to the round shape of a ger. Further enlargement led to a quadratic shape of the temples. The roofs were made in the shape of marquees.^[60] The trellis walls, roof poles and layers of felt were replaced by stone, brick, beams and planks, and became permanent.^[61]

Chultem distinguished three styles in traditional Mongolian architecture: Mongolian, Tibetan and Chinese as well as combinations of the three. Among the first quadratic temples was Batu-Tsagaan (1654) designed by Zanabazar. An example of the ger-style architecture is the lamasery Dashi-Choiling in Ulaanbaatar. The temple Lavrin (18th century) in the Erdene Zuu lamasery was built in the Tibetan tradition. An example of a temple built in the Chinese tradition is the lamasery Choijing Lamiin Sume (1904), which is a museum today. The quadratic temple Tsogchin in lamasery Gandan in Ulan Bator is a combination of the Mongolian and Chinese tradition. The temple of Maitreya (disassembled in 1938) is an example of the Tibeto-Mongolian architecture.^[60] Dashi-Choiling monastery has commenced a project to restore the temple and the 80 feet (24 m) sculpture of Maitreya.

Music[link]

Musician playing the traditional Mongolian musical instrument morin khuur

The music of Mongolia is strongly influenced by nature, nomadism, shamanism, and also Tibetan Buddhism. The traditional music includes a variety of instruments, famously the morin khuur, and also the singing styles like the urtyn duu ("long song"), and throat-singing (khoomei). The "tsam" is danced to keep away evil spirits and it was seen the reminiscences of shamaning.

The first rock band of Mongolia was Soyol Erdene, founded in the 1960s. Their Beatles-like manner was severely criticized by the Communist censorship. It was followed by Mungunhurhree, Ineemseglel, Urgoo, etc., carving out the path for the genre in the harsh environment of Communist ideology. Mungunhurhree and Haranga were to become the pioneers in the Mongolia's heavy rock music. Haranga approached its zenith in the late 1980s and 1990s.

The leader of Haranga, famous guitarist Enh-Manlai, generously helped the growth of the following generations of rockers. Among the followers of Haranga was the band Hurd. In the early 1990s, group Har-Chono put the beginning for Mongolia's folk-rock, merging elements of the Mongolian traditional "long song" into the genre.

By that time, the environment for development of artistic thought had become largely liberal thanks to the new democratic society in the country. The 1990s saw development of rap, techno, hip-hop and also boy bands and girl bands flourish at the turn of the millennium.

Media[link]

Mongolian media interviewing the opposition Mongolian Green Party. The media has gained significant freedoms since democratic reforms initiated in the 1990s.

Mongolian press began in 1920 with close ties to the Soviet Union under the Mongolian Communist Party, with the establishment of the Unen ("Truth") newspaper similar to the Soviet Pravda.^[62] Until reforms in the 1990s, the government had strict control of the media and oversaw all publishing, in which no independent media was allowed.^[62] The dissolution of the Soviet Union had a significant impact on Mongolia, where the one-party state grew into a multi-party democracy, and with that, media freedoms came to the forefront.

A new law on press freedom, drafted with help from international NGOs on August 28, 1998 and enacted on January 1, 1999, paved the way for media reforms.^[63] The Mongolian media currently consists of around 300 print and broadcasting outlets.^[64]

Since 2006, the media environment has been improving with the government debating a new Freedom of Information Act, and the removal of any affiliation of media outlets with the government.^[65][66] Market reforms have led to an increasing number of people working in the media year on year, along with students at journalism schools.^[65] In its 2008 report, Reporters Without Borders classified the media environment as 93rd out of 173, with 1st being most free.^[67]

Dinosaur fossil sale controversy[link]

On May 20, 2012, a rare skeleton of a Tarbosaurus bataar, also known as Tyrannosaurus bataar, was sold to an undisclosed buyer for $1,052,500 at an auction in New York City, USA, despite efforts by Mongolian President Elbegdorj Tsakhia to stop the sale. The Mongolian government is concerned about maintaining control over fossils and cultural relics while scientists worry about such items disappearing into private collections.^[68]

Education[link]

The National University of Mongolia in Ulan Bator

During the state socialist period, education was one of the areas of significant achievement in Mongolia. Illiteracy was virtually eliminated, in part through the use of seasonal boarding schools for children of nomadic families. Funding to these boarding schools was cut in the 1990s, contributing to slightly increased illiteracy.

Primary and secondary education formerly lasted 10 years, but was expanded to 11 years. Since the 2008–2009 school year, new first graders are using the 12 year system. As such, full transition to the 12-year system will not happen until the 2019–2020 school year, when the current third graders graduate.^[69]

Mongolian national universities are all spin-offs from the National University of Mongolia and the Mongolian University of Science and Technology.

The broad liberalization of the 1990s led to a boom in private institutions of higher education, although many of these establishments have difficulty living up to their name of "college" or "university".^{[citation needed]}

Health[link]

Since 1990, key health indicators like life expectancy and infant and child mortality have steadily improved, both due to social changes and to improvement in the health sector. However, serious problems remain, especially in the countryside.^[70]

Average childbirth (fertility rate) is around 2.25^[27] – 1.87^[29] per woman (2007) and average life expectancy is 68.5 years (2011).^[8] Infant mortality is at 1.9%^[71]-4%^[72] and child mortality is at 4.3%.^[73]

The health sector comprises 17 specialized hospitals and centers, 4 regional diagnostic and treatment centers, 9 district and 21 aimag general hospitals, 323 soum hospitals, 18 feldsher posts, 233 family group practices, and 536 private hospitals and 57 drug supply companies/pharmacies. In 2002 the total number of health workers was 33,273, of which 6823 were doctors, 788 pharmacists, 7802 nurses, and 14,091 mid-level personnel. At present, there are 27.7 physicians and 75.7 hospital beds per 10,000 inhabitants.

See also[link]

	Central Asia portal
	Mongolia portal

	Book: Mongolia
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Outline of Mongolia
• Index of Mongolia-related articles

References[link]