Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, between Russia and
China. Territorially almost four and a half times larger than
Germany, the country is the least populated country in the world
with only around three million inhabitants. More than 40 percent of
the country's population lives in the capital Ulaanbaatar. The
majority of the population are Mongolians, the slight majority of
whom follow Mongolian Buddhism.
The national territory covers
most of the Mongolian Plateau. Due to the nature of the soil and the
climate, agriculture can hardly be practiced in Mongolia. The
landscape is dominated by grassy steppes, with mountains to the
north and west, and the Gobi Desert to the south. The most important
economic sectors are nomadic livestock farming and mining. The
country is one of the ten countries richest in raw materials in the
world.
Excavations in the Gobi show that Homo erectus lived
in what is now Mongolia 500,000 years ago. Even before the beginning
of the Christian era, equestrian nomads such as the Xiongnu or
Xianbei united to form large tribes. In 1206, Genghis Khan founded
the Mongol Empire, which stretched across Asia and into Europe and
was the largest territorially contiguous empire in human history.
His grandson Kublai Khan conquered China and founded the Yuan
dynasty. After the collapse of this empire, Buddhism increasingly
dominated the state. During the Qing Dynasty, “Outer Mongolia” was
created as a Chinese province in 1644 on the territory of today's
Mongolian state.
From 1912 the region gained extensive
autonomy rights. In 1921, the Soviet Union established a puppet
government, which proclaimed the Mongolian People's Republic in
1924. During its existence, it was completely dependent on the
Soviet Union politically, militarily and economically. It was only
during the revolutions in 1989 that the country made the peaceful
transition to a democratic parliamentary system of government. On
February 12, 1992, parliament sealed the end of the communist system
by adopting a new constitution. Since then, Mongolia has been a
stable democracy. According to the 2022 Democracy Index, Mongolia is
the only democracy in the world completely surrounded by clear
dictatorships. The Mongolian population is particularly concerned
about the relationship with China, as they are aware of the lack of
chances in a possible military conflict and are becoming
increasingly dependent on this threatening backdrop.
The most important city and the only one with international air and
rail connections is Ulaanbaatar. The city had a million inhabitants in
May 2007 and is not only the seat of the government and practically all
administrative institutions and authorities, but also the only city that
corresponds to the concept of a large city in the western sense. All
trade with foreign countries is carried out here. The station has a
container loading station, which is also a kind of duty-free area where
goods are pre-cleared for import.
Other cities:
Khovd -
Probably the greenest city and the most important city in the west is
Khovd. Located in the middle of a valley in the Altai Mountains, the
city enjoys abundant water resources, and Khovd is also the seat of a
university to which students from the western, southern and eastern
regions travel to study foreign languages (English, Russian), politics,
economics or geology to study. This is also the headquarters of the WWF,
which has a lot of animal and nature conservation projects running in
this region of Mongolia.
Dalansadgad - The largest city in the south
is Dalansadgad, which lies in the middle of the Gobi Desert in a
foothills of the Altai Mountains.
Darkhan - Northeast of Ulaanbaatar
is Darkhan. Darkhan is the third largest city in Mongolia and is close
to the (presumed) birthplace of Genghis Khan. There are large coal
deposits near Darkhan, which are mined there in opencast mines.
Erdenet - About 400km northwest of Ulaanbaatar lies the country's second
largest city, Erdenet. Here is one of the world's largest molybdenum
deposits and one of the largest copper mines in Asia. Revenues from
copper mining account for about 70% of Mongolia's state revenue, which
underlines the importance of this city (300,000 inhabitants). Molybdenum
is also a sought-after precious metal that is used to make stainless
steel and high-temperature superconductors.
Hovd - A historic town at
the crossroads of traditional Mongol and Kazakh culture. Hovd is located
about 50km from Mongolia's highest mountain, the "Friendship Peak",
Nairamdal Orgill
Bayan Ölgii - The city furthest to the west is
Ölgii, where import/export trade with Kazakhstan is mainly handled. This
is also the coldest city in Mongolia with an average temperature of -0.5
degrees and an altitude of 1700 meters above sea level. NN. The city is
surrounded by mountains up to 3000 meters high, which are easy to reach
and climb. There are two nature reserves and Lake Uvs nearby.
Ondorkhaan - is located 340km east of Ulaanbaatar and can be reached by
bike within 4 days on a well-developed road.
Ulaangom
Uliastai - a
developing industrial city in the middle of Mongolia. Gold deposits are
suspected nearby.
Practically all of Mongolia's sights are outside the cities. Every
valley, every mountain peak, every pass road can represent a special
attraction.
Perhaps the most interesting place is Gurvan Saichan
National Park near Dalansadgad. One of the largest sites of dinosaur
bones in the world can be found here. It is a sandstone formation that,
through natural erosion, reveals these dinosaur bones, which employ
research teams traveling all over the world.
Half a day's journey
west of Dalansadgad lies a glacier in the middle of the desert and three
hours further (approx. 100 km) is Khohgoryn Els, the largest sand dune
in the world with approximately 120 km long, 30 km wide and 200 meters
high.
In the north of Mongolia lies Lake Khovsgol, one of the
largest inland lakes in Mongolia, surrounded by a nature reserve that
extends to the Russian border. Geologists suspect that in the past the
lake was connected to Lake Baikal. The lake is well suited for hikers,
and there are also tours that take place over several days, mainly on
horseback. The Saatan live in the northeast, they are reindeer nomads
whose area can only be visited with a special permit.
200km south
of Lake Khovsgol lie the hot water springs of Jargalant. Unfortunately,
the nature park is located off the beaten track and can practically only
be reached by organized tour. Not far away are the Orkhon waterfalls,
which are also worth seeing.
Anyone who has mountaineering
ambitions can let off steam in the area around Khovd and Bayan Olgii.
Mongolia's highest peak is a day's journey from Khovd and is just over
4,000 meters high. Beginners prefer to scramble around the edge of Bayan
Olgii, where you can do without special equipment.
The most
beautiful monastery is probably the Amarbayasgalant monastery in the
Selenge mountain steppe, between Darkhan and Erdenet. It is accessible
by car or after four days of hiking along the Orkhon River from Darkhan.
The active monastery is open to visitors. Next to the monastery you can
also spend the night unannounced in two ger camps (yurt camps). Costs
around 25 euros with good full board (as of 2011).
EU and EFTA citizens, Swiss and Turks do not need a visa to enter the
country for stays of up to 30 days. However, this regulation is
temporarily limited until December 31, 2025, except for Germans and
Turks. Entry visas are issued by the respective Mongolian embassy or
consulate. For non-tourist stays lasting longer than one month, the
applicant must contact the immigration authorities in Ulan Bator at
least six weeks in advance. After a positive decision has been issued, a
visa must be applied for with the relevant certificate from the
responsible consul, which is usually issued within five working days.
