Shagdaryn Bira (September 1927 – 13 February 2022) was a Mongolian historian and scholar noted for his research that examines the history, culture, religion, and languages of the Mongols. This research covers a wide area from ancient ties between Mongolia, India and Tibet to

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

's Mongolian Empire to Mongolian communism in the 20th century.

Career

From 1987, he served as the General Secretary for the International Association for Mongol Studies and worked as a visiting professor at universities and research institutes in several countries, including Russia, France, India, and Japan. He wrote books, including the Mongolian Historiography in the 13th-17th Centuries, and contributed various chapters/volumes to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

's History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Bira was one of founders and honorary president of the International Fund of

Tengri Tengri (; Old Uyghur: ; Middle Turkic: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; Proto-Turkic: / ; Mongolian script: , ; , ; , ) is the all-encompassing God of Heaven in the traditional Turkic, Yeniseian, Mongolic, and various other nomadic religious beliefs. So ...

Research, president of the Roerich Society of Mongolia, and director of the Nicholas Roerich Museum and Shambhala Art Institute. He worked with Glenn Mullin to save the Roerich house in Mongolia and restore it as a museum and art gallery. Bira was the oldest living student of George Roerich. In 2006 he was awarded the Fukuoka Prize. Bira died on 13 February 2022, at the age of 94.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bira, Shagdaryn 1927 births 2022 deaths Tengrist religious workers Moscow State Institute of International Relations alumni Mongolian historians Mongolian Academy of Sciences