Khövsgöl ( mn, Хөвсгөл) is the northernmost of the 21
aimags (provinces) of
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...
. The name is derived from
Lake Khövsgöl
Lake Khövsgöl is the largest freshwater lake in Mongolia by volume and second largest by area. It is located near the northern border of Mongolia, about 200 km (124 mi) west of the southern end of Lake Baikal. It is nicknamed the "Younger sist ...
.
Geography and history
The round-topped
Tarvagatai, Bulnain and Erchim sub-ranges of the
Khangai massif dominate the south and southwest of the largely mountainous province, and north and west of Lake Khövsgöl, lie the alpine
Khoridol Saridag,
Ulaan Taiga Ulaan ( mn, Улаан, ''red'', zh, 乌兰) may refer to:
* Wulan County, Qinghai, China
* Ulaan Taiga Ulaan ( mn, Улаан, ''red'', zh, 乌兰) may refer to:
* Wulan County
Ulan or Wulan ( Mongolian: ; ; ) is a county of Qinghai Province ...
, and
Mönkh Saridag
Mönkh Saridag (also spelled as Munku-Sardyk; Mongolian: Мөнх сарьдаг, ''lit. "eternal aiguille"'') is the highest mountain in the Sayan Mountains of Asia. It is tall and is on the international border between Mongolia and Russia. It ...
mountains. The center and eastern parts of the province are less mountainous, but still hilly.
The region is well known in Mongolia for its natural environment, and Lake Khövsgöl is one of the country's major tourist attractions. The largest forests of Mongolia are located around and to the north of the lake, extending the
South Siberian taiga
Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruce ...
.
The aimag was founded in 1931.
Khatgal was the administrative center until 1933; since then it has been
Mörön
Mörön ( mn, Мөрөн;, lit=river), also spelled Murun, is the administrative center of Khövsgöl Aimag (province) in northern Mongolia. Before 1933, Khatgal had been the aimag capital.
It has 12,286 families and a population of 46,918, an ...
.
Population
The region is home to many ethnic minority groups:
Darkhad
The Darkhad, Darqads,. Dalhut, or Darhut ( Mongolian for "Untouchables", "Protected Ones", or "Workmen of Darkhan"; Chinese: 达尔扈特, pinyin: Dá'ěrhùtè) are a subgroup of Mongol people living mainly in northern Mongolia, in the Bayanz ...
,
Khotgoid
Khotogoid ( Mongolian: Хотгойд, transliteration: ) is a subgroup of Mongol people in northwestern Mongolia. The Khotogoid people live roughly between Uvs Lake to the west and the Delgermörön river to the east. The Khotogoids belong to ...
,
Uriankhai
Uriankhai ( traditional Mongolian: , Mongolian Cyrillic: урианхай; sah, урааҥхай; zh, t=烏梁海, s=乌梁海, p=Wūliánghǎi), Uriankhan (, урианхан) or Uriankhat (, урианхад), is a term of address appli ...
,
Buriad, and
Tsaatan. Both the Darkhad and Tsaatan are famous for their practice of shamanism.
Famous Khövsgölians
Famous people from Khuvsgul include:
*
Chingünjav Chingunjavi ( mn, Чингүн, ; also known as ''Admiral Chingün'', mn, Чингүн, 1710–1757) was the Khalkha prince ruler of the Khotogoids and one of the two major leaders of the 1756-57 rebellion in Outer Mongolia. Although his rebellio ...
, leader of an anti-
Manchu
The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) and ...
rebellion in 1756/57,
*
Öndör Gongor
Öndör Gongor ( mn, Өндөр Гонгор, "Tall Gongor", c. 1880/85 – late 1920s), whose full name was Pureviin Gongor ( mn, Пүрэвийн Гонгор), was a man in early-20th century Mongolia, who suffered from gigantism. He was measur ...
