festivites
One of the major holidays in Mongolia is Naadam, which takes place annually from July 11th-13th. This festival celebrates the country's independence and features traditional sports such as horse racing, wrestling, and archery.
Another important holiday in Mongolia is Tsagaan Sar, or the Lunar New Year, which typically falls between late January and early February. During this time, families gather to eat traditional foods such as buuz (dumplings) and exchange gifts.
Other festivals and holidays in Mongolia include:
- Eagle Festival: Celebrated in October in the western part of the country, this festival showcases the traditional practice of falconry.
- Ovoo Worship: Throughout the year, Mongolians will visit ovoo, or cairns, which are considered sacred sites and offer prayers and offerings.
- Buddha's Birthday: Observed on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, this holiday celebrates the birth of Gautama Buddha with offerings and prayer.
- International Women's Day: Celebrated on March 8th, this holiday is a public holiday in Mongolia and often involves giving gifts to women.
These holidays and festivities are often celebrated with traditional dress, music, dance, and food.
seasons
Mongolia has two main tourist seasons:
1. Summer season (June to August): This is the peak season in Mongolia, with warm temperatures and long daylight hours. Visitors can enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking, horseback riding, and attending cultural festivals. It is recommended to bring lightweight clothing, a hat, sunscreen, and insect repellent.
2. Winter season (December to February): This season offers unique experiences like dog sledding, skiing, and witnessing the Naadam festival on ice. It is recommended to bring warm clothing, including a down jacket, hat, gloves, and boots.
It's worth noting that shoulder seasons, such as spring (April to May) and autumn (September to October), can also be good times to visit Mongolia, with fewer tourists and milder temperatures. However, weather can still be unpredictable during these seasons, so it's recommended to bring clothing for both warm and cold weather.
visa
Some special visa rules for visiting Mongolia include:
1. Visa-free entry: Citizens of over 20 countries, including the United States, Canada, and most EU countries, can enter Mongolia visa-free for up to 90 days.
2. Visa-on-arrival: Citizens of certain countries, such as Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia, can obtain a visa-on-arrival at the airport in Ulaanbaatar or the border checkpoint with China. The cost of a single-entry visa is about 108 USD.
3. Tourist visa: Citizens of other countries need to apply for a tourist visa in advance through the Mongolian embassy or consulate in their home country. The cost of a single-entry tourist visa is around 50-60 USD, and it takes about 5-7 business days to process.
4. Business visa: Citizens who plan to engage in commercial activities in Mongolia need to apply for a business visa. The cost of a single-entry business visa is around 100-120 USD, and it takes about 5-7 business days to process.
Note that these costs are just estimates and may vary depending on the embassy or consulate you apply to, as well as the type and duration of your visa.
souvenirs
Some of the best souvenirs to buy from Mongolia include:
1. Cashmere products: such as scarves, sweaters, and blankets. Average price depends on the item, but expect to pay around $50 to $100 USD for a high-quality scarf, and up to $300 USD for a sweater or blanket. You can find these items at specialty shops in Ulaanbaatar, such as Gobi Cashmere.
2. Traditional Mongolian clothing: such as dels (long robes), hats, and boots. The average price depends on the quality and intricacy of the garment, but expect to pay anywhere from $50 to $500 USD. You can find these items at markets around Ulaanbaatar, such as Narantuul Market.
3. Nomadic handicrafts: such as felted animal figurines, embroidered tapestries, and leather goods. Prices vary widely depending on the item, but expect to pay around $20 to $50 USD for smaller items and up to $200 USD for larger pieces. You can find these items at markets and specialty shops in Ulaanbaatar, such as the State Department Store.
4. Mongolian vodka: such as Chinggis Khan Vodka or Golden Gobi. Prices vary depending on the brand and size of the bottle, but expect to pay around $10 to $30 USD. You can find these items at liquor stores and supermarkets throughout Mongolia.
5. Local snacks and sweets: such as airag (fermented mare's milk), buuz (steamed dumplings), and aaruul (dried curd). Prices vary depending on the item and where you buy it, but expect to pay around $5 to $10 USD. You can find these items at markets and food stalls throughout Mongolia.