Bicycle travelers in particular have a bit of a hard time with the
30-day stay/visa because the extension is usually only done in Ulan
Bator, and otherwise the only route for a 30-day visa is the north-south
road from Russia to China. For stays of more than thirty days, you are
also required to report within the first week of your stay. You must
also deregister one week before departure. The immigration office, which
is also responsible for extending your stay, is close to the airport and
can be reached relatively easily with bus lines 11 or 21. The buses are
marked “Niseh” or “Нисэх”. Cost approx. 30-40 US$.
Responsible
are:
In the Federal Republic of Germany: Consular Department of the
Embassy, Hausvogteiplatz 14, 10117 Berlin. Email: berlin@mfa.gov.mn.
Processing time 5 working days. Also for non-Germans living in the
Federal Republic of Germany (with registration certificate). Germans who
entered the country without a visa can apply for an extension beyond the
permitted 30 days, but must submit this application during the first
week of their stay. Anyone who wants to stay between 31-90 days needs a
visa, which requires an invitation from Mongolia. Price: more than 30
days 1 or 2 entries: €45 or €60 each + €10 service fee.
“A visa
is required for departure and onward travel to the People's Republic of
China, which must be obtained from the responsible Chinese diplomatic
mission before the trip. It should be noted that, according to current
Chinese entry law, the visa application must be submitted in the country
of citizenship or habitual residence (which must be proven in the visa
process). This means travelers in Mongolia cannot obtain a visa for
China through the Chinese Embassy in Ulaanbaatar.”
The Mongolian
honorary consuls in the Federal Republic of Germany are not authorized
to issue a visa.
In Austria it is not permitted to submit
applications by post; appointments must be made at the
Consular
section of the embassy. Tel.: +43-1-535 28 07 (15), email:
konsulat-wien@mfa.gov.mn. Processing time 7-10 days. Price: same as
Germany.
In Switzerland: Section consulaire de l'Ambassade, Chemin de
Mollies 4, 1293 Bellevue. Tel.: (0)22 - 774 19 74.
Approval from
the Mongolian immigration authority is required to issue a visa with a
residence permit of up to 360 days. This can also be obtained from a
private or business host in Mongolia and a processing time of 1-2 months
can be expected.
It should also be noted that the inviter finds
himself in a file and cannot invite any number of people, but a maximum
of 3 private individuals per year. Otherwise, according to the
immigration authorities, it is also possible to leave the country 6
times in a row and come back with a fresh visa. However, the nearest
embassy can be found in Almaty, Astana, Irkutsk or Beijing, with each of
these places being about 2 days away by train.
If you would like
to stay in Mongolia for significantly longer than 30 days for academic
reasons, you should arrange this through the partner university. To
start a business, capital of up to US$ 100,000 must be deposited and you
will then receive a three-year investor visa.
Work visas are
generally only issued as “entry-exit” visas. The inviting employer must
then complete the formalities and pay 20% foreign tax on the salary.
When a fixed-term employment contract expires, the residence permit
expires.
e-Visa
Since May 2019, business and tourist visas,
those for multiple entries of up to 30 days and those for stays of 31-90
days can be applied for electronically at the Mongolia Immigration
Agency as an e-visa to issue a visa on arrival at least 14 days in
advance. This service is primarily aimed at residents of countries where
there is no Mongolian representation.
Mongolia is served inexpensively with connections from Turkish
Airlines and Air China. Flights from the Mongolian civil air transport
company MIAT, as well as Aeroflot, Air Haian and Air Korea are
significantly more expensive.
From Germany, MIAT offers direct
flights from Berlin and (seasonally) Frankfurt.
Overall, MIAT
offers the shortest flight time of around seven to eight hours and the
only real direct connection from Germany. MIAT's service, food and
drinks are excellent. You fly to Germany with machines that are
maintained by Lufthansa Technik.
Arrival and entry by train is possible from Moscow or Beijing. This
is the Moscow-Beijing route of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The
Irkutsk-Ulaanbaatar and Ulaanbaatar-Beijing sections are particularly
worth seeing.
If you start your journey in Ulaanbaatar, you only
pay a fraction of what is charged in Moscow or Beijing
(Ulaanbaatar-Moscow approx. 100-120 US dollars in a couchette). It is
recommended to travel on a Mongolian train as it is superior to Russian
and Chinese train compartments in terms of service, value for money and
hygienic conditions.
If you also want to leave by train, it is
worth considering booking this section first in Mongolia, as the prices
are slightly cheaper here.
Tickets for the international trains
are not available in the train station itself, but in a railway building
slightly away from the station. It's best to get the Trans-Siberian
tickets and those for the train to Beijing from the hotel or guesthouse.
But if you don't get tickets, you don't have to panic, trains run every
day to Samin Uud/Erlian (from there you can take a bus to Beijing) or to
the Russian border. Some trains only run from UB to Irkutsk, but from
there there are connections to Moscow several times a day.
Aside
from the Trans-Siberian crossing through Mongolia, the railway also
offers local trains that run between Samin Uud and UB, or from
Ulaanbaatar to the Russian border. These trains stop at every town that
has a train station.
There are now several small branches from
the main route, the most important of which are the route to Erdenet and
Darkhan, which are also served daily. The other branches can be reached
once or twice a week.
There has been a railway line between
Choibalsan and Russia that has been put back into operation since 2008.
It should be possible for foreigners to cross the border there.
Only the following crossings are available at road border crossings
for foreigners (with tourist visa type J): Mongolian-Russian border
(daily 8 a.m. - 7 p.m.): Altanbulag/Kjachta (Selenge Aimag) and
Tsgaan-Nuur/Tashanta (Bayan Ulgii Aimag) . Mongolian-Chinese border:
Zamyn-Üüd/Erenhot (= Èrlián or Ereen; Dornod Aimag), daily from 9 a.m.
to 7 p.m. Border crossings are closed on public holidays; During
festivals such as New Year, even for several days. There are a number of
other border crossings, but they are only open to citizens of
neighboring countries or require permission from the Russian and
Mongolian authorities, border troops and others specifically for the
western border, which means it is almost impossible.
You can take
a bus to Ulsanbaatar from Russia or from the Chinese border town of
Erlian. There are also bus connections from Ulasnbaatar to all parts of
the country, although only the surrounding cities of Darkhan, Erdenet,
Arvaicheer and Bayanhongor are served almost daily. Darhan and Erdenet
are also served by large, comfortable buses, and cities further away are
served by twelve-seater Russian-made minibuses.
There is a
northwest route that leads to Bayan Olgii to the west via the cities of
Arvaiheer, Uliastai, Khovd and a southwest route that leads to Bayan
Olgii via Arvaicheer, Bayanhongor, Altai, Khovd. Other destinations can
sometimes only be reached after waiting several days or not at all.
The southern route serves Mandalgov and Dalansadgad (towards China),
while the northern route has no major cities.
