MONGOLIAN CULTURE & ITS PEOPLE

Clothing

The del is the Mongols' traditional garment worn on both workdays and special days. It is a long, loose gown cut in one piece with the sleeves; it has a high collar and widely overlaps at the front. The del is girdled with a sash.

Each ethnic group living in Mongolia has its own del distinguished by cut, color and trimming. The distinctions go unnoticed by foreigners, yet for the Mongols they are obvious.

Before the revolution, all social strata in Mongolia had their own manner of dressing. Livestock-breeders, for example, wore plain dels, which served them both summer and winter. The priests wore yellow dels with a cape or khimj, thrown over it. Secular feudal lords put on smart hats and silk waistcoats.

Today, townspeople tend to wear European-style clothes. In the countryside, however, the modern attire is inconvenient and impractical. The del has several uses – as a coat, as a blanket, and as means of concealing yourself when going to the toilet on the open steppe. In the cities, as people start aging, especially the women, begin to appreciate the advantages of the del and wear it, trying to excel each other in the choice of fabric, as well as in the elegance of the cut and originality of the trimmings.

Commonly there are three varieties of del, each for a particular season. The first, the dan del, is very much like a dress, a frock cut in one piece from plain cloth without padding. Rural women wear dan dels all year around. In cold weather they put on warm clothes over them. Terleg is a slightly padded del. And finally the winter del is padded with sheepskin or cotton wool.

Dels for men and women are of the same cut. The difference is that male dels are wider and of more demure colours. The pattern is simple enough. The sleeves are cut together with the gown and there are only a few minor details. Moreover the tailor does not have to worry about the precise length and width.

Measurements are usually made using the hand rather than a tape measure. The 'too' is the distance between the thumb and the middle finger, the 'soom' the distance between the thumb and the forefinger and the 'khuruu' the length of the forefinger.

The del for everyday wear is grey, brown or some other dark color, while the holiday del is a bright blue, green or claret silk with a silk sash of contrasting color several meters long. The sash is not simply an adornment. It also serves as a soft corset facilitating long rides on horseback. In days gone by, men would attach a sheathed knife, a tobacco pouch, a flint and a pipe-cleaning hook to the belt. Characteristically, the Mongol always hid his pipe in his boots.

The del collar, breasts and sleeves are trimmed with leather and color brocade tape, which can be wide or narrow depending on the wearer's taste. The del buttons, if they are not commercially produced from decorative stones or silver, are narrow strips of cloth tied into intricate knots.

Traditional dels are normally seen now only at concerts or official occasions.

In addition to the del is the jacket known as a khurim. In cold weather it is put on over the del. The gutal is the high boot made from unbending leather and lined with fine and thin felt. They are decorated with different designs. Both the left and right are traditionally the same shape and were worn with thick socks made from quilted cloth. Traditional boots are without heels and have turned up toes. Mongolian hats are still very much the normal attire in the countryside. The traditional hat is a hat for all seasons trimmed with fur, fox fur in most cases. The sides of the hat can be tied down to keep the ears warm or tied on top in the warmer periods. The hats are worn by both men and by women. In the past, headgear was worn to show social status. The design is also symbolic. The pointed top of the hat represents Mount Sumber, the legendary land of the Mongol forefathers. The knot on the top represents the unity of the nation, red ribbons are the sun's rays and the broad brim represents the country's inaccessibility.

Because of the different ethnic groups residing in Mongolia, there are distinctions in the way they all dress. Therefore it is estimated that between them all, there are about 400 different types of garments, 20 boots, 10 sashes and 20 types of hats.

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Life Style

The Mongols are shy by nature. They often hide their confusion or embarrassment behind a smile. Most of the Mongols are taciturn, reticent, tolerant, and some people say, superstitious. Fussiness and inconsistency are considered undignified. At the same time, the Mongol may grow very excited when playing a game, or boil over in anger.

The Mongols do not like to talk about unpleasant things. It is believed that such talk may invoke trouble. It is even more impermissible to say bad things about friends and acquaintances. If at times something unpleasant has to be said, people try to do it as tactfully and inoffensively as possible. On the other hand, expressions of good will and praise are widespread. Praise of their mother country, the beauty of the natural scenery, the hospitality of the host, etc., presents a special form of folklore.