It's always best to shop around and compare prices before making a purchase. Also, keep in mind that prices may vary depending on the location and time of year.
If you have 1 week
Awesome! Mongolia is a beautiful country with lots to explore. Here's a one-week itinerary that will give you a taste of the country's history, culture and nature:
Day 1: Begin your journey by exploring the capital city, Ulaanbaatar. Start with the impressive Gandan Monastery, which is home to more than 150 monks and is the center of Mongolian Buddhism. After that, visit the National Museum of Mongolia to learn about the country's history, from Genghis Khan to the present day.
Day 2-3: Head out to Kharkhorin, once the capital of the Mongol Empire. Visit the Erdene Zuu Monastery, the oldest Buddhist monastery in Mongolia, founded in the 16th century. Explore the nearby ruins of the ancient city of Karakorum and take in the stunning views of the surrounding hills and steppe.
Day 4-5: Take a trip to the Gobi Desert, one of the most unique landscapes on the planet. Visit the Flaming Cliffs, where the first dinosaur eggs were discovered, and explore the sand dunes by camel or ATV. Spend a night in a traditional ger camp and experience the hospitality of nomadic herders.
Day 6-7: Return to Ulaanbaatar and take a day trip to Terelj National Park, just an hour's drive from the city. Hike through the scenic valleys and granite rock formations, visit a local nomad family and try some traditional dairy products like airag (fermented horse milk).
This itinerary will give you a taste of the diverse landscape and rich culture of Mongolia. From the bustling capital city to the quiet expanse of the desert, there's something for everyone to enjoy. Don't forget to try some traditional Mongolian food like buuz (dumplings) and khuushuur (fried meat pies) along the way!
If you have 2 weeks
Absolutely! Mongolia is a beautiful country with a unique culture and history. Here's a two-week itinerary that will allow you to explore some of the best that Mongolia has to offer.
Day 1-2: Ulaanbaatar
Start your trip in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar. Visit the National Museum of Mongolia to learn about the country's history and culture, then head to the Gandan Monastery to see the largest Buddhist temple in Mongolia. Make sure to try Mongolian cuisine such as Khorkhog (a traditional meat dish) and Airag (fermented horse milk).
Day 3-4: Khuvsgul Lake
Travel north to Khuvsgul Lake, one of the largest freshwater lakes in Asia. Take in the stunning views of the lake and surrounding mountains while enjoying outdoor activities such as hiking, fishing, and kayaking.
Day 5-6: Gobi Desert
Head south to the Gobi Desert, one of the most unique landscapes in the world. Explore the sand dunes, visit the Flaming Cliffs, and see the Yolyn Am canyon.
Day 7-9: Terelj National Park
Drive east to Terelj National Park for stunning natural scenery and outdoor activities such as trekking and horseback riding. Visit the famous Turtle Rock and stay overnight in a traditional Mongolian ger (yurt) to experience local nomadic life.
Day 10-11: Orkhon Valley
Travel to the Orkhon Valley to explore ancient ruins and historical sites such as the Tuvkhun Monastery and Erdene Zuu Monastery, the oldest surviving Buddhist monastery in Mongolia.
Day 12-14: Kharkhorin
Finish your trip in Kharkhorin, the former capital of the Mongol Empire. Visit the Erdene Zuu Monastery, the Kharkhorin Museum, and the ruins of the ancient city of Karakorum.
This itinerary offers a taste of Mongolia's diverse natural landscapes, unique culture, and rich history. Don't forget to try local cuisine, interact with locals, and take plenty of photos to capture your unforgettable memories!
Culture
The symbol in the left 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.
Before the 20th century, most works of the fine arts in Mongolia had a religious function, and therefore Mongolian fine arts were heavily influenced by religious texts. Thangkas were usually painted or made in appliqué technique. Bronze sculptures usually showed Buddhist deities. A number of great works are attributed to the first Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, Zanabazar.
In the late 19th century, painters like "Marzan" Sharav turned to more realistic painting styles. Under the Mongolian People's Republic, socialist realism was the dominant painting style, however traditional thangka-like paintings dealing with secular, nationalist themes were also popular, a genre known as "Mongol zurag".
