Mongolia (Geography)
Mongolia is characterized by vast plateaus; 80% of the area is at an altitude of over 1000 m. To the west and north, the plateau is replaced by mountain ranges; furthest to the west is the 1600 km long Altai Chain (Mönh Hairhan 4200 m), east of it Hangai (up to 3460 m) and NE of the capital Ulan Bator Henti (2750 m). Landets gnsntl. altitude is 1580 masl Both the mountain slopes and large parts of central Mongolia are covered with grass. To the south alter the natural vegetation gradually to the desert, the Gobi Desert, which covers 1/3 of the territory. In large areas, the soil is characterized by permafrost, which here has its southernmost continuous distribution in Asia.
The climate is extremely continental with long winters; more than six months have average temperatures below freezing. In the short summers the temperature is 17-23 °C on average. and can in the Gobi Desert get above 30 °. The coldest months have average temperatures of −18 °C to −26 °C, and temperatures of −50 °C occur regularly. Precipitation is sparse everywhere and decreases to the south. I gnsn. the country gets 250-500 mm a year, mostly in the summer. The short growing season and the low rainfall mean that less than 1% of the area is cultivated.
The country has many lakes, several of which are large, including Hövsgöl Nuur and Uvs Nuur. These and available water resources in general are found especially in the northern part of the country. A large part of the area is drained by Selenga, which runs north to Lake Baikal. Other rivers end up as salt lakes in the Gobi. Only 1/3 of Mongolia has sufficient water; however, deep water wells can be used in some areas.
Mongolia has a magnificent and partly original nature. The significant forest areas to the north (a total of 9% of the country’s area) with especially Siberian larch are habitats for wolf, snow leopard, sable and bear. The lakes contain many species of fish and birds. The southern Gobi Desert has as one of the few places in the world wild camels.
Business and economics
Mongolia was completed by early 1960 a strong industrialization in close cooperation with the Soviet Union, and the industrial sector contributed in 1990 with 1/3 of GDP. The industry is found mainly in the three largest cities, Ulan Bator, Darhan and Erdenet, all in the northern, central part of the country. Part of the industry is based on the country’s significant mineral deposits, especially coal, copper and molybdenum, while agriculture provides raw materials for textile and food production.
In terms of employment is agriculture, however, still more important with 1/3 of the workforce. With the collapse of communism, significant subsidies from the Soviet Union, which in the 1980’s accounted for up to 30% of GDP, disappeared, and the economic collapse of traditional markets exacerbated the ensuing crisis. In this situation, agriculture became increasingly important, not least the dominant livestock sector. In 1995, there were 3.3 million in the country. PCS. cattle, 13.7 million. sheep, 8.5 million. goats and 2.1 million. horses; a total of 12 pets per. residents, which is surpassed only by New Zealand. The large team of horses, approximately one horse per residents, reflects nomadic life with extensive animal husbandry on the vast grasslands.
In Mongolia very few products are manufactured, the country has a remote location and is dependent on a few trading countries. The problems are exacerbated by poorly developed infrastructure, and this vulnerability has meant that the crisis of the 1990’s spread to most of the modern sector.
Mongolia has only one railway, the long side railway on the Trans-Siberian Railway from Ulan-Ude in Russia over Ulan Bator to Beijing. A siding connects the mining town of Erdenet with Darhan on the track. The country’s only paved road follows the railway. The rest of the road network of dirt and gravel roads is sometimes impassable during heavy rain and during the spring snowmelt.
Population
Mongolia has a population growth of 1.46% per year; The population doubled in 1952-84, but the country has 1.8 residents per capita. km2 still one of the most sparsely populated in the world. Ethnically, the population is homogeneous. 75% are Khalkha Mongols, and another 15% belong to other Mongolian peoples. In addition, there are small minorities of Kazakhs, Derbits and Buryats. There are approximately 7 mio. ethnic Mongols in the world; most live in China.
- Countryaah: Do you know how many people there are in Mongolia? Check this site to see population pyramid and resident density about this country.
In the 1970’s and 1980’s, Mongolia had a well-developed social, health and school system. The average life expectancy is over 65 years (1995), and in 1990 it was claimed that over 90% could read and write, which was reduced during the 1990’s due to sharply declining appropriations for the education system and the use of child labor in the now privatized livestock herds.
Mongolia – language
The official language is khalkha, which is the mother tongue of approximately 3/4 of the population. Other Mongolian languages and dialects, of which the largest is oiratisk and burjatisk, spoken by a total of approximately 15%. In the western part of the country, the Turkish language is spoken Kazakh by approximately 180,000 (2001). The first foreign language is Russian. For culture and traditions of Mongolia, please check animalerts.
Mongolia (Religion)
Folk Religion, Shamanism and Buddhism are the predominant currents in Mongolian religion, while Christianity and Islam have always played a minor role. The folk religion was practiced individually or in small groups without an established clergy or other religious experts. In sources dating back to the 1200’s, the worship of Heaven as the supreme deity is central to the folk religion. All forces on Earth and in the Universe are subject to the heavenly deity. Furthermore, the worship of ancestors and special guardian spirits is of great importance in the folk religion. Since the 1500’s. many folk religious prayer forms have been recorded.
Shamanism, which at times almost had the character of a state religion, was the predominant form of religion within the broad Mongolian population until the 1500’s. The shaman is the community’s religious specialist. He mediates, usually in a state of ecstasy, the contact between humans and the world of the gods and spirits. Shamans heal the sick. He prays to gods and spirits about fertility, good health and prosperity. With its spread among the Mongols, Buddhism to some extent supplanted shamanism, which, however, lived on mixed with folk religious and Buddhist elements. After the 1921-24 revolution, shamanism was banned.
The Mongols came into contact with the Tibetan form of Buddhism in the 1200’s. Khubilai Khan tried to spread Buddhism in his kingdom by to build Buddhist monasteries in Mongolia, but the attempt failed. In the middle of the 1500’s. began a new missionary effort from Buddhist monks, supported by Altan Khan (d. 1583). This led to the construction of numerous monasteries and translations of the sacred texts from Tibetan and Sanskrit to Mongolian. Within half a century, the majority of Mongols became Buddhists; Mongolian Buddhism is a branch of the Tibetan Gelug-sect. Under communist rule in Mongolia, the Buddhist monastic order was persecuted, and more than 700 monasteries and temples were closed or destroyed; a very large number of llamas and monks were executed. After the fall of communism, the official position on Buddhism is considerably more liberal.
