Mongolia Properties

The name 'Mongolians' has always stirred up visions of an untamed and exotic race of people, and this still is true. Today, Mongolia seems like the end of the earth, and in a sense it is. Outside Ulaanbaatar you begin to wonder if you haven't stepped into another century, rather than another country. It remains one of the last great adventure destinations in Asia. The Mongolians are Asian by definition, however they in turn strive to be part of the Western democracies that they look up to and admire as most of Mongolia's recent history has been under the sharp watch of Communist Russia, and China.

The Mongolians (or Mongols) are the dominant people group in the People’s Republic of Mongolia, where they comprise some 91% of the population or approximately 2,951,786 as of July 2007. The country, formerly known as Outer Mongolia, became independent in 1921. Today there are far more Mongolians in China and Russia than in Mongolia — about 4.8 million.

Well known research by Oxford University has shown that 1 in 200 inhabitants of the world share the same Mongolian gene, belived to be attributed to Chinggis Khan whose prowess and strength has become legendary. More important than the genetical make-up of today's world are its linguistic and cultural heritage. Mongolian forms the roots for a number of Turkish Altaic languages such as Turkish, Hungarian, Finnish, Kazakh, as well as the whole of the central Asian basin.

Mongolia remains a very poor country, in poor conditions, and poor infrastructure but it is developing at a breakneck speed. Mongolians today look towards their Russian, Chinese and Kazakh counterparts for inspiration on lifestyle and achievements. This sadly results in a growing class of newly rich Mongolians while the general portionof the population sees little improvement to their daily lives. It is hoped that in time and with the help of good governments the country's enormous wealth can be better distributed. Westerners often assume that Mongolian's are stuck in the 1970's, still wear traditional dress, and all live in gers. This obviously is not true. Most Mongolians under 70 wear western clothes, jeans, nike shoes, caps, have flashy haircuts, and wear designer necklaces. A new MTV generation has appeared in the streets of Ulaanbaatar often confusing and mixing various styles but all done in good humour. The source for tis inspiration is shifting from its ex-Communist brothers towards the free enterprising USA. This brings about it's own sets of problems. There is a growing real-estate sector in Ulaanbaatar, most Mongolians now aspire to leave behind their Nomadic past and move into an urban environment.

The Mongolians are part of the Allied Coalition in Iraq, they support American and British troops in peacekeeping duties in the country. It's not the first time the Mongolians find themselves in Baghdad, they left a bloody souvenir during their last visit. Lets hope that this time it will be a more peaceful event. Mongolian peacekeeping troops can also be found in Afghanistan, and Sierra Leone. American and Mongolian ties were further bound during President Bush's visit to the country in 2005. At this time Mr Bush made the now famous quote in answer to President Enkhbayar's remark that Mongolia considered the United States as its third neighbour to which Mr Bush replied "The US also considers Mongolia as it's third neighbour" of course he missed the point that the Mongolian government was referring to the US after China and Russia being Mongolia's geographical neighbours.

The Mongolians are like any other race, they have big, small, tall, wide, people. By and large the Mongolians are larger than any of their Asian counterparts; this is primarily due to their strong meat and dairy product diets, and their constant exercise and outdoor living. The Mongolians have very distinctive facial features; high, often red, cheekbones, and are strong, proud and fierce in character. The people themselves on the whole are welcoming towards Westerners, primarily to learn English, and to discover the strange Western habits.

The Mongolians are gentically and linguistically related to the Koreans who they often consider as their bigger brother. They have strong antipathy and feelings towards the Chinese people. This is mostly based on history and tradition, but more recently fueled by both the ethnic cleansing of Mongolians and their culture in what is now known as Inner Mongolia, as well as the economcal invasion of Mongolia by Chinese corporations.

The Mongolians thrive to keep their identity, whilst trying to embrace other identities, foremostly the typical western persona. Mongolia in itself is considered to be the third best democraty in Asia, after Japan, and South Korea. It has its fair share of controversy, and corruption. But on the whole Mongolians are trying to push ahead and Mongolia's survival as an independent nation is little short of miraculous. For the first time in centuries the Mongolians, once rulers of the vast Eurasian steppe, are no longer colonial subjects of the Russian and Chinese empires. Only a century ago, so few Mongolians were left that it seemed their ancient, nomadic civilization might disappear altogether. Now the country has a democratic constitution, and multiparty elections. The best indicators of Mongolia's growing democracy is the freedom of the press and the interest taken into politics by the general population. Mongolia boasts one of the highest electoral turnouts in the world at roughly 80%, not such a small feat in such a large and dispersed country.

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