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English My Love, I cannot go outside today; It is snowing. I will not come but I will wait. When the sun comes out, I will enter your life again. Mongolian (Modern) Амраг минь би гадаа өнөөдөр гарч чадахгүй гадаа цас орж байн. Би чамруу очиж чадахгүй гэхдээ би хүлээнэ. Нар гармагц, бид хамтдаа байх […]

A Brief History of Mongolian Script

In case you couldn’t tell, I enjoy learning things about Mongolian script. I find different writing styles, particularly those that are not as widely used across the globe, to be quite interesting. Mongolian has quite a colorful history, seeing many different types of script developed over the years. I noticed a poster for the Mongolian […]

Mongolian Script Art

Mongolian script can take many shapes and forms. There is a special kind of art that has developed from that script writing. Artists use the words of script to make the shapes of animals, nature, and people. They can also create circle seals, which contain an ornate rendering of a word incased in a circle. […]

People Noises

I hear them imitate the dogs And they just make this sound Like a Mohican warrior, Or someone learning their vowels For the first time and are Astonished at what magic Can come from their throat. I hear them saying yes and no Without saying yes and no, A viper’s breath without the venom, Lips […]

Mongolian Writing

Modern Mongolia has adapted remarkably in terms of its writing system. The split between Mongolia and Inner Mongolia began in 1921 when Russia helped the Mongolians push out the Chinese. Why didn’t they take the whole pie? I’m told it’s because Inner Mongolia was too close to Beijing for the Russian’s comfort, so they stopped […]

No Name

Mongolians have many combinations for the names they choose, but sometimes, a name crops up that takes you by surprise. A Russian teacher at my school recently switched to teaching English, and I never noticed her name too often when I first got here, mainly because she didn’t work with me directly. Her name is […]

What’s In a Name?

“Proper names are poetry in the raw. Like all poetry they are untranslatable.” -W.H. Auden I was planning a lesson with one of my counterparts, when she told me her long name. Mongolians tend to have a short name, which those close to them use, and a long name, which is used more formally. Think […]

White Russian

There is a curious phenomenon I encounter almost daily: Being mistaken for a Russian. I don’t know what constitutes “looking Russian,” but I must fit the bill. Walking down the street, little children gaze upon me with saucer-like eyes, mouths agape, only to let one word escape their lips: орос (Russian). Walking down the white […]

Picnicking

I was invited to a picnic for our school’s director this weekend. This annual retreat is a tradition, but this year was a special occasion because the woman in charge of running all three schools in our complex won a special medal over the summer. I thought this would be a good way to connect […]