Outer Mongolia

History

While the administrative region of Outer Mongolia during the Qing dynasty only consisted of the four Khalkha aimags (Setsen Khan Aimag, Tüsheet Khan Aimag, Sain Noyon Khan Aimag, and Zasagt Khan Aimag), in the late Qing period, "Outer Mongolia" was also used to refer to the combined Khalkha and Oirat regions, as well as the directly-ruled Tannu Uriankhai.

Much of the region was subsequently claimed by the Republic of China, which had acquired the legal right to inherit all Qing territories through the Imperial Edict of the Abdication of the Qing Emperor, as an integral part of the state. This is referred to as Mongolia Area by Kuomintang to distinguish it from Outer Mongolia since 1928. Most of Outer Mongolia, however, was under the de facto control of the Bogd Khanate, which was largely unrecognized internationally. The Republic of China briefly established de facto rule over most of the region from 1919 to 1921. After the Mongolian People's Republic was founded in 1924, the Nationalist government of China de jure recognized Mongolian independence in 1946 under Soviet pressure, though this recognition was later rescinded by the Kuomintang government in 1953, which had retreated to Taiwan because of continued Soviet support to the Chinese communists. The People's Republic of China continued recognition of the Mongolian People's Republic since 1949, and has established full diplomatic relations with Mongolia.

Names

The name "Outer Mongolia" is contrasted with Inner Mongolia, which corresponds to the region of Inner Mongolia in China. Inner Mongolia was given its name because it was more directly administered by the Qing court; Outer Mongolia (which is further from the capital Beijing) had a greater degree of autonomy within the Qing empire.

There are three alternate terms, including Ar Mongol, Mobei Mongol, and Outer Mongolia.

Ar Mongol

The term Ar mongol or Mobei Mongol () is sometimes used in Chinese and Mongolian languages to refer to North Mongolia when making a distinction with South Mongolia, so as to elide the history of Qing rule and rather imply a geographic unity or distinction of regions inhabited by Mongols in the Mongolian Plateau. There also exists an English term: Northern Mongolia.

Ar Mongol can also be used to refer to Mongolia synchronically, during that time period. In the Mongolian language, the word ar refers to the back side of something, which has been extended to mean the northern side of any spatial entity, e.g. a mountain or a yurt. The word öbür refers to the front/south (and thus protected) side of a mountain. So the difference between South Mongolia and the Mongolian state is conceived as the metaphor of the backward northern side and the south side of a mountain.

In contrast to Mobei Mongol (), there is also Monan Mongol (), roughly referring to the region now known as South Mongolia.

Modern usage

Today, "Outer Mongolia" is sometimes still informally used to refer to the independent state of Mongolia. To avoid confusion between Mongolia and China's Inner Mongolia, Chinese sources generally refer to the former as the "State of Mongolia" (); that is, the translation of the official name in Mongolian, Монгол Улс/Mongol Uls, instead of just "Mongolia" (), which could refer to the entire Mongolian region.

"Outer Mongolia" is also used sometimes colloquially in the English language as a hyperbole to refer to a place that is very far away.

Notes

References

References

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14. ''The Cambridge History of China'', volume 10, p 49.
15. cf. Norcin, C. (1999): ''Monggol kelen-ü toli''. Ömnud monggol-un arad-un keblel-ün qoriya. Page 170.
16. Bulag, Uradyn. (1998). "Nationalism and Hybridity in Mongolia". Clarendon Press.
17. Bawden, Charles (1997): Mongolian-English dictionary. London: Kegan Paul. Page 23.
18. cf. Norcin, C. (1999): ''Monggol kelen-ü toli''. Ömnud monggol-un arad-un keblel-ün qoriya. Page 169, 580. ''ömnud: agula dabagan-u engger tal-a-yin gajar''.