In the individual
cities there are official bus stations (Sochid Teerin Gasar), where
buses leave for the nearest aimag capital in the late afternoon, usually
between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. You can cover perhaps 300 to 400 kilometers
per day, which is between five and 16 hours of driving. The journey will
only begin when around 12-15 passengers have gathered, if necessary not
until the next day or the day after. Otherwise, every big city has a
market district, near which bus and jeep drivers are always waiting for
passengers.
Foreigners can currently only travel by bicycle via the border
crossings mentioned in the “Bus” section.
Crossing the
Russian-Mongolian border on a bicycle is prohibited, although exceptions
have been reported (as of 2016). It is expected that you will use a
motor vehicle. It is often possible to travel with a truck.
There
are “taxis” at the crossings that offer transfers for prices between €10
and €20 per person with a bike (2016) and are usually called by the
officials themselves. Using their services is also an advantage as they
receive priority processing and can usually help with the formalities.
There is no inland shipping for passengers; the only shipping connection that Mongolia has from abroad is via Lake Khovsgol in the north of the country and is used for the exchange of goods and the transport of raw materials in the ice-free period between June and October.
The 0.0 alcohol limit applies to drivers. Private taxis charge fancy
prices from foreigners, even more than in other Central Asian countries.
Hitchhiking: Most people in Mongolia don't own a car. Cars are only
driven in the inner cities, but they would hardly pass the TÜV in
Germany. Regardless, in Ulaanbaatar you can simply stand on the street
and try to stop a car. You will then be taken to your destination for a
comparatively low price if you speak Mongolian or Russian. You should
negotiate the prices in advance. For the route from the airport to the
city center you pay around 5000 T (as of 2006). This price has increased
significantly, even if you want to hitchhike from the airport to the
city, you have to calculate around 15,000 T (as of 2016).
Bicycle: Cycling in Mongolia is quite difficult. The bad roads and the
sometimes poor water supply make every cycling trip an adventure. There
are a few well-developed roads, one leads directly from northern Kyakhta
via Ulaanbaatar south to Samiin Uud. Other roads that are also practical
for cyclists - i.e. asphalted - lead to Erdenet and Bayanhongor.
Everything else is piste, desert or steppe. Spare parts can be found on
the local market in the provincial capitals, but not outside of that.
There are 40-50 km of concrete slab roads around the aimag capitals, and
occasionally the road is also asphalted. Further inland you can only
expect leveled desert roads, if at all.
Local transport: You have
to differentiate between the local transport system in Ulaanbaatar and
the rest of the country. In Ulaanbaatar, buses run every minute from 6
a.m. to around 10 p.m. There are also electric bus routes on the main
streets. There are also minibuses that go to the more distant parts of
the city. These minibuses are also available in larger cities.
Long-distance transport: Since only 2.5 million people live in Mongolia,
there is no strong infrastructure for public transport. All
long-distance bus routes are operated by family businesses, which often
only operate a single bus. The Aimag capitals can all be reached by
plane once or twice a week. There are also private airlines that provide
helicopters or small propeller planes and scheduled flights to the
larger cities in the interior. There is a state-regulated transport
system for bus travel, but the further you get from the capital, the
less these regulations apply and the more adventurous the loads and
filling conditions are. Smaller cities can only be reached, if at all,
with private jeeps, whereby you either wait until there are enough
passengers or you have to pay the not inconsiderable travel costs alone.
You can take the train north and south of UB and to Erdenet, once or
twice a day. This requires time - sometimes four hours for 100
kilometers - and tolerance for overcrowding - with up to 20 people in
the 8-person compartment.
You can also ride motorcycles for
shorter distances. Recently, more and more people are riding bicycles.
There are now also car-free Sundays, one of which was April 29, 2007.
For tourists, there are relatively well-organized tours from travel
companies based in Ulaanbaatar. These travel agencies offer trips into
the interior of the country for individual travelers and small and large
groups, with accommodation, meals and English-speaking support also
provided.
The national language is Mongolian. Communication is rarely possible
in German, Russian or English. If none of that works, a smile always
helped.
Mongolian belongs to the Ugro-Altaic language family and
is divided into around ten dialects, some of which are spoken in
neighboring countries. The learning effort is relatively high because
this language has no vocabulary in common (except for a few foreign
words) and is completely different from other languages in terms of
sentence structure and grammar.
Mongolian is written using a
slightly expanded Cyrillic alphabet, of which there is also a Latin
transliteration, and there is a vertically written written language, the
Uighur script. This was used in Mongolia until the mid-1920s and is
still used today in the autonomous province of Inner Mongolia (China).
The Uighur script is difficult to apply to the colloquial language
spoken today because it has remained in use virtually unchanged since
the 14th century, but the language has evolved.
In Mongolia,
Mongolian, more precisely the Khalha dialect, is used as the official
language, and all lessons at state schools and universities are given in
Mongolian, so that this dialect is also a colloquial language for all
ethnic groups living in Mongolia.
Oirat and Buryat dialects are
spoken in the north, and the entire west of Mongolia from Bayan Olgii to
the border is Kazakh-speaking. Virtually all older Mongolians also speak
or understand Russian, and Manchurian dialects are widespread in the
East.
Teaching at the university was switched from Russian to
Mongolian a long time ago, and there are also efforts to introduce
English as a foreign language. Due to active trade relations with Russia
and China, the two languages will retain their importance in trade.
Ulaanbaatar has everything, including imported goods and high-tech
items. In some cases, payment by credit card is even offered. The prices
are almost always excellent and non-negotiable. You can also pay with
foreign currency and then get the change back in the local currency.
Outside Ulaanbaatar, every aimag capital has market districts where
you can stock up on food, clothing and simpler technical equipment.
There are also smaller shops, which usually have a selection of drinks
and prepackaged foods and offer the odd artisanal item. Cash payment is
the order of the day here, card terminals are completely unknown.
Many cosmetic items are imported from Europe, Japan or China, as are
all technical items, and western prices can also be expected for them.
Items of clothing can be purchased very cheaply, and custom-made items
are also possible for relatively little money.
The large
selection of German foods is surprising. You can find the well-known
products from Edeka, Rewe and Co. in all supermarkets and also in small
shops. In the modern shopping centers of UB, e.g. in the State
Department on Peace Avenue, there are organic shelves with almost
exclusively German brands (Naturkind, Gut and glad...).
This is a topic that books could be written about. Since the culture
is nomadic, like in many other nomadic cultures, meat and dairy products
form the main basis of the diet.
