Contemporary cultural life in Mongolia is a unique mix of traditional nomadic, shamanic, and Buddhist beliefs and other foreign influences. Let’s look at a few things that bring out the uniqueness of the Mongolian culture and lifestyle.
Urbanization and modernization have inevitably had a heavy impact on nomadic traditions in Mongolia, but most of the distinctive old ways of life have continued.
General etiquette
Mongolians take pride in their customs and way of life, so showing respect will go a long way. Here's what you need to know about the social etiquette of Mongolia.
Dress modestly, wear long sleeved clothing, Remove any hats, sunglasses and shoes before entering any religious building, Always respect any signage in areas which asks for No Photography.
If you are unsure of whether you can take photos in places, always ask as not everywhere is off limits, Don't touch prayer flags, altars, Mani stones or any other items of religious significance, Always take a gift with you.
Always say hello (sain bainuul) when you arrive, When entering a home, men head to the left and women to the right. If you are wearing a hat, always leave it on when entering a ger, Always accept gifts and food or ake a bite or a nibble of offered food, even if you're not hungry,
Always keep your sleeves rolled down. It's considered impolite to show your wrists to someone, If you are asked where you are from, where you are going and other questions, always reply. Not replying is considered rude, and Never point at anyone with your index finger. Use your whole palm instead.
Religion
According to the 2010 National Census, among Mongolians aged 15 and above, 53% were Buddhists, while 39% were non-religious, 3% muslim, 2.9% Sharmanist, and 2.2% Christian.
Mongolian shamanism has been practised throughout the history of Mongolia, with similar beliefs being common among the nomads of central Asia. They gradually gave way to Tibetan Buddhism.
The Kazakhs of western Mongolia, some Mongols, and other Turkic peoples in the country traditionally adhere to Islamic beleifs. At the turn of the age, other religions like Christianity are starting to grow.
Food and cuisine
Mongolian foods are very simple and full of variety of meat that includes mutton, beef, camel, and sheep to mention but a few. Mongolian cuisine is usually accompanied by meat with vegetables, noodles, rices and pasta.
Mongolians consume a lot of milk tea, wild fruit juice and home-made alcohol drinks. A variety of dairy products are bread and butter for breakfast and snacks throughout the day. For breakfast and lunch, locals always have pastry and fried bread. Lets take a look at some of the meals and popular dishes eaten in Mongolia.
Huushuur (Deep Fried Meat Pie)
These are small, half-moon shaped fried pastries that are filled with meat (either sheep or beef) and onions. this is the main Mongolian dish of Naadam festival in July. You can find special Huushuur stuffed with vegetable (includng potatoes, cabbage or kimchi cabbage) or Mongolian cheese in Ulaanbaatar city.
Buuz (Dumplings)
These are large dumplings and recipes are dough filled with meat, onions and garlic and steamed for some minutes.
Bansh (Small Dumplings)
These are dumplings just like buuz, but are smaller and often boiled in a soup or fried. Fried dumpling is delicious if you dip in rich dumpling sauce.
Tsuivan (Stir fried noodle)
This is a popular Mongolian dish and main ingredients are home-made noodles, fried with meat and onions in a covered frying pan. Stir fried noodle is especially delicious with horse meat.
Khorkhog (Authentic Mongolian Barbecue)
This is a special cuisine offered on special occasions. It is prepared by putting meat (sheep and goats), potatoes, carrots, turnips, onions, garlic, and some water into a large pot together with hot rocks. The pot is tightly closed allowed to stand for half an hour in open fire. The heat of the stones cooks the meat and vegetables thoroughly.
Music
Mongolian music is strongly influenced by nature, nomadism, shamanism, and also Tibetan Buddhism. traditional music includes a variety of instruments, namely the morin khuur, and also the singing styles like the urtyn duu and khoomei.
The Tsam is a dance believed to keep away evil spirits and it was seen as reminiscent of shamanism. Recent years have seen the development of rap, techno, hip-hop and also boy bands and girl bands, folk rock, heavy rock and electro music, to mention but a few.
Sport
Mongolian traditional sports include , archery, cross-country horse-racing, and wrestling. Other sports include Basketball, football, freestyle wrestling, boxing, judo and table tennis are all major sports in Mongolia.
Horse riding is central to Mongolian culture. long-distance races are held during Naadam festivals. Mongolian wrestling is the most popular of all Mongolian sports. many wrestlers from different cities around the country take part in the national wrestling competition.
sports such as basketball, weightlifting, powerlifting, and association football, athletics, gymnastics, table tennis, jujutsu, karate, aikido, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts are becoming increasingly popular in Mongolia. Mongolian table tennis players are competing internationally.
Sports where Mongolians have won medals include freestyle wrestling, men's 100-kilogram, Amateur boxing, pistol shooting, sumo wrestling. Mongolia national basketball team enjoyed some success recently, especially at the East Asian Games.
The Mongolia Premier League is the top domestic football competition. Mongolia also holds The Golden Eagle Festival which draws about 400 eagle hunters on horseback.
Arts
Mongolian fine arts are heavily influenced by religion. Ancient Bronze sculptures usually showed Buddhist deities.
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