Foreign guests remark on Mongolian friendliness. The hard conditions of life, far from embittering them, gave rise to the long-standing traditions of friendliness and hospitality. The host is well aware that the wayfarer entering his ger is tired and may still have a long way to go. Of course, he has also found himself in similar situations more than once. And so he does his best to anticipate and satisfy his guest's wishes.

Such specific features as Mongolia's vast sparsely populated area, its rigorous climate and nomadic economy could not fail to make their imprint on the people's behaviour and the manner in which they express their thoughts and sentiments. Over the centuries the people of the steppe have developed their own ethics of social conduct.

There are many types of greeting in the Mongolian language that are used depending on the situation and the time. The townsfolk usually say "Sain bainuu?" which is equivalent to "How are you?" The expected answer is "Sain", which means "Fine". National ethics do not permit a negative answer. It is only later in conversation that you may mention your problems if you have any.

Countrymen often salute each other with the question "Are you wintering well?" or "Are you spending this spring in peace?" Needless to say, the greeting should suit the season. Shepherds ask each other "Are sheep grazing in peace?" or "Are your sheep fattening well?"

The word "peace" often figures in greetings and good wishes. In the Mongolian semantics it is equivalent to happiness. After all, when a person has no worries, he is at peace and, consequently, happy.

In the village, the guest finding his host or hostess at work expresses specific good wishes. For instance, if the hostess is milking the cow, he says, "May your bucket be brim full of milk." If she is beating wool, he says, "May the wool be as soft as silk." If the family are playing some game, his wish will be that everyone should win if only once. The answer to good wishes is always the same: "May it be as you say."

When you are talking to an elderly person whom you know you are expected to add the respectful "guay" to his name, for instance, Dorj-guay. Addressing a stranger who is older than you, say "Akh-aa" which can be translated as older brother or uncle.

Family Relations also have their ethics. We say for instance, "My Wife" and the "Father of my children". One always has to use the correct form of address depending on the person's age or position.

If in the cities a foreigner may safely behave like elsewhere in the world, in the countryside at every step he stumbles against all kinds of customs and traditions that he violates without even knowing it. Especially in the remote regions where traditions and customs are stronger. True, people are not offended if foreigners do something the wrong way because of their ignorance. "The ignorant will not be punished", the Mongols say.

In Mongolia it is not accepted to knock at the door of a ger or say, "Can I come in?" The guest as he approaches the ger is supposed to shout loudly, "Hold the dog!" ("Nokhoi Khori!" in Mongolian) even if there is no dog, for what he actually means is to let the host know that he is coming.

The host and hostess emerge from the ger wearing their hats and buttoned-up dels. As for the hats, if in Europe men take off their hats when greeting each other, in Mongolia the rules of good behaviour demand that they wear their hats in such cases. The host helps the guest dismount from his horse and takes him into the ger.

To begin with, the men exchange snuff bottles. Never mind if you do not have one. You should accept the host's snuff bottle, take some snuff and return it. The bottle should never be returned with the lid tightly on. Then the hostess begins to serve tea, often made in the guest's presence. It is not acceptable to ask the guest outright where he comes from and for what purpose. He should say this himself at some point during the conversation or after asking the traditional questions about the weather, the cattle, etc.

The hostess serves tea in a small bowl, holding it with both hands stretched out towards the guest, or with the right hand supporting the elbow with the left arm. The guest is supposed to accept the cup in the same fashion. It would be very proper to let down the sleeves for it is considered extremely impolite to expose your wrists.

The Mongols have their own ideas about the hearth, the ger and what is inside it, and the guest should take care to respect the old taboos. It is forbidden, for example, to pour water on the hearth or throw garbage into it, to touch the fire with a knife, step over the hearth or spill milk. Whistling in the ger or leaning against the supports is considered an ill omen.

In summer the host will offer you koumiss (fermented mare's milk) instead of tea.

To establish friendly relations it is customary to eat off a common plate and drink from a common cup, notably koumiss. The host fills the cup and hands it over to the guest. The latter drinks a little and returns the cup to the host who refills the cup and hands it over to another guest. The host drinks after all his guests have drunk from the cup.