Among the first attempts to introduce modernism into the fine arts of Mongolia was the painting Ehiin setgel (Mother's love) created by Tsevegjav in the 1960s. The artist was purged as his work was censored.
All forms of fine arts flourished only after "Perestroika" in the late 1980s. Otgonbayar Ershuu is arguably one of the most well-known Mongolian modern artists in the Western world, he was portrayed in the film "ZURAG" by Tobias Wulff.
The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a ger. In the past it was known by the Russian term yurt, but this has been changing as the Mongolian term becomes better known in 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 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 marquées. The trellis walls, roof poles and layers of felt were replaced by stone, brick, beams and planks, and became permanent.
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 Ulaanbaatar is a combination of the Mongolian and Chinese tradition. The temple of Maitreya (disassembled in 1938) is an example of the Tibeto-Mongolian architecture. Dashi-Choiling monastery has commenced a project to restore the temple and the 25 m sculpture of Maitreya.
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 as reminiscent of shamanism.
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 pioneered 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 the development of rap, techno, hip-hop and also boy bands and girl bands flourished at the turn of the millennium.
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. Until reforms in the 1990s, the government had strict control of the media and oversaw all publishing, in which no independent media were allowed. 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. The Mongolian media currently consists of around 300 print and broadcasting outlets.
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. Market reforms have led to an annually increasing number of people working in the media, along with students at journalism schools.
In its 2013 World Press Freedom Index report, Reporters Without Borders classified the media environment as 98th out of 179, with 1st being most free. In 2016, Mongolia was ranked 60th out of 180.
According to 2014 Asian Development Bank survey, 80% of Mongolians cited television as their main source of information.
The main national festival is Naadam, which has been organised for centuries and takes place over three days in the summer, consisting of three Mongolian traditional sports, archery, cross-country horse-racing, and wrestling, traditionally recognized as the Three Manly Games of Naadam. In modern-day Mongolia, Naadam is held from July 11 to 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. At Naadam, this contest is popular among older Mongolians.
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.
Mongolian 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.
Other sports such as basketball, weightlifting, powerlifting, association football, athletics, gymnastics, table tennis, jujutsu, karate, aikido, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts have become popular in Mongolia. More Mongolian table tennis players are competing internationally.
Freestyle wrestling has been practised since 1958 in Mongolia. Mongolian freestyle wrestlers have won the first and the most Olympic medals of Mongolia.
Naidangiin Tüvshinbayar won Mongolia's first ever Olympic gold medal in the men's 100-kilogram class of judo.
Amateur boxing has been practised in Mongolia since 1948. The Mongolian Olympic boxing national team was founded in 1960. The Communist government of Mongolia banned boxing from 1964 to 1967 but the government soon ended the ban. Professional boxing began in Mongolia in the 1990s.
Mongolia national basketball team enjoyed some success recently, especially at the East Asian Games.
Association football is also played in Mongolia. The Mongolia national football team began playing national games again during the 1990s; but has not yet qualified for a major international 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-metre pistol event.
Mongolian sumo wrestler Dolgorsürengiin Dagvadorj won 25 top division tournament championships, placing him fourth on the all-time list. In January 2015, Mönkhbatyn Davaajargal took his 33rd top division championship, giving him the most in the history of sumo.
Bandy is the only sport in which Mongolia has finished higher than third place at the Asian Winter Games, which happened in 2011 when the national team captured the silver medal. It led to being chosen as the best Mongolian sports team of 2011. Mongolia won the bronze medal of the B division at the 2017 Bandy World Championship after which the then President of Mongolia, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, held a reception for the team.
Ulaanbataar holds an annual marathon in June. 2015 was the sixth marathon that has been organized by Ar Mongol. The race starts at Sukhbataar Square and is always open to residents and runners who come especially for this event.
Mongolia holds other traditional festivals throughout the year. The Golden Eagle Festival, held annually, draws about 400 eagle hunters on horseback, including the traveler Мөнхбаярт Батсайхан, to compete with their birds. The Ice Festival and the Thousand Camel Festival are amongst many other traditional Mongolian festivals.
