The Gobi Desert

The Gobi desert, one of the world's great deserts, covers much of the southern part of Mongolia. Unlike the Sahara there are few sand dunes in the Gobi; rather you'll find large barren expenses of gravel plains and rocky outcrops. The climate here is extreme. Temperatures reach +40° C. in summer, and -40 in winter. Precipitation averages less than 100 mm per year, while some areas only get rain once every two or three years. Strong winds up to 140 km/h make travel dangerous in spring and fall. Great Gobi National Park is one of the largest World Biospheres, with an area larger than Switzerland. It contains the last remaining wild Bactrian (two-humped) camels, wild ass, and a small population of Gobi bears, the only desert-inhabiting bear.

                                                                   Khongoryn Els (Singing Dunes) Omngobi Aimag

This is one of the few areas of sand dune formations. Up to 200m tall and many km long, the Khongoryn Els are a popular tourist destination.

                                                     The Khongoryn Els dunes stretch forever

                                                      Hikers climbing Khongoryn Els dunes

                                                               Tourists riding camels 

Mongolian traditional music

The traditional Mongolian Folk music is influenced by the large variety of tribes, having been united for the first time in the 13th century under the rule of Genghis Khan with Turkish tribes in order to establish the Mongolian people. The nomad shepherds in Mongolia, like other nomads in Central Asia, use to play string and wind instruments.Percussion instruments, though, were only played in connection with Shamanism and Buddhism, the origins of which can be found in Tibetan Lamaism, as well as with the "Tsam dance", which was performed in Mongolia for the first time in the 8th century.Music is an integral part of Mongolian culture. Among the unique contributions of Mongolia to the world's musical culture are the long songs, one of the greatest features of the Mongolian music, overtone singing and morin khuur, the horse-headed fiddle. The music of Mongolia is also rich with varieties related to the various ethnic groups of the country: Oirats, Hotogoid, Tuvans, Darhad, Buryats, Tsaatan , Dariganga, Uzemchins, Barga, Kazakhs and Khalha.Besides the traditional music, Western classical music and ballet flourished during the MPR. Among the most popular forms of modern music in Mongolia are Western pop and rock genres and the mass songs, which are written by modern authors in a form of folk songs.The Mongolians are renowned for their love for music and singing. Any celebrations by the Mongolians always turn into a celebration of singing.

Long song


This genre is called "Long song" (Urtyn duu) because each syllable of text is extended for a long duration. A four-minute song may only consist of ten words. Lyrical themes vary depending on context; they can be philosophical, religious, romance, or celebratory, and often use horses as a symbol or theme repeated throughout the song. Eastern Mongols typically use a morin khuur (horse-head fiddle) as accompaniment, sometimes with a type of indigenous flute named limbe. Oirat groups of the Western Mongols typically sing long songs unaccompanied or accompanied with the igil.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc2XjWdpDtM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clGJMbQukMM&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPJ1WTF2SDY

Horse-head fiddle

The horse-head fiddle, or morin khuur, is a distinctively Mongolian instrument and is seen as a symbol of the country. The instuments has two strings. There is some controversy regarding the traditional carving of a horse on the upper end of the pegbox. Some scholars believe that this is proof that the instrument was originally a shamanistic instrument, as the staffs of shamans have a horse similarly carved on top; the horse is a much-revered animal in Mongolia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kq7QJa_lBoA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pake7yYwoMU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shkfYaHpWrw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOpwu48qVds&feature=related

Other traditional instuments

Other instruments used in Mongolian traditional music include shants (a three-stringed, long-necked, strummed lute similar to the Chinese sanxian or Japanese shamisen), yoochin(a dulcimer similar to the Chinese yangqin), khuuchir  (a bowed spike-fiddle), yatga (a plucked zither related to the Chinese guzheng), everburee (a folk oboe), khel khuur (Jew's harp), tobshuur (a plucked lute), ikh khuur (bass morin khuur), and bishhuur(a pipe similar in sound to a clarinet).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez01RNJ9Haw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IQrlB_W-Go&feature=related

Throat singing

Perhaps the best-known musical form of the Mongols is the throat singing tradition known as hoomii, extant among all or most Mongols though best known internationally from Tuva. Sung differently than traditional vocals. In Mongolia, the most famous throat-singers include Khalkhas like Gereltsogt and Sundui, while the Tuvan group Huun-Huur-Tu has an international following. This unique type of singing involves the production of two distinctively audible pitches at the same time, including a low pedal note, or drone, derived from the fundamental frequency of the vocal cord vibrations, and higher melodic notes that result when the singer's mouth acts as a filter, selecting one note at a time from among the drone's natural  overtone series pitches.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQkrsdjJB2s&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCrkfvKbk6k&feature=related

Tsagaan Sar (White Moon)

Tsagaan Sar or White Month is one of Mongolia's two major and long-awaited holidays, the other being Naadam in July. For Mongols, Tsagaan Sar is not only an ancient holiday marking the end of winter and the beginning of a new year's cycle, but is also a time for unification and reinforcing social bonds. Preparations for the festive start well ahead of time. Several families usually gather in the eldest man's ger ( traditional dwelling), where the holiday will take place. Since the holiday means all relatives, neighbors, friends and guests will be treated to a lavish meal, women make more than a thousand buuz and dumplings. Ready dumplings are lined on wooden plates and put outside. The next day, the frozen buuz are ready to be steamed. Families all across the country stock-up on food, dairy, mild milk vodka and other specialties for the occasion.


The day before Tsagaan Sar is called Bituun, the name of the lunar phase of dark moon. The lunar phases are Bituun (dark moon), Shined (new crescent moon), Tergel (full moon), and Huuchid (waxing moon). On the Bituun day, people thoroughly clean around home, herders also clean the livestock barns and shades, to meet the New Year fresh. The Bituun ceremony also includes burning candles to symbolize enlightenment of the samsara and all sentient beings and putting 3 pieces of ice at the doorway so that the horse of the deity Palden Lhamo (Buddist God) could drink as the deity is believed to visit every household on this day. In the evening, families gather together--immediate family usually, in contrast to the large feast gatherings of White Moon day--and see out the old year eating dairy products and buuz. Traditionally, Mongolians settle all issues and repay all debts from the old year by this day.

                 Spread

 We wear traditional clothes

Making the Buuz

Naadam Festival

National event date: 11-13 July, 2012

The Naadam Festival is the most important and biggest event and holiday of Mongolians. This Nomads' Olympic event includes sport competitions of Wrestling, Horse racing and Archery as called "Eriin Gurvan Naadam-three manly games".

The main festival is held in the capital Ulaanbaatar, although other provinces and soums across Mongolia have their own, smaller scale Naadam celebrations.

It begins with an elaborately produced Opening Ceremony featuring dancers, athletes, horseriders and musicians. After the ceremony, the competitions begin. Despite the name, women participate in the archery and horse-racing games, but not in Mongolian wrestling. Another competition of traditional ankle bone shooting became now one of the most interesting parts of the festival.

Wrestling

 512 or 1024 wrestlers meet in a single-elimination tournament that lasts nine or ten rounds. Mongolian traditional wrestling is an untimed competition in which wrestlers lose if they touch the ground. Wrestlers wear two-piece costumes consisting of a tight shoulder vest (zodog) and shorts (shuudag). Each wrestler has a second called a zasuul. The zasuul sings a song of praise for the winning wrestler. The champion who won first time is called arslan, "lion".

Horse racing

Mongolian horse racing as featured in Naadam is a cross-country event, with races 15-30 km long. The riders are children, with the oldest being 10 years old and the youngest only 4. After the races, the top five horses in each class earn the title of "airgiin tav" and the top three are given gold, silver, and bronze medals.

Archery

360 targets are put up for the archery competition. In this competition both men and women participate; men fire 40 arrows from 75 meters away while women fire 20 arrows from 60 meters away. The winners of the contest are granted the titles of "National marksman" and "National markswoman".

Warriors

Shaman

Wrestler

Tsam dance

Archers

Dancers

                                                                                                        Photos by Studio3

National anthem of Mongolia

	Transliteration	English translation
	Darkhan manai tusgaar uls Dayar Mongolyn ariun golomt Dalai ikh deedsiin gegeen üils Dandaa enkhjij, üürd mönkhöjnö Khamag delkhiin shudarga ulstai Khamtran negdsen evee bekhjüülj Khatan zorig, bukhii l chadlaaraa Khairtai Mongol ornoo manduulya Öndör töriin mini suld iveej Örgön tümnii mini zaya tüshij Ündes yazguur, khel soyoloo Üriin ürdee övlön badraaya Erelkheg Mongolyn zoltoi arduud Erkh chölöö jargalyg edlev Jargalyn tülkhüür, khögjliin tulguur Javkhlant manai oron mandtugai	Our unwavering independent nation All Mongols' sacred ancestry All world's good deeds Always stable, forever continue With all honest nations of the world Strengthen our bonds With all our will and strength Let's develop our beloved Mongolia Our great nation's symbol blesses The peoples' fate supports Our ancestry, culture and language Let's forever cherish and prosper Bright peoples of brave Mongolia Have freedom and happiness Key to happiness, column for prosperity Our great country prosper