Mongolian cuisine consists
predominantly of meat, animal fats and dairy products. As a European,
you are initially shocked by the taste of the products; everything
tastes somehow “highly concentrated”. But that's only because we as
Europeans no longer know it, or have been weaned off the habit by the
food industry, that meat or milk or yoghurt have their own taste. Here
in Germany everything is pasteurized, homogenized and standardized. In
Mongolia, a pig not only lives for six months and doesn't get
concentrated feed from a retort, but it lives outdoors and only eats
herbs and spices all day long. You can tell that in this meat, no matter
what animal you eat. You can prepare meat there without spices and it
still has taste. It's the same with dairy products or vegetables
(potatoes, cabbage, carrots, tomatoes and onions, everything else is
imported from China and only tastes like water). Anyone who has ever
eaten or drunk Mongolian tomatoes or tomato juice made from Mongolian
tomatoes will never forget this experience. Of course the tomatoes don't
look like our supermarket tomatoes, but the taste is unique.
Typical Mongolian dishes:
Boozz (dumplings filled with meat and
steamed)
Hushuur (as above only fried)
Zöwin (fried noodles with
carrots and cabbage)
Lapscha (Mongolian noodle soup)
Hutzei soup
(glass noodle soup with meat, potatoes, carrots, cabbage, meatballs and
bacon)
Borzock (sweet dough fried in fat)
Aaruul (dried milk or
also called concrete curd)
Milk is also generally boiled in
Mongolia, and for this reason it is completely harmless in the central
part of the country. Conversely, there is neither cheese nor yoghurt. In
the Kazakh region of Bayan Ölgii, raw milk products such as buttermilk,
cheese and yoghurt are still available in many places. Since the people
there also value quality, the wholesomeness of these dishes is
guaranteed.
There is a clear trend towards more vegetarian and
vegan food in Ulaanbaatar. In the most central square, Sukhbaatar
Square, there is a vegan restaurant from the Loving Hut chain with
dishes that creatively combine traditional Mongolian cuisine and vegan
preparation.
General basic rules for eating and drinking
Always boil or filter water from the tap.
Always have some liquor
with you, as the European body is not used to these natural foods, and
take a “double” after every meal. It is also a common custom to drink
vodka together. Only this part of Kazakhstan gets by without alcohol.
Never refuse food or drink or invitations to do so, especially in the
countryside with nomads.
If you want to try Airag (fermented mare's
milk), always take enough toilet paper with you. The obligatory diarrhea
after the first consumption is not harmful, but healthy, like mare's
milk in general. With an Airag treatment, the diarrhea can last for a
week, then just drink enough (especially mare's milk)!
If you've
eaten enough, there should always be something left on your plate. Then
the hosts know that it was enough.
There are practically all the entertainment options in Ulaanbaatar
that are also available in other major cities. Among the discos, only
the UB Palace and the club The Strings in the Bayangol district should
be highlighted. There are many smaller dance halls that are located in
the city center and in the university district and only offer enough
space for around 50 people.
The beer gardens of Khan Bräu and
another brewery can be found in the city center, and there are many
other options, e.g. E.g. the Great Mongol next to the State Circus or
the Irish Pub.
Almost every evening there are events in the State
Opera and frequent performances in the State Theater. There are many
smaller clubs, restaurants and pubs along Peace Avenue that are usually
open until midnight.
The Tengis Cinema is located in the city
center, where mostly dubbed films from India or blockbusters are shown
in three cinema halls.
You shouldn't walk alone at night because
you'll often come across drunk people who can be quite disruptive. Since
public alcohol consumption outside of restaurants was banned in spring
2007, this phenomenon has also decreased significantly.
Ulaanbaatar offers several large hotels where you can expect western
comfort for western prices. This means in particular clean bed linen,
electrically generated hot water (since May 2007 the public hot water
supply has been completely switched off), telephone and internet,
restaurants, cleaning and, above all, peace and quiet.
For budget
travelers, there are many facilities called guesthouses, which offer
shared accommodation for as little as $4 per night. Single or double
rooms can be expected here for $15-20 per day.
A few private
individuals also offer accommodation, which is usually a furnished room
for $10 to $20 a day.
Comfortable hotels are unknown in the
interior of the country. Even the most expensive hotels are filthy, hot
water is only available in winter and clean toilets are a rarity. You
also have to expect that as a foreigner you will occasionally be shown a
different price list.
There are motel-like establishments in
Khovd, Bayanhongor and Bayan Olgii for around $5 per night. You shower
in public shower houses, where you can always find a hairdresser. In
some cities it is better to take a tent and camp outside the city
because the cheapest accommodation in the provincial towns is populated
with eight to twelve chain-smoking drunken Mongolians.
Camping is
allowed nationwide and you can usually have peace and quiet. In Khovd,
the Khovd Hotel should be mentioned, in Bayan Olgii you can stay quite
well in the Basteau, and in Altai there is the Altai Hotel, where you
can have a little discussion in Mongolian and then no longer pay the
tourist price.
Gercamps are open in many places in summer. Here
you sleep in traditional Mongolian tents, you can also prepare your food
there and there are decent toilets and showers. This is probably the
nicest way to stay overnight outside of Ulaanbaatar if you don't want to
camp.
Mongolia is a relatively safe country. Violent crime is rare, and
tourists occasionally fall victim to pickpocketing or scams. Even when
traveling inland, there is no risk of criminal attacks other than
pickpocketing.
The only danger you face in the evening is being
harassed by drunks. Women should not travel alone outside the capital
and should not take sensitive valuables such as camcorders or laptops
with them. This in turn is a recommendation because of the largely
non-existent roads when traveling overland in buses or jeeps - only what
can survive a day-long ride in an off-road vehicle belongs in your
luggage.
Only use boiled tap water and only consume well-cooked or well-cooked
foods. Water offered by nomads in the steppe is often taken from the
rivers, which serve as drinking water for the numerous livestock, which
defecate and urine there. Since temperature differences of 30 degrees
can sometimes occur between day and night, you should think about
suitable clothing and harden yourself accordingly.
The food
offered in restaurants is all safe, although not always tasty.
Simple medications can be obtained without a prescription from
pharmacies in Ulaanbaatar, but staff are not expected to speak English.
You MUST bring special medications, insulin and other things with you.
Since even Ulaanbaatar cannot be expected to have Western-standard
hospitals, you should always have operations carried out at home and
take out appropriate insurance.
In recent years, over 600 cases
of brucellosis have been recorded each year. This bacterial, febrile
illness can be transmitted through contact with sick animals (sheep,
goats, cattle) or consumption of undercooked dairy products. Be careful
with raw milk and raw cheese. Mongolia is one of the few countries where
the plague is endemic. Here it is transmitted to humans from diseased
marmots (marmots are a delicacy in the host country).
Cases of
rabies have been described. For trekking and/or bicycle tours where
immediate medical care and vaccination cannot be ensured within a day,
especially after animal bites, a preventative rabies vaccination is
recommended.
The classic Mongolian mentality is very much focused on saving face,
integrity and honor. Traditional norms that come from the nomadic
tradition, such as hospitality, have a very strong impact in daily life.