Religion
According to the 2010 National Census, among Mongolians aged 15 and above, 53% were Buddhists, while 39% were non-religious.
Mongolian shamanism has been widely practised throughout the history of what is now Mongolia, with similar beliefs being common among the nomads of central Asia. They 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, some Mongols, and other Turkic peoples in the country traditionally adhere to Islam.
Throughout much of the 20th century, the communist government repressed religious practices. It targeted the clergy of the Mongolian 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). 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 30,000 people, of whom 18,000 were lamas. The number of Buddhist monks dropped from 100,000 in 1924 to 110 in 1990.
The fall of communism in 1991 restored public religious practice. Tibetan Buddhism, which had been the predominant religion prior to the rise of communism, again rose to become the most widely practised religion in Mongolia. The highest-ranking lama of Buddhism in Mongolia, has been vacant since the 9th Jebtsundamba’s passing in 2012 and the search for the next Jebtsundamba Khutuktu is being complicated by Beijing’s desire to assert control over Tibetan Buddhism.
The end of religious repression in the 1990s also allowed for other religions 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. In May 2013, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) held a cultural program to celebrate twenty years of LDS Church history in Mongolia, with 10,900 members, and 16 church buildings in the country. There are some 1,000 Catholics in Mongolia and, in 2003, a missionary from the Philippines was named Mongolia's first Catholic bishop. In 2017 Seventh-day Adventists reported 2,700 members in six churches up from zero members in 1991.
Demographics
Mongolia's total population as of January 2015 was estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau to be 3,000,251 people, ranking around 121st in the world. But the U.S. Department of State Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs uses the United Nations (UN) estimations instead of the U.S. Census Bureau estimations. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division 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.). 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.
The first census in the 20th century was carried out in 1918 and recorded a population of 647,500. 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: in 1970–1975, fertility was estimated to be 7.33 children per woman, dropping to about 2.1 in 2000–2005. The decline ended and in 2005–2010, the estimated fertility value increased to 2.5 and stabilised afterwards at the rate of about 2.2–2.3 children per woman.
The Mongols are moderately homogeneous, 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 and Tuvans) constitute 4.5% of Mongolia's population, and the rest are Russian, Chinese, Korean and American nationalities.
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. Mongolian Sign Language is the principal language of the deaf community.
Today, Mongolian is written using the Cyrillic alphabet in Mongolia, 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 taken place as older generations encountered practical difficulties. Schools are reintroducing the traditional alphabet. In March 2020, the Mongolian government announced plans to use both Cyrillic and the traditional Mongolian script in official documents by 2025.
Russian is the most frequently spoken foreign language in Mongolia, followed by English, although English has been gradually replacing Russian as the second language. Korean has gained popularity as tens of thousands of Mongolians work in South Korea.
According to the 2010 National Census, among Mongolians aged 15 and above, 53% were Buddhists, while 39% were non-religious.
Mongolian shamanism has been widely practised throughout the history of what is now Mongolia, with similar beliefs being common among the nomads of central Asia. They 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, some Mongols, and other Turkic peoples in the country traditionally adhere to Islam.
Throughout much of the 20th century, the communist government repressed religious practices. It targeted the clergy of the Mongolian 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). 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 30,000 people, of whom 18,000 were lamas. The number of Buddhist monks dropped from 100,000 in 1924 to 110 in 1990.
The fall of communism in 1991 restored public religious practice. Tibetan Buddhism, which had been the predominant religion prior to the rise of communism, again rose to become the most widely practised religion in Mongolia. The highest-ranking lama of Buddhism in Mongolia, has been vacant since the 9th Jebtsundamba’s passing in 2012 and the search for the next Jebtsundamba Khutuktu is being complicated by Beijing’s desire to assert control over Tibetan Buddhism.
The end of religious repression in the 1990s also allowed for other religions 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. In May 2013, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) held a cultural program to celebrate twenty years of LDS Church history in Mongolia, with 10,900 members, and 16 church buildings in the country. There are some 1,000 Catholics in Mongolia and, in 2003, a missionary from the Philippines was named Mongolia's first Catholic bishop. In 2017 Seventh-day Adventists reported 2,700 members in six churches up from zero members in 1991.
Cities:
