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Adjunct
Associate Research Professor of Anthropology University of Pittsburgh Office phone: (412) 665-2606 |
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Nomadic Pastoralists, their Livestock, and their Landscape
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People
The
population of the Mongolia is 2.7 million, with slightly more than half
of it concentrated in the capital, Ulaan Baatar (pop. 700,000), and
a handful of other cities. The nation's population is fairly homogeneous,
with 85% being Mongolian (Fig. 4). The present annual
population growth rate is about 2.8%. Two thirds of the Mongolian population
is below 30 years old, and two fifths of the population is 14 years
or below. A significant portion of the urban population still lives
in gers on the peripheries of municipalities. While the average
population density of Mongolia is just over 1 person per sq. km, the
population density of South Gobi Province is only 0.2 per sq. km. The
chief religion of Mongolia is Buddhist Lamaism, following the teachings
of the Dalai Lama.
Mongour
(Qinghai, Gansu and other provinces PRC), Bao'ang (Gansu and Qinghai
provinces PRC) and Mogol (Herat, Badakhsan and Maimana regions, Rep.
of Afghanistan).
Tsaatan people (who speak Tuvinian), are related to the 200,000 people in the Republic of Tuva in south-central Siberia (Fig. 6). The Tsaatan of northern Mongolia can be found in the Sayan Mountains around Lake Hovsgol, where they herd reindeer and live in tipis very similar to those used in the North American Plains (Fig. 7). Although no accurate census has been made, the Tsaatan say there are only 200 of them living in Mongolia and that their reindeer number only about 400. They are at great risk unless they obtain more reindeer from Tuva soon. The Tuvinian language, which is basically Turkic, borrows a great number of roots from the Mongolian language and a few words from the Russian language.
About
4.5 % of Mongolia's population is Evenk and speaks a Tungusic language.
They are related to the other Evenk people, most of whom reside in
Siberia and herd reindeer. The geography of this large country is heterogeneous (Fig. 8 - Map of Mongolia). The eastern half of the country is dominated by sweeping steppes. This relatively flat environment provides valuable grazing lands for livestock herds and rivers and streams for watering the animals.
A large portion of Mongolia, particularly in the western half, consists of quite mountainous terrain. The best-known peaks are in the Altai range, which covers much of the southwest
(Fig. 9). The highest summit, Tavan Bogd, in Bayan Ulgii Aimag, rises to an elevation of more than 4374 m. This is the region where the Kazakhs live. The landscape is extremely barren and rocky, but one can still see occasional camps here and there. The winters are quite cold here and the growing season is extremely short, but because they are so well adapted to high elevations, yaks are plentiful. Other mountain ranges include the Sayan, Khangai, and Khentii. Wildlife in the mountains includes argali sheep, ibex, snow leopard, rock ptarmigan, and Altai snowcock. Plants include the dwarf Siberian pine and white gentiana.
To the north lies the magnificent Lake Hovsgol (Fig. 10), traditionally known as the Mother of Mongolia. It is 137 km long and 260 m deep. Because the region is not commercially developed and its cold temperature limits the biota living there, it is the cleanest large lake in the world. The adjacent Sayan Mountains, which span the border with Siberia, are home to the Tsaatan people who keep herds of reindeer. This is where the Siberian taiga, or coniferous mountain forest zone dips down into Mongolia. The taiga consists mostly of fir, pine, and spruce, with some larch, aspen, birch, and balsam poplar. Mongolian people live at the lower elevations around the lake with their herds of yaks and other livestock.
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Nomadic Pastoralists, their Livestock, and their Landscape |
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