, was a very tall man in early-20th century Mongolia,
*
Jalkhanz Khutagt Damdinbazar, a prime minister of Mongolia in the early 1920s,
*
Gelenkhüü
Gelenkhüü ( mn, Гэлэнхүү, c. 1877–1938), full name Khainzangiin Gelenkhüü (''Хайнзангийн Гэлэнхүү''), also known as Gelenkhüü Shükherch (''Гэлэнхүү Шүхэрч'' - Parachute-Gelenkhüü), is a sem ...
, an inventor and hero of local folklore.
*
Oyungerel Tsedevdamba
Oyungerel Tsedevdamba (; born 26 October 1966 in the Tarialan district of the Mongolian People's Republic) is policy advisor for human rights and public participation to the President of Mongolia, Khaltmaagiin Battulga. Oyungerel is a member of t ...
, activist, first Mongolian to graduate from Stanford
Henning Haslund-Christensen
Henning Haslund-Christensen (31 August 1896 – 13 September 1948) was a Danish travel writer and anthropologist.
Life
He was born in Copenhagen on 31 August 1896, and graduated from thØstersøgades Gymnasiumin Copenhagen. He enrolled at the ...
, a Danish traveller and explorer, spent one or two years in a place that today is in
Erdenebulgan sum in the early 1920s. Some locals believe that
Alan Gua
Alan Gua ( mn, Алун гуа, ''Alun gua'', ''lit. "Alun the Beauty"''. ''Gua'' or ''Guva/Quwa'' means ''beauty'' in Mongolian) is a mythical figure from ''The Secret History of the Mongols'', eleven generations after the grey wolf and the whit ...
, a female ancestor of
Genghis Khan
''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan''
, birth_name = Temüjin
, successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan
, spouse =
, issue =
, house = Borjigin
, ...
, hails from what is now
Chandmani-Öndör.
Livestock
In 2007, the aimag was home to about 3.43 million heads of livestock, among them about 1,510,000
goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
s, 1,442,000
sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...
, 322,000
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...
and
yak
The domestic yak (''Bos grunniens''), also known as the Tartary ox, grunting ox or hairy cattle, is a species of long-haired domesticated cattle found throughout the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, the Tibetan Plateau, Kachin Sta ...
s, 150,000
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
s, 2,350
camels
A camel (from: la, camelus and grc-gre, κάμηλος (''kamēlos'') from Hebrew or Phoenician: גָמָל ''gāmāl''.) is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. ...
, and 652
reindeer
Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...
.
Transportation
The
Mörön Airport
Mörön Airport is a public airport located in Mörön, the capital of Khövsgöl Province, Mongolia.
Airlines and destinations
See also
*List of airports in Mongolia
*Gelenkhüü
Gelenkhüü ( mn, Гэлэнхүү, c. 1877–1938) ...
(ZMMN/MXV) has one paved runway. It offers regular flights from and to
Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar (; mn, Улаанбаатар, , "Red Hero"), previously anglicized as Ulan Bator, is the capital and most populous city of Mongolia. It is the coldest capital city in the world, on average. The municipality is located in north ce ...
, and also serves as intermediate stop into the western Aimags.
The
Khatgal Airport (HTM) only runs scheduled flights from and to Ulaanbaatar in summer, offering a more direct approach to Lake Khövsgöl for the tourists.
The road distance from
Mörön
Mörön ( mn, Мөрөн;, lit=river), also spelled Murun, is the administrative center of Khövsgöl Aimag (province) in northern Mongolia. Before 1933, Khatgal had been the aimag capital.
It has 12,286 families and a population of 46,918, an ...
to Ulaanbaatar is 690 km. A new paved road finished in fall 2012 now connects Mörön to Khatgal on Lake Khövsgöl.
Administrative subdivisions
Gallery
Landscape of Hubsugul province.jpg, Landscape of Hubsugul province
Steppe flora of the province.png, Steppe flora of the province
Yurt locals.jpg, Yurt locals
Nomadic cattle.jpg, Nomadic cattle
Notes and references
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khovsgol Province
Provinces of Mongolia
States and territories established in 1931
1931 establishments in Mongolia