This means, for example, that you can never take spontaneous photos
of people. Mongolians like to be photographed, but first they want to
get ready, look in the mirror again and then be photographed with all
their relatives dressed up. It goes without saying that when you enter a
ger, especially when visiting nomads, you shouldn't start snapping
wildly.
You should be very polite towards official bodies in
particular and never show impatience. This is usually counterproductive
and is not understood by the other side. On (planned) visits you should
always take a few small gifts with you. This is expected and will be met
with a bit of misunderstanding if you fail to do so. Even in everyday
life you have to accept that certain things don't happen immediately, or
at least not today.
When visiting spontaneously, as often happens
when traveling, you should at least master the basic forms of
politeness, which means taking an hour, drinking a lot of tea, trying
one or two vodkas and some food. Refusing a drink or food completely is
considered very rude - if you don't like vodka, you'll do the deed by
sipping it.
If you are planning longer trips or stays, you should
definitely get to grips with the language. This helps with some problems
or at least solves them if you can ask the right questions and don't
have to rely on a translator. Most Mongolians know how difficult it is
to learn their language and are very grateful if you can have a little
conversation with them.
If you want to keep in touch with the outside world, you can rely on
a variety of different options in Ulaanbaatar. There are Internet cafés
on every street corner where you can write emails, make phone calls and
chat via Skype or Messenger, or call home with relatively cheap
providers.
Cell phones are also possible here, but they are
expensive, three to five euros per minute with a German cell phone
contract. So get out the German SIM card and buy a MobilCom prepaid card
for around 12 euros. You can then top it up, a minute of mobile phone
calls costs around four cents if you call Mongolian numbers and around
40 cents per minute to Germany. There is also a special foreign credit
account with which you can get down to 20 cents per minute. The largest
top-up amount is 10,000 Tugrik, which is around six euros and you will
then be credited with 11,000 units.
Anyone traveling inland will
not find any telephone booths. Sometimes it is helpful to get help in
difficult situations or to reserve rooms. The mobile phone network is
relatively well developed and is available in all major cities. Buying a
card is completely unbureaucratic, but the numbers expire after two
months and you cannot be called from abroad.
The name of the country comes from the ethnonym
"Mongols", the origin of which, in turn, continues to be the subject of
controversy. So, a number of researchers - in particular, N. Ts. Munkuev
- notes that the ethnonym "Mongol" is first found in Chinese sources
"Jiu Tang shu" ("The Old History of the Tang Dynasty", compiled in 945)
in the form of meng-wu shi -wei - "Mongols-Shiwei", and in the "Xin Tang
shu" ("New history of the [dynasty] Tang", compiled in 1045-1060) in the
form of men-wa bu - "tribe of men-wa". In various Khitan and Chinese
sources of the 12th century, the names of meng-ku, manguli, manguzi,
mengu guo were also used for these tribes. D. Banzarov connected the
ethnonym "Mongol" with historical geographical names: the river Mon and
Mount Mona. According to Hasdorj, the people who lived in the nearby
places of Mount Mon in Ordos acquired the name Mon. The word goal was
added to it, as a result of which the name Mongol arose. Gol is a
Mongolian word meaning "central, main". A version was also put forward,
according to which the name Mongol arose by combining the Mongolian
words monkh (“eternal”) and gal (“fire”).
The Mongolian scientist
Zh. Bayasakh suggests that the name Mongol appeared as a result of a
modification of the Mongolian word mongө (“silver”). The connection
between the concepts of Mongol and mongo (“silver”) is mentioned in the
Chinese texts “Hei-da shi-lue” of 1237; they say that the population of
Great Mongolia called their state the "Great Silver Dynasty".
As
B. R. Zoriktuev notes, from the many interpretations of the term Mongol,
a version stands out about its origin from the Tungus-Manchu word mangmu
/ manggu / mangga, meaning “strong, resilient, tight”. According to L.
Bilegt, the name Mongol is the Tungus-Manchu tracing paper of the
Mongolian word kiyan, which translates as “a large stream flowing from
the mountains to the lowlands, stormy, fast and strong; rushing
current." This version was further developed in the works of A. Ochira.
500,000 years ago, the territory of what is now Mongolia was
inhabited by Homo erectus. Back then the climate was milder than today.
In the valley of the Tolbor River, a tributary of the Selenga, stone
tools dating back almost 45,000 years were discovered at the Tolbor-16
site, the oldest evidence of the presence of anatomically modern humans
(Homo sapiens) in what is now Mongolia. Cave paintings in the Khovd
province date from the later Stone Age, i.e. from 40,000 to 12,000 years
ago. In the Mesolithic, around 12,000-7,000 years ago, people began to
use bows and arrows and keep pets.
The first written evidence
comes from Chinese chronicles. In the Bronze Age, around 2500 BC. to
1000 BC, the culture of the region developed quickly due to the numerous
deposits of copper in Mongolia. At the same time, however, the climate
continued to cool down, making it too cold to farm, and the people here
ultimately became livestock-raising nomads.
In the third century
BC, the Xiongnu tribe invaded the southern Chinese states. He was
successfully repulsed, and in response to frequent Mongol incursions,
Emperor Qin Shihuangdi began building the Great Wall of China. However,
steppe peoples such as the Xianbei, Tuoba, and Rouran repeatedly
breached the wall and plundered Chinese territories, at times even
building their own empires and acculturating.
The name Mongols probably came into being during the Tang Dynasty
(7th to 10th centuries). In the 8th century, Turkic peoples, especially
the Uyghurs, took over supremacy, and in the 10th century the Kitan
founded the Liao dynasty, which lasted until 1125.
In the 12th
century, Temüjin managed to unite the numerous Mongolian tribes that
were at odds with each other and form a state out of them that could
compete with its powerful neighbors. Around 1206 he was recognized as
leader of all Mongols under the title of Genghis Khan. He raised a
powerful army, to which, with a few exceptions, all men between the ages
of 15 and 70 were enlisted, taking care to include men from different
tribes in all groups. What was also new was a strictly hierarchical
organization of the army and the specialization of the soldiers.
To support his military organization, he introduced innovations such as
a census, a communications system using flags, and a mounted post.
Spiritually, Genghis Khan followed Tengrism.
The capital
Karakorum was built in what is now central Mongolia. It lay at the
crossroads of two important trade routes; the Mongols encouraged people
from other parts of Asia to settle in Karakoram. The residents had
religious freedom, and mosques, churches and Buddhist temples were built
in the city.
The Yassa Code of Laws issued by Genghis Khan
contained traditional Mongolian laws but was supplemented with new laws
that required the expansion of the Mongol Empire. The laws imposed
punishments for liars, required the return of lost property, restricted
alcohol consumption, and established a social safety net for the
survivors of slain Mongol warriors. A largely uniform legal system
contributed significantly to the Pax Mongolica from the late 12th
century to the 14th century.
Before his death, Genghis Khan had
already divided his empire into four khanates. His son Chagatai was
given control of the southwestern part of the empire, which included
Afghanistan, Turkestan and central Siberia. His grandson Batu gained
power over Central Asia and founded the Golden Horde there. Pol Uri was
given power over Mongolia and Ögedei was entrusted with rule over China
and East Asia. Ögedei Khan managed to further expand the empire and
expand its territory south and west. When Ögedei died twelve years
later, his armies were in southern China and at the gates of Vienna. His
successor Möngke conquered most of southern China and the northern part
of what is now Vietnam. In 1261 Kublai Khan became his successor. Kublai
was not only a talented military leader, but also a far-sighted ruler.
He promoted trade and shipping, the sciences and introduced improvements
in Chinese agriculture. Under his rule, the Mongolian script was
developed and in 1280 he moved his winter residence to Dadu, now
Beijing, where he founded the Yuan dynasty. Although the conquest of
Japan failed twice, the Mongol Empire reached its peak of power under
Kublai Khan. However, the succession to the throne remained unclear
after the death of each ruler, and the struggles for power damaged the
territorial integrity of the empire.
After Kublai Khan's death,
the Mongols were unable to maintain their power.[60] Even after Kublai
Khan, the Mongol Empire still had the institution of the Great Khan,
although he was no longer fully recognized by all khanates. The last
great khan to rule all Mongolian empires was Timur Khan (until 1307).
Afterwards, there were repeated tribute payments from the other khans to
the respective great khan, especially to Toqa Timur, as well as similar
gestures of submission and solidarity, but in reality the political
fortunes of the Mongol Empire after Timur Khan were largely
decentralized. In particular, the khans only supported each other - or
their great khan - only to a limited extent in military actions;
Soldiers were often only sent symbolically. In this respect, for most of
the time from 1307 onwards, the Mongol Empire was more of a
confederation of states similar to the Holy Roman Empire, under more
formal than actual leadership by the Great Khan, than a unified state in
the modern sense.
Despite a lack of political unity, cohesion
within the Mongol Empire was still clearly evident even after 1307. It
manifested itself, among other things, in the legal system, the postal
and communication system (Örtöö and Païza) and the common art and
cultural assets, especially writing and language. This means that the
unity of the Mongol Empire is comparable to that of other large empires
of the late Middle Ages and early modern times.
As before the time of Genghis Khan, the Mongol tribes repeatedly
attacked the Chinese Empire, which prompted the rulers of the Ming
Dynasty to further expand and strengthen the Chinese Wall. Numerous
fights between the Mongolian tribes began, instigated by China. As a
result of a long war between the two most important Mongolian tribes,
the Oirats and the Chalcha, the Oirats were expelled from what is now
Mongolia. During the reign of Altan Khan, Tibetan Buddhism began to
become the state religion of the Mongols.
Before that, Buddhism
had been one of several religions practiced in his empire. At the same
time, the Manchus rose to become the dominant power east of what is now
Mongolia. In 1634 they defeated Ligdan Khan, and from 1644 onwards the
Manchurian Qing dynasty was founded, in whose government numerous Mongol
officials also worked. More efficient weapons were introduced, which the
mounted Mongols could not fight with bows and arrows. However, nomadic
Mongolian society was not equipped to produce such weapons itself. The
borders of the Mongol Empire thus began to narrow. Both Outer Mongolia
and Inner Mongolia, which is now an autonomous region of the People's
Republic of China, were opened to Han settlement in the early 17th
century. Outer Mongolia increasingly came under the influence of the
Russian Empire. The entire Mongolian highland was divided into so-called
banners, whose head was appointed by the Chinese imperial family.
Buddhism led to the emergence of permanent settlements around
monasteries and became an influential power. Mongolia remained
relatively peaceful and stable until the beginning of the 20th century.
It was an impoverished province with fewer than 500,000 residents, often
deeply in debt to Russian and Chinese traders. Taking advantage of the
collapse of the Chinese Qing dynasty, the 8th Jebtsundamba Khutukhtu
declared Outer Mongolia independent in 1911 with Russian support. From
1912, Mongolia gained extensive autonomy rights. In 1915,
representatives of Russia, China and Outer Mongolia signed the Treaty of
Kyakhta, under which Outer Mongolia received some autonomous status but
remained subject to Chinese sovereignty.
After the October Revolution in Russia, the National Chinese seized
the opportunity and fully reintegrated Mongolia into the Republic of
China in 1919. In the course of the Russian Civil War, part of the White
Army under the leadership of Roman von Ungern-Sternberg moved into Outer
Mongolia in 1920, occupied the country and tried to fight the Red Army
by advancing into Russian territory. On March 13, 1921, Ungern-Sternberg
proclaimed an independent monarchy and nominally installed Bogd Khan as
head of state. On the same day, Sükhbaatar and Choibalsan, who were in
the Soviet Union, founded a communist counter-government and marched
into Mongolia on July 3, 1921 with the 400-man Mongolian People's
Revolutionary Army along with 10,000 Russian soldiers from the Red Army
and quickly occupied Urga . On July 11, 1921, the Mongolian People's
Revolutionary Party (MRVP) again proclaimed the independence of Outer
Mongolia. Ungern-Sternberg was extradited to the Soviet Army and
executed. Bogd Khan remained formally the head of state; It was only
after his death that the new rulers adopted a communist constitution on
November 25, 1924, which created the Mongolian People's Republic as a
satellite state of the Soviet Union. During its existence, it was
completely dependent on the Soviet Union politically, militarily and
economically.
The population, which continued to live
nomadically, offered no resistance to the new communist leadership. Due
to the country's almost non-existent organizational structures and low
population density, communism took a long time to establish itself in
Mongolia. As a result, all residents of the country over the age of 18
were given the right to vote. Only traders, moneylenders, former nobles
and monks were excluded. The political leadership of the one-party state
was taken over by the MRVP. The legislative body of the Mongolian
People's Republic corresponding to the Supreme Soviet was the Grand
State Khural. He chose the Small State Khural. The Little Khural elected
a presidium and a council of ministers composed of twelve members, which
formed the executive branch. The Great People's Khural met only twice a
year. In the meantime, the Presidium was able to pass decrees and
dismiss and appoint cabinet members. His decisions had to be
subsequently confirmed by the plenary session. Furthermore, the Great
Khural appointed the members of the Supreme Court.
The
constitution of November 1, 1924 introduced general active and passive
women's suffrage. Land, pastures, water and mineral resources were
nationalized. All debts to foreign traders (especially Chinese) were
canceled and the private moneylending system was abolished. Foreign
trade was placed under a state monopoly and the economic power of the
monasteries was broken. In 1924, the first Mongolian currency, the
tögrög, was introduced. The first state-owned bank was Mongolbank. At
the same time, the first industrial activities, such as mining and the
processing of agricultural products, began. In 1931, the property of
more than a third of households was confiscated and redistributed. In
response, the affected families slaughtered seven million animals. This
and the fact that the newly founded cooperatives did not function as
desired led to a famine and a rebellion in 1931/1932. A civil war could
only be avoided with great difficulty. From then on, changes in the
economic system were implemented more slowly.
On the political
stage, parallel to similar events in the Soviet Union, political purges
took place, the victims of which included Bogd Khan, Chakdorjab,
Togotkho, Puntsuk Dorji and Dindub. In 1924, Dandsan, the deputy prime
minister and minister of war and commander-in-chief of the army, was
shot. In 1937, Genden, who as prime minister was responsible for the
gradual implementation of communist policies, was executed. His rival
Choibalsan was now both prime minister and war minister. The focus of
his Stalinist politics was the fight against religion, among other
things. through the forced conscription of monks and nuns to work in
factories or to military service and the destruction of monasteries.
Gold and silver statues were confiscated, taken to the Soviet Union and
melted down. In 1932, Japan also founded a satellite state, Manchukuo in
Inner Mongolia, after which the Soviet Union increased its military
presence in the Mongolian People's Republic. Japan saw this action as a
threat to its interests and also moved additional troops to Manchukuo's
border. Both states cited support for their “brother countries” in
fighting “gangs” and warlords as the official justification for their
respective policies. From January 1935, conflicts between Soviet and
Japanese border troops increased dramatically due to unclear borders
between the Mongolian People's Republic and Manchukuo, which ended in
the Japanese-Soviet Border War in 1939. During World War II, the
Mongolian People's Republic had to support the Soviet Union by supplying
livestock and clothing.
Choibalsan died in 1952; he was succeeded
by Tsedenbal, who ruled the country for 32 years. From 1958 at the
latest, almost all nomadic households belonged to a cooperative, called
Negdel. In addition to the development of agriculture, some industrial
centers emerged in which mining and the processing of wool, meat and
wood were carried out. Tsedenbal was deposed in 1984; Under his
successor Dschambyn Batmönch, the Mongolian People's Republic was given
increasingly more room for maneuver, which was made possible by
Gorbachev's policies in the Soviet Union.
From 1988 onwards, an opposition made up of various forces formed in
the Mongolian People's Republic, demanding a multi-party system and
economic reforms. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Mongolia made a
peaceful transition to a democratic parliamentary system of government
starting in 1990. On February 12, 1992, Parliament sealed the end of the
communist system by adopting a constitution based on the principles of a
democratic constitutional state and a market economy. At the same time,
the term “People’s Republic” was deleted from the name. The new
experiences with a free-market economic system were difficult for many
Mongolians; In the early 1990s there was inflation and shortages.
Despite allegations of corruption and nepotism, Mongolia was considered
one of the more stable democracies of the former Eastern Bloc in the
late 2000s.
The anthropologist David Sneath confirmed this
assessment in 2018. Although there were allegations of electoral fraud
after the 2008 parliamentary election, which resulted in violent
protests and the arson of the headquarters of the ruling Mongolian
People's Party in the capital, the demonstrators did not oppose them
democracy as an institution, but against what they perceived as the
corruption of the ruling class. This incident shows that what at first
glance appears to be a stable parliamentary government system is
struggling with strong political tensions beneath the surface. Despite
these conflicts, Sneath sees strong features of a consociational
democracy realized in Mongolia.
Mongolia is a country in East Asia. Its territory extends between 41°
35′ and 52° 06′ north latitude and 87° 47′ and 119° 57′ east longitude.
It ranks 18th among all countries in the world in terms of area.
Nevertheless, Mongolia only has two neighbors: the country shares a
3,485 km long border with Russia in the north and a 4,677 km long border
with the People's Republic of China in the south; Furthermore,
Kazakhstan begins just 38 km west of Mongolia's westernmost point. Its
east-west extent is 2392 km and its north-south extent is 1259 km. It is
covered by 40% semi-desert, 35% by tree steppe and 20% by grass steppe;
The rest is made up of forest and sandy desert.
The largest city
in Mongolia is the capital Ulaanbaatar (Ulan Bator) with approximately
1.3 million inhabitants, almost half of the population of the entire
country. The creation of Maidar City will not resolve the centralization
of the population around Ulaanbaatar, as the two cities will only be
approximately 30 km apart. Important cities are Erdenet with 79,649
inhabitants, Darkhan with 72,386 inhabitants and Choibalsan with 44,367
inhabitants; other cities can be found in the list of cities in
Mongolia.
About a third of the national territory is occupied by high
mountains, especially in the north, west and southeast. Dry plateaus
dominate the south and east. The average national altitude is around
1,580 meters above sea level.
The region between the Changai
Mountains and Altai is called Western Mongolia. Here, on the border with
China's Xinjiang, two peaks of the Altai reach almost 4,400 meters,
including the Chüiten peak, which at 4,374 m is the highest peak in
Mongolia. From there, the 3000 to 4000 m high mountain ranges of
Mongolian Altai and Gobi-Altai stretch 2000 km to the east-southeast,
along the border with China, to the Mongolian Plateau; Other mountains
in western Mongolia are the Tannu-ola Mountains and the Sayan Mountains.
There are hundreds of glaciers in Mongolia, although they are all very
small by international standards.
In the center of the country
lies the Changai Mountains with numerous three-thousanders, whose
northern flank already drains to the Siberian Lake Baikal, and to the
east of it the region around the capital Ulaanbaatar (1350 m). To the
east is the Chentii Mountains. South of this mountain range the country
is hilly until it merges into the Gobi. In the east of Mongolia, Lake
Choch Nuur is the lowest point in Mongolia at 532 m.
There are about 1200 rivers in Mongolia with a total length of almost
70,000 km. The land is drained in three directions: towards the Pacific
Ocean, towards the Arctic Ocean and towards the drainless Central Asian
Plain. As a landlocked country, Mongolia itself has no access to seas or
oceans.
The water-rich Selenga rivers and their large tributaries
Ider, Orkhon and Tuul run through the north. These arise in the Changai
Mountains and flow into Lake Baikal. Also in the north and east flow the
Onon and the Cherlen, which rise in the Chentii Mountains and drain
towards the Pacific via the Amur, as well as the Ulds and Chalchyn. The
largest rivers in the West are the Khovd and the Dzavkhan, both of which
flow towards drainless Central Asia. All rivers in Mongolia freeze over
in winter. The ice cover can last up to six months and reach a thickness
of more than one meter. The frozen rivers are often used as roads by
vehicles in winter, polluting them with oil.
Mongolia's almost
4,000 lakes include the 3,350 km² saltwater lake Uws Nuur and the 2,760
km² Chöwsgöl Nuur. The latter is one of the most important freshwater
lakes in the world. 95% of the other lakes are less than 5 km² in size;
80% are freshwater lakes. Because they are often fed by glaciers and are
far from any industrial centers, they are almost unpolluted and have
very clear water. They are important resting stations for migratory
birds.