Nobody will insist on the faultless observance of all the customs and rules but learning at least some before a visit to Mongolia would please your hosts and allow you to get a real feel of Mongolian culture.

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Music and Singing

Music is an important part of Mongolian culture. This is particularly the case in the countryside as families and friends will sing and play music together as a past time. A visitor to a countryside ger will often be coaxed into a song. Mongolians sing to their animals, sing about the environment, sing about nomadic lifestyles and sing about their patriotism.

Khoomi singing is a traditional form of song which comes from deep in the throat. Well trained voices are able to produce a whole range of sounds at once. The different combinations of sounds are said to represent the different landscapes within Mongolia.

Urtyn Duu or Long Songs are another form of vocal music, so called because of their length. Some famous singers have been able to memorise 20,000 verses. Most of the songs relate to stories about love or the countryside and are apparently best sung on horseback galloping crossing the steppe.

The most traditional of instruments is the morin huur or horse head fiddle. With two strings made from horse hair and a carved horses head it is most often used to accompany singing. Legend suggests the sounds produced are similar to those of the nomad's animals. The other instrument most often played is the Yatga (similar to a sitar).

Music is often played at traditional and religious gatherings such as weddings.

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GER

The Mongolian Ger is ideally suited to the country's extremes of climate and the people's nomadic way of life. It is a multipurpose dwelling that can be easily collapsed, transported to another place and put up again fully preserving its original shape. Being constantly on the move with herds of animals or being on military campaigns compelled Mongols to build gers on carts. Old books contain pictures of such gers, temporary abodes in which families of three or four could spend the night or find shelter. After some time the use of carts stopped because they were clumsy and the gers could not be hauled over long distances as there was the danger of getting stuck in the mud somewhere or tipping over.

The ger has two key components – the wooden framework and the felt cover. The wooden parts are the walls, the long poles, the round smoke escape and its supports. One wall consists of 10-15 wooden poles, each about 1.5m high, bound together in a way making it possible to fold it for transportation and then unfold like an accordion. The unfolded walls are connected to form a circle. The long poles are fastened to the upper part of the walls, with the other end passed through the round support at the top of the ger, the only window and smoke escape in the ger. Two posts prop up the round support. All this forms the wooden framework of the ger, which resembles an open umbrella. Two layers of felt are then laid on the roof and on the walls and tied down with hair rope. The top of the ger has a felt flap that can be drawn over the roof when the weather is bad.

Inside the ger, felt is laid either on a wooden floor or straight on the ground. The door of the ger always faces south towards the sun. The number of walls and poles determines the size of the ger. Most herders' gers have five walls, which make a living area of 16-18 sq. m. Larger gers can have up to 12 walls.

In the centre of the ger is the hearth, which has a special meaning for the Mongols. Apart from its utilitarian purpose, the hearth symbolizes ties with ancestors. There are several customs associated with hearth. Desecration of the hearth is a sin and an insult to the master of the house. The hearth is mounted on three stones, which symbolize the host, the hostess and the daughter-in-law. The hearth is the centre of the ger and divides the ger space into three conventional areas – the male and female quarters and the khoimor.

The male quarters are on the western side. Here the host keeps the saddle, the horse bridle and the koumiss bag. The female quarters are on the eastern side where she keeps the kitchenware and appliances.

Accordingly, a man entering the ger goes straight to the western part and a woman to the eastern part. It is believed that the male quarters are under the protection of heaven and the sun patronizes the female quarters. The most honoured place is the khoimor by the northern wall, opposite the door. Here, they keep objects dear to the master of the house, his weapons, his Morin Huur (musical instrument) and the host's horse bridle. Pieces of furniture, usually two wooden chests, painted bright orange, are also placed in the khoimor. Framed photographs of the host's family and friends are put on the chests for everyone to see. If the host has some governmental award, he is sure to hang it in the khoimor.

When guests visit, the hosts usually sit on the eastern side of the khoimor and the guests on the western side. The hostess' place is by the hearth and the children are supposed to sit near her but closer to the door.

The bed of the host and hostess is in the female quarters; those for guests are on the opposite side. The children are put to sleep at their parents' feet.

There are many philosophical ideas on the ger, its parts and functions. The smoke escape is the only opening through which light penetrates the ger. An old legend has it that it was through such a hole that a fair-haired man got into the ger of Alangua, the Mongols' ancestral mother, and begot three sons. In olden days people could tell the time by the sun's rays falling on the cross-pieces of the smoke escape and on the poles. The Mongols divided the day into twelve hours and each hour into twelve minutes, which they called by the names of the lunar calendar animals.

A hair rope, chagtaga, is fastened to the smoke escape from which a weight stabilising the ger is suspended during strong winds. In new gers, they fasten a khadag to it, a piece of blue silk in which a handful of grain is wrapped. The symbolism of this ritual can be summed up like this – "May happiness multiply in this new ger like grains of corn and may life be pure and beautiful here."

The ger supports ensure stability and that is probably why tradition forbids touching, let alone leaning against them. Moreover, they symbolise a link with Heaven, with the past-present-future axis supposedly passing through them.

In winter the hearth heats the ger and also serves as a stove for cooking. In wooded areas, the hearth is stocked with firewood while in the desert and steppe, dry dung is used. The ger warms up quickly and holds in the heat. In the summer heat the lower part of the felt cover is raised to let in fresh air.

The ger, round and squat, can withstand harsh winds while the quick drying felt is good protection against the rain and snow. In the towns and urban-type settlements, gers are being ousted by modern well-built housing. Young Mongols prefer to live in comfortable flats. In summer, however, urban dwellers often spend their vacations in gers, leaving the urban conveniences for a short while to enjoy the unmatched comfort of the ger.

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Cultural Tips

You are almost inevitably going to encounter the residents of the countryside. Things move slowly here and the standards of living you are used to are not the same. Part of Mongolia's charm is its ancient customs and traditions. If you can learn and respect them before you step into the countryside, then you may get a more welcome reception. You may also become a small part in helping to preserve these traditions for future visitors.

Don't

Do

Food

The Mongolian diet really depends on where you are in Mongolia and what time of year it is. In the south a staple diet of mutton and camel with camel dairy products is the norm. However, in the Khangai Mountains, beef is more common. In the city of Ulaanbaatar, there is a much larger range of foods, for both Mongolian and Foreign people. The Mongolian climate means that the calorific intake needs to be higher in the winter months than in the summer. For this reason, herders will often eat boiled animal fat.

Vegetables are a relatively recent addition to the Mongolian diet. In the past dairy products and undercooked meat compensated the vitamin shortage. Some dishes were seasoned with wild onions and garlic.

Mongolian's believe that the most parts of their livestock can be eaten. Sheep are slaughtered by a traditional method, which allows the meat to stay clean, and which prevents heavy blood loss. A cut is made in the chest of the sheep and the heart artery is severed. The carcass is divided into several large parts – neck, brisket, ribs, blades, loin, rump and legs. Boned meat is used to make several dishes including bansh and buutz.

In the countryside food tends to be cooked once a day, unless guests arrive. In the morning and afternoon, milk tea is drunk with Boortsog (butter biscuits fried in oil) and meat boiled the night before. Food is only cooked for summer. Most of the time it is boiled meat and broth to which noodles, rice or other groats are added to taste.

Boodog is perhaps the most traditional Mongolian dish. It is prepared from goat or marmot meat. Removing the bones and bowels from the skinned carcass through the neck, they put red-hot stones inside and close the neck opening. Then the carcass is barbecued. The meat roasted this way is tender, tasty and fragrant.

The bowels of slaughtered sheep and goats are used for making sausage. The process appears simple at first sight: the thoroughly rinsed intestines are stuffed with finely chopped bowels, fat and blood and spices, salt, onions or garlic are added. But only a good housewife knows what components to use and in what proportions.

The Mongol's nomadic way of life and the country's climatic conditions have given rise to specific methods of preserving meat. The most widespread one is air-drying. Beef is cut into long strips that are hung in the shade. The meat dries very quickly, becoming so hard that you cannot cut it with a knife. Before use, dried meat is powdered and then put into boiling water.

With the advent of spring and the beginning of calving and lambing, Mongols switch to diary products including koumiss. It would be hard to list all the dishes prepared from the milk of the five domestic animals. There are all kinds of sour milk, curds and cheese that are eaten separately or in dishes made with them, which have their specific names. The same dishes prepared from milk of different animals differ from each other. Preference is usually given to cow's milk.

Foreigners who have visited Mongolia notice that Mongols always boil milk and never use it all by itself. They either dilute it with hot water to obtain the so-called khyaram or add it to tea. Salt and milk are indispensable components of Mongolian tea. Mongols use a variety of tea pressed into large cubes. This variety only grows in Central Asia and China.

Mongolian women make urum, or so-called white butter, from milk. The process is simple enough. Boiling milk is stirred with a dipper until a thick layer of skin is formed. The skin is poured off, cooled and dried. If placed in a wooden barrel or leather bag, it keeps well all winter. Urum is served to the guest first as a light snack, which can be eaten by itself or with cheese or dried curds, or it can be put into tea.

By melting urum, yellow butter or shar-tos is obtained. This can be preserved all winter for frying gambira, Mongolian Cakes.

Aruul is believed to be behind Mongolians' strong and healthy teeth. Aruul is curdled milk, dehydrated and thoroughly dried in the air and sun. There is practically no limit to its shelf life. Hard dried curds are almost impossible to chew and have to be sucked.

Herders have prepared koumiss for several centuries. Mare's or Camel's milk is collected in a leather bag and churned. It is believed that koumiss contains A, C and some B vitamins and arrests the growth and proliferation of pathogenic microorganisms. Furthermore, it is supposed to be effective against lung and stomach diseases, braces up the nervous system and improves appetite and digestion. Aged koumiss sparkles slightly and is pleasantly acid to the taste. Underdone koumiss may upset the stomach while overdone koumiss is very sour and intoxicating. Although the method of preparing koumiss is the same, it tastes different in different parts of the country. This is explained, above all, by the difference in the fodder given to the animals and the specific additives varying from region to region. Koumiss and milk symbolize happiness. The white color sacred to the Mongols makes koumiss and indispensable part of the meal during celebrations and festivities.

The habit of sour milk distillation has survived in some places in Mongolia. Five degrees of distillation are know – arkhi, arz, khorz, sharz and dun. As a rule, arkhi (or vodka) is consumed. It is also called shimiyn arkhi or Mongol arkhi to distinguish from commercially produced vodka. Mongol arkhi is about 10-12o proof, tasteless and transparent. Since it takes a lot of time and skill to produce it, many Mongols now prefer to buy stronger drinks.

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Religions

Interest in Buddhism as a national religion began with Chinggis Khan. He employed the Buddhist Uigur people as teachers and state officials. The Uigur were a respected people and had great cultural influence over the Mongols. Chinggis Khan also held meetings with Buddhist leaders during his reign. In his will, he instructed his successor, Ogedei Khan to invite a Tibetan lama to conduct Buddhist services at Kharakhorum. This engaged practicing Shamans in Kharakhorum, as pantheistic Shamanism was the traditional faith of the Mongols.

Buddhism was not fully adopted as a state religion until the rule of Kubila Khan. He declared Buddhism to be the Yuan empire's official religion. Kubila Khan appointed the lama Lodijaltsan as spiritual leader and state teacher for the country. Lamas were officially exempted from military service and paying taxes. Despite these efforts by Kubila Khan, Buddhism did not become a widely-accepted religion in Mongolia. It was the religion of the aristocracy, and following the Tibetan empire's downfall, Buddhism lost its support and Shamanism was revived through to the mid sixteenth century.

In the second half of the sixteenth century, Yellow Hat sect Buddhism or Lamaism became prominent in Mongolia. Lamaism was adopted for political as well as social reasons. Politically, Lamaism was favored because (1) Mongol aristocrats wanted their positions reinforced by religious figures, (2) Tibetan Yellow Hat proponents sought allies among the Mongol rulers against the Red Hat sect, and (3) the Ming empire in China saw Lamaism as a means of pacifying their warlike Mongol neighbors.

In 1577, Altan Khan invited the religious head of Tibet to Mongolia, as Altan Khan was intent upon unifying Mongolia under Lamaism. Altan Khan incorporated Buddhist beliefs into laws which made for a legal basis to abolish the practices of Shamanism. Altan Khan's campaign was continued by Avtai Sain Khan, who met with the third Dalai Lama in 1586. At this meeting, it was decided that the Zuu temple in Kharakhorum would be established as the Mongol Centre of Lamaism. Soon thereafter, the other monasteries and schools for Lamaism opened under the directive of Zanabazar, the head of the Lamaist religion in Mongolia. Zanabazar worked diligently to spread Lamaism to all people, nobles and commoners alike. Lamaism continued to gain popularity for the following 200 years, or until the Mongol People's Revolution.

During the period referred to as the "Left Deviation" (1929-1932) approximately 300 monasteries were closed in an effort to increase Mongolia's workforce by encouraging lamas to work outside of the monasteries. Some lamas left in fear of persecution, only to return to the monasteries in 1932, the beginning of the New Turn movement: a movement in which efforts were directed towards persuasion, education and propaganda. By 1936 there were 767 monasteries - including more than 300 closed during 1929-1932 - and over 100,000 lamas, including an increase of 10,000 during the period immediately following the Left Deviation. At this time, the adult lamas represented over forty percent of the adult male population - a problem for a socialist country.

In the mid 1930s, the communist party implemented the "liquidation of the church as an organization" due, in part, to rumors of the political uprisings against the government being rooted in the monasteries. At this time, lamas were 'strongly encouraged' to leave the monasteries and begin secular lifestyles. By 1938, approximately 20,000 of the lamas had become herders, 5,000 were organized into government cooperatives, young lamas were enlisted in the military and child lamas were returned to their families. And the rest? Many were victims of the burning and bombing of monasteries during the mid 1930s. 1937 is said to be one of the worst years in Mongol history, as hundreds of monasteries were destroyed, tens of thousands of Buddhist books were burned, and most of the 100,000 lamas were persuaded into secular lifestyles or killed.

Over the next 40 years, Mongols worshipped in fear. Older Buddhists continued to attend the central monastery, the Gandan, which averaged 100 lamas, or the Gobi's monastery, which averaged 40 lamas. Younger people worshipped in the privacy of their homes or ceased to worship altogether.

Now that Mongolia is an independent country, the Buddhists are experiencing a revival. Young males are attending the monastery schools and many of the lamas who were forced into secular lives during the 1930s have returned to the monasteries to continue lifestyles they originally chose to pursue. In 1990, the women's monastery was opened in Ulaanbaatar by a group of 20 Buddhist women.

However, all is not calm on the religious front: missionaries are spreading across the country, attempting to convert the Mongols to western religions.

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Language

Mongolian, belongs to the Altai group of languages (which include Finnish, Turkish, Kazak, Uzbek and Korean. It is spoken by about 7 million people in the world including Mongolians, Inner Mongolians, Buriyats, Kalkmycks and Tuvinians. In Mongolian speech organs such as the nose and larynx take relatively less participation but tongue, teeth, palate and lips take an active part in producing sounds. It is a language rich in vocabulary so it has an ample opportunity to translate from any foreign language rendering the meaning of different expressions and ideas.

Because of the specific mode of life, customs and environments, there are a lot of terms and expressions not easy to translate into other languages and render their meanings. There are also many proverbs relating to Mongolian life (for example – While your father is alive, get acquainted with people, while you have horses, go and see far away lands.)

The Mongol script has five main vowels and 22 consonants and is written vertically. It can be written quickly and therefore considered similar to shorthand. In many cases, the Mongolian writing system does not correspond with pronunciation. In this respect it is similar to written and spoken English. Because of these complications, Mongols tried to adopt the Square (Pags-pa) script in 1269, the Todu Script in 1648, the Soyombo Script in 1686 and the Cyrillic Script in 1941.

The latter, Cyrillic Script was successfully adopted unlike the others, and helped to erase illiteracy among the population. The Mongolian Cyrillic Alphabet has 35 letters. There have been attempts to revive the old Mongolian Script but so far, there has been little success.

Photo by Liza Carter

Photo by John Kwok

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