Mongolia's waters are experiencing significant
desertification, with 852 of its rivers and streams and more than 1,000
of its lakes drying up or disappearing (2007 data).
The location in the Central Asian highlands gives Mongolia one of the most extreme climates among the continental and arid climates in the world. Due to the dry, pronounced continental climate, temperatures fluctuate greatly throughout the year: in winter the average daily temperatures are −25 °C and in summer they are +20 °C, which means that the fluctuations are two to three times greater than in Western Europe. The mean annual precipitation reaches 200 to 220 millimeters and decreases from over 400 mm in the north of the country to less than 100 mm in the south of the Gobi Desert. Annually, 80 to 90% of precipitation falls from May to September. The temperature differences between night and day are also unusually high, reaching up to 32 °C. The absolute temperature amplitude between summer and winter reaches up to 100 K.
Mongolia is significantly affected by global warming. Between 1940 and 2001, the annual mean air temperature rose by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius. The winter temperature rose by more than 3.6 degrees during this period. Mongolia's ancient ice is melting rapidly due to the changing climate and warm summer temperatures. Since the inflow from the ice fields runs dry more often in summer, the drinking water supply is increasingly restricted. This will put both cultural heritage and traditional reindeer herding at extreme risk in the coming years. As a result, the climate crisis is endangering domestic low-latitude reindeer herders living in the mountainous tundra zones of northern Mongolia.
While the northern part of Mongolia is still part of the boreal
coniferous forest zone with sufficient rainfall, rainfall continues to
decrease towards the south. The natural conditions such as the
precipitation gradient in the north-south direction and the
windward-leeward effects of the mountain ranges running through the
country lead to a pronounced vegetation zonation, which Hilbig 1995
differentiated from north to south according to the precipitation
conditions as follows (their distribution is in brackets the
corresponding geographical areas and floral regions named after Grubov
1982):
Mountain taiga (Chubsugul, Chentei, northern edge of
Changai)
(Mountain) forest steppe (Changai, Chubsugul, Chentei,
Mongolian-Daurian floral region, Mongolian Altai, Hinggan)
(Dry)
steppe (southern part of Changai, middle Chalkha, eastern Mongolia,
peripheral area of the Great Lakes basin)
Grass steppe
mountain
steppe
meadow steppe
sand steppe
Alpine vegetation
(Chubsugul, Chentei, Changai, Mongolian Altai)
Semi-desert (desert
steppe) (southern half of Mongolia, Great Lakes basin, Gobi-Altai,
Djungarian Gobi)
Desert (Djungarian Gobi, Trans-Altai Gobi, Alashan
Gobi and East Gobi)
Extrazonal vegetation (which differs
significantly from the typical vegetation of the respective climatic
zone):
Alpine vegetation (formed in the Chubsugul region, in
central Changai, in Mongolian Altai, partly in Chentei)
The fauna of Mongolia has adapted to the conditions of the steppe. People keep sheep, goats, cattle, camels and horses. Wild mammals of the steppe include saiga, jerboas, marmots, wolves, yaks, a species of wild cat and the steppe polecat. A species of crane occurs on the lakes, and other bird species in Mongolia include buzzard species, steppe eagles, the lark and a species of wheatear. A special feature is the Przewalski horse, which was already extinct and was successfully reintroduced into the wild. The forest and mountain areas of the country are inhabited by the argali, a species of wild goat, a species of gazelle, the stoat, the mountain hare, species of snipe and the Altai king chicken (Tetraogallus altaicus). A special feature here is the snow leopard, which is highly threatened due to hunting and the restriction of its habitat. The Gobi is home to the Asian donkey, the Cashmere goat, numerous species of rodents and lizards and agamas. The highly endangered Gobi bear also lives in the Gobi, a small form of brown bear that eats a primarily vegetarian diet. Carp fish, loaches, pike, burbot, perch, lenok, taimen and various species of grayling are found in the waters of Mongolia. The Baikal sturgeon (Acipenser baerii baicalensis Nikolskii) migrates more than 300 km across the Orkhon to spawn in the Selenga and the upper reaches of the Orkhon. Migratory birds that only spend the summer in Mongolia include the swan goose, mute swan and teal. There are also migratory birds that winter in Mongolia, such as the snow bunting and the snowy owl.
Due to the region's formerly warm and humid climate, which later became dry and cool, numerous dinosaur remains have been preserved. Since the 1920s, numerous spectacular discoveries have been made in Mongolia. The American scientist Roy Chapman Andrews discovered the first dinosaur eggs here. Fossils of Oviraptor, Protoceratops, Velociraptor, Therizinosaurus, Pachycephalosauria and Tarbosaurus were also found.
Mongolia lies in a very seismically active area; Earthquakes are
common. However, due to the low population density and because there are
relatively few buildings that could collapse, the earthquakes usually
cause little damage. The most violent earthquakes occurred in central
Mongolia in 1905 and in southwestern Mongolia in 1931, 1957 and 1967.
The 1905 quake measured 8.2 to 8.7 on the Richter scale, the 1957 quake
measured 7.9 to 8.3, and the 1967 quake measured 7.5. However, the
numerous cracks in the earth left by the earthquakes often lead to
rivers on which the nomads and their herds depend dry out or shift.
Dsud originally refers to very snowy winters in which the animals
are no longer able to find food under the snow cover and therefore
starve. The term is now also used for other meteorological conditions,
particularly winter ones, under which livestock grazing becomes
impossible. In addition to the above-mentioned White Dzud, in which the
animals can no longer find food under the snow cover after heavy
snowfall, a distinction is made between the so-called Black Dsud, in
which the animals die of thirst due to too little snow (since wells and
waters freeze, there is snow when it is cold temperatures the only
source of water). Another form is the Icy or Iron Dsud, in which
freezing rain covers the land with ice, preventing animals from feeding
on grass and herbs. Finally, a fourth form is the storm dzud due to
sandstorms. Dzuds are relatively common phenomena in Mongolia, which can
kill millions of animals in one winter, thereby depriving the population
of their food supply.
Mongolia is divided into 21 aimags (provinces) and the capital
Ulaanbaatar (Ulan Bator), which forms an independent administrative
unit. The latter also applied to the city of Erdenet until 1994. From
this, however, the Orkhon aimag was created in 1994 together with some
sums from the Bulgan aimag. Likewise the city of Darkhan, for which the
Darkan-Uul aimag was separated from the Selenge aimag as an enclave.
Each aimag is divided into a number of sums (comparable to
counties/districts), which in turn are divided into bags (comparable to
municipalities). There are over 300 sums, which are divided into more
than 1500 bags. A bag often does not exist as a permanent settlement
because its members all move around as nomads.