Product Description
With special focus on 20th century. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Mongolian history by a Mongolian
I got this book in the State Store in Ulaan Baatar, pleasantly surprised to find an English version there. This is an excellent accounting of the Mongolian nation and is a very good teaching resource. Mongolian history from a Mongolian is very different than what I was taught in Western Civilization class, and I was glad to have found this book. If you are interested in Mongolian history, or Asian ways of war, get this book. ... Read more

Product Description
The Mongol queens of the thirteenth century ruled the largest empire the world has ever known. Yet sometime near the end of the century, censors cut a section from The Secret History of the Mongols, leaving a single tantalizing quote from Genghis Khan: “Let us reward our female offspring.” Only this hint of a father’s legacy for his daughters remained of a much larger story. 

The queens of the Silk Route turned their father’s conquests into the world’s first truly international empire, fostering trade, education, and religion throughout their territories and creating an economic system that stretched from the Pacific to the Mediterranean. Outlandish stories of these powerful queens trickled out of the Empire, shocking the citizens of Europe and and the Islamic world.

After Genghis Khan’s death in 1227, conflicts erupted between his daughters and his daughters-in-law; what began as a war between powerful women soon became a war against women in power as brother turned against sister, son against mother. At the end of this epic struggle, the dynasty of the Mongol queens had seemingly been extinguished forever, as even their names were erased from the historical record.. 
           
One of the most unusual and important warrior queens of history arose to avenge the wrongs, rescue the tattered shreds of the Mongol Empire, and restore order to a shattered world. Putting on her quiver and picking up her bow, Queen Mandhuhai led her soldiers through victory after victory. In her thirties she married a seventeen-year-old prince, and she bore eight children in the midst of a career spent fighting the Ming Dynasty of China on one side and a series of Muslim warlords on the other. Her unprecedented success on the battlefield provoked the Chinese into the most frantic and expensive phase of wall building in history. Charging into battle even while pregnant, she fought to reassemble the Mongol Nation of Genghis Khan and to preserve it for her own children to rule in peace.
           
At the conclusion of his magnificently researched and ground-breaking narrative, Weatherford notes that, despite their mystery and the efforts to erase them from our collective memory, the deeds of these Mongol queens inspired great artists from Chaucer and Milton to Goethe and Puccini, and so their stories live on today. With The Secret History of the Mongol Queens, Jack Weatherford restores the queens’ missing chapter to the annals of history.
  ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Informative and super interesting!
I am a fan of Jack Weatherford and after reading his books on Genghis Khan - a fan of him as well. Both of his biographical books on the Genghis Khan's family, values and laws have been inspiring to read.They have radically altered my perception of the Mongol Empire- now I realize how progressive and visionary his rule was. Reading The Secret History of the Mongol Queens is empowering; to know there were such strong women at the helm at the same time when women of Europe were being shut-down and shut-upped! His insight on the thinking of 800years ago +/- is remarkable as was Genghis Khan's insight on the need for female / male balance. A great read,well worth the time!

A part of our unknown World History !
I wholly agree with everythingthe reviewers have already expounded on, it is marvelously written, easy to read and understand.
It is very eye opening how in a span of 300 years Genghis khan's descendants managed to completely obliterate everything he stood for , especially regarding to women's hallowed position of power.
My favorite tidbit is the mention of the old men, from the procession of clans at that very first grand meeting clappingtheir magical rocks together to control the weather, just enough sun and just enough rain for the occasion!

United They Stood. Divided They Fell.
Five years ago, when I read Weatherford's Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern WorldI was struck by the role of women in Genghis Khan's Mongol Empire. I thought it worthy of a book, and, voila! It is!

Weatherford is uniquely qualified to write this book and his knowledge shines through. He writes of tribes, customs, places and events giving enough description to enable westerners to understand the unfamiliar. There is a useful map and several genealogy charts.

Weatherford tells how Genghis Kahn's empowered his four daughters. When he married them into important tribes he gave them governance over them. In word and deed, Weatherford shows that GK supported these women in these roles while men served in the military. It was a workable and practical division of labor. With this system the largest empire the world has known was built.

This golden age for Mongols, both women and men, ended with GK's death in 1227, and one of his alcoholic sons, Ogodei, inherited the leadership. He effectively began a "War on Women" (the title of Chapter 5) which included acts of mass rape and the effective removal of his sisters from power. The 250 years after GK's death are characterized by internal power struggles and land disputes. Weatherford notes some interesting women in the interim period such as Khutulun who rejected suitors (many) who could not beat her in battle; however, in this period, almost everyone loses from the Mongols' disunity. Finally, Queen Manduhai accepts the hand of a 7 year old whom she marries and grooms.She works with and through him to unite the Mongols and secure borders for their grazing lands.

I would like to give this book 5 stars for Weatherford's work in assembling this, but have to hold back this highest honor. I believe that Weatherford's respect for the Mongols and their accomplishments results in his presenting some people and events in a better light than warrented. Some of the brutal acts of both men and women are described in rather mild language. Since I don't know enough about the Mongols to really evaluate how euphemistic this actually is, I would not have held back the fifth star for this alone, but a 5 star book needs a 5 star book design. There is nothing about the cover, the title, the choice of type face or the paper that suggests this is the serious work that it is. It has the look and feel of a work of pop fiction. The only design elements that reflect the quality of the research are the elegant brush paintings (almost like calligraphy) that introduce each part.

I recommend this book for those interested in the history of this period and those interested in women's roles in history. I hope material like this finds a wider audience and a place in world history/civilization curricula.

Layman's History...
I believe the best thing about this book is that it is written in plain english.I've read some history books that put me to sleep before I had gotten even a few pages into a new chapter.I was two-thirds (2/3) of the way finished with this book the first night and done with it the next.

It's also an excellent history about the empowerment of women in ancient times (short-lived though it may be).

Wild Mongolia
The Secret History of the Mongol Queens is an engaging read. The author seems to have a feeling for the land itself and how the nomadic Mongols were able to survive in such harsh environs. My disappointment is that very little description was given to just what was the "Eternal Blue Sky" that inspired Ghenghis Khan to go about his conquering. The word 'Tengri' was mentioned only once and it is my understanding from other reading that these were the collective sky gods. The subject of shamanism was never brought up although to his credit the author does describe some of the respect for nature and prayers and rituals used, especially in portraying the character of Queen Manduhai. ... Read more

Product Description

Mongolia, a country that evokes romantic curiosity on the part of American readers, has emerged from its former Soviet cocoon. It has achieved independence, democracy, and a twenty-first-century market economy. This book provides factual information about Mongolia and new ways of looking at a historical figure, Genghis Khan, whose ideals of nationhood and democratic principles are in practice now.

Modern Mongolia is unique in providing multiple perspectives—Mongolian and American, scholarly and less formal—about the country's developments in a readable style, richly illustrated with 120 full-color contemporary and archival photographs, both scenic and artifactual.

The first chapter provides an overview of Mongolian geography and history to the twentieth century and the author's personal experience as a teenager during the 1989-90 democratic revolution. Chapter 2, by a Mongolian historian, recounts the exciting changes from Manchu Dynasty feudal society and autonomous theocracy to Communist nationhood and, finally, full independence as a democratic nation. The third chapter, by a cultural historian, describes the effects of historical changes on the daily life of Mongolian nomads—their clothing, family dwellings (gers), and furnishings. Chapter 4, by an American political anthropologist, shows the connection between modern Mongolians' devotion to democracy and the political ideas of Genghis Khan.

Readers of all ages seeking an accessible and picturesque presentation of Mongolian history and society will find Modern Mongolia a fascinating introduction.

Customer Reviews (2)

lots of detail and emotion in this book...a great read
this book on mongolia, is worth it..it takes the reader on a trip to one of the most beautiful countries around...there are lots of detailed information on the culture, people, and lots more..it willgive you a education..pick this one up

A slim book with LOTS of heart...
Modern Mongolia: Reclaiming Genghis Khan is a lovely book, in four parts,with lots of color pictures.The first part called, 'My Mongolia', tells about Mongolia, the people, places and their history up to the 1900s.The second part, titled 'The Twentieth Century: From Domination to Democracy', tells the story of Mongolia under the China and, later, Russia's control.The third chapter is called 'Deel, Ger and Altar: Continuity and Charge in Mongolian Material Culture' which shows us the changes in what the people used, lived in and wore (sometimes based on what they had and sometimes based on what they were ALLOWED to have).The last part is called 'Genghis Khan, Father of Mongolian Democracy' and shows that, while Mongolians did not have Democracy under Khan, they did have many democratic principles even before Genghis Khan showed up.Under the Khan many of this ideas (rule by law, equality of citizens, participatory government and human rights) were made more powerful by the fact that he united them and made them independent from outside powers.Genghis Khan is a Founding Father ANY nation could be proud of.AT least he had all his teeth and didn't wear a white wig!
The book itself was written by four authors who used a mixture of fact and first person accounts to make a book that you can tell they all enjoyed making.The only thing missing is a copy of the Mongolian constitution.But I did like the beginning of the preamble which they showed in the book:

"We the people of Mongolia...."Always a good start! ... Read more

Product Description
This is a history of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia from the time of the first inhabitants of the region up to the break up of the Mongol Empire in 1260AD. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Strong overall
This book is the only book to deal with the lands in question (Inner Asia) so thoroughly. I feel as if a large gap in my knowledge of history has been at least partially filled (there is always more to learn). Not that I'm without my complaints: the maps are few and far in between, the photographs poorly done. Sometimes, the book was downright boring, but that's to be expected with such an extensive book.

If you want to learn about the dynamic relationship between argricultural civilizations and pastoralist civilizations, read this book. It does leave some questions unanswered though. Such as, why did new tribes replace old tribes (ex: the Goths in Hungary, being pushed out by the Huns, who were pushed out by the Magyars)? What were the relative populations of the time? What was the relative demand for the goods of the steepe peoples? What was the trade balance between steppe and agricultural peoples?

Despite the questions, the book was worth the read.

A waste of paper, time and money
As an archaeologist working on the archaeology of North East Asia, I found this book a very big disappointment.Then again what should I expect from a historian whose speciality is the 18th and 19th century history of Russia?

The author draws heavily on secondary works in English, German, French and Russian.Instead of depending on those, he should have gone directly to the archaeological site reports and the historical annals themselves.Its also sad to see a synthesis on Russia and Central Asia that relies heavily on the works of English language scholars and ignoring the Russian and Mongolian language scholars.In terms of some of his English secondary sources, ones like Davis-Kimball et al. (NOMADS OF THEEURASIAN STEPPE) and Barfield's PERILOUS FRONTIER are still in print and available from AMAZON.COM.

Production values in this book are also uneven. The photographic reproductions in many cases are also poorly scanned copies (see for example p. 53, 214 in the paperbackversion).The publisher should have done a better job.

My advice:you can do a lot better (try the two suggestions above)

Superb
The life and times of Chingghis Khan were brilliantly written and I couldrecommend this book for the last 2 chapters alone. The rest of it was verygood. Be prepared to re-read chapters if, like me, you weren't exposed tothese regions in history. There are elements here important to scholars ofChina and Byzantium as well.

Simply fascinating
In these days of specialist books it is virtually impossible to find scholarly works that cover a broad spectrum of history. Inner Eurasian pre-history spans the history of a large part of mankind itself. It is homeof the Indo-Europeans, a linguistic group that spread in pre-historic timesto India, Iran, Asia Minor and Europe.

The impact of the warrior tribesfrom the Steppe lands - such as the Huns, the Goths, Vandals, Alans and theall-important Mongols - shattered some of the world's greatest empires.David Christian does a marvelous job explaining it all to us, while keepingthe scholarly element intact throughout. It is a book I would recommendwholeheartedly to anyone interested in the general history of mankind.

A Delight to read
This work is authoritive, detailed and were needed succinct and to the point with excellent references for further investigation. The use of charts, and illustrations give the detail needed to illustrate theinformation being refered too.I am looking forward to Volume 2 with greatanticipation ... Read more

Product Description
Contemporary Mongolia is often seen as one of the most open and democratic societies in Asia, undergoing remarkable post-socialist transformation. Although the former ruling party, the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (the MPRP), has fundamentally changed its platform, it holds leadership and frames nation-building policy. This book re-conceptualises the socialist legacy of Mongolia and explains why in the 1920s a shift to socialism became possible. Furthermore, the role of Mongolian nationalism in the country's decision to ally with the USSR in the 1920-1930s and to choose a democratic path of development at the end of the 1980s is explored.
Focusing on social systems in crisis periods when the most radical differentiation in social relationships and loyalties occur, the book describes the transformation of the elite and social structures through the prism of the MPRP cadres’ policy and the party’s collaborations with the Third Communist International and other Soviet departments that operated in Mongolia. Based on original sources from former Soviet and Mongolian archives the author offers a critique of the post-modernist approaches to the study of identity and its impact on political change. This book will be of interest to academics working on the modern history of Central and Inner Asia, socialist societies and communist parties in Asia, as well as the USSR’s foreign policy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Preparing for Peace Corps in Mongolia
I read this book this weekend in preparation for my Peace Corps stint in Mongolia (Leaving June 2009).This book was written in 1996, but I believe that the scenes of struggle are still very relevant today.In this book, you are introduced to women of every different background:professional, government, herder, street sweeper, single mother, etc.This book gave me a great insight into what I will soon be facing and what obstacles I might run up against.This is a great book and I highly recommend it whether or not you plan on traveling to Mongolia.I think it should be recommended for college sociology courses.

interesting but not informative
I enjoy books like this one.Probably it's a bad case of nosiness, but I like to find out about other peoples' lives.When such stories are combined with attractive black and white photos, well, that's all the better.Martha Avery conducted interviews with a wide variety of Mongolian women, from street sweepers to ambassadors.This book is the result.You can find recipes for marmot, learn how to put up a ger, or yurt, or learn about the difficulties of doing paleo-anthropological studies in a poor country or what it was like to be the first female student sent to do higher studies in Russia.Mongolia's economic struggles since the end of Soviet dominance are highlighted.WOMEN OF MONGOLIA is clearly and simply written.Perhaps therein lies my reluctance to award this book more than 3 stars.Readers with little knowledge of Mongolia's past or present will not finish the book much the wiser, though the vignettes may arouse their curiosity.The book might be described as "Mongolia Lite", pleasant but not highly-informative.You get vivid impressions, but the interviews are not particularly complex, hard-hitting or deep.Some respondents did open their personal lives to the author, however, she did not speak Mongolian, making the authenticity of the results somewhat murkier in the cases where the women did not speak English.The reader finds nothing out about why Avery did these interviews or what her purpose in Mongolia was.I believe she was there to help the Mongolian media begin to develop a life of its own and was employed by the Soros Foundation.The book lacks a defined aim and reference to other works on the country."I am in Mongolia for other reasons." is the very oblique single sentence about herself.This statement resembles the only map---which is basically illegible---though she interviewed people all around the country and mentioned many provinces or geographical features.This would be an attractive present for somebody interested in Mongolia, or just back from the country.While stressing that this is a very attractive book for curious people like me, it is also rather superficial.

Snapshots
This book is a series of short interviews with Mongolian women about their wives.The author was apparently in Mongolia in the early 1990s to conduct archeological research.While she was there, she talked to women of all walks of life about their jobs, their families, and their dreams.Included in this collection are talks with diplomats and doctors, camel herders and street sweepers.Avery presents these interviews as short first person monologues.Many of the stories are accompanied by photographs.I found the book quite fascinating, and wished that the photographs could have been printed in color. This book will be of interest to anyone who wants to learn about the conditions of Mongolian women shortly after the fall of communism.

Unique women , unique culture
Martha Avery has, in this fascinating collection of autobiographical accounts from Mongolian women, presented a unique and varied perspective on the dramatic changes affecting this country in transition toward democracy and a capitalist economy.She draws her portraits from women of all walks of life, rural and urban, educated and uneducated.And, while Avery does not draw any sociopolitical conclusions from these brief biographies or claim any unique vision of Mongolia through these women, an overall pattern does emerge of women intensely involved with their own destinies and with the destiny of the Mongolian People's Republic, its land and people.

Avery has chosen women from a broad spectrum of educational backgrounds and professions: archaeologists and artists, craftswomen and camel herders, social worker and street sweepers.All of these women are educated or at least value higher education and seek it for their daughters.There is a strong sense of continuity with previous generations, as women describe what their mothers and fathers have done and relate it to their own goals.Mongolian women do not have the same history of male dominance that we find in Chinese culture.Although Mongolian culture has always been nominally patriarchal, there are many examples of capable women heading households and even governments.This sort of potential comes through clearly in Avery's portraits.These are resourceful dynamic women who are active participants in the current climate of ongoing changes that affect Mongolia.From the tractor driver who still reveres Lenin to the Buddhist grandmother, from the new mother the the cabinet minister, each woman has a vision for herself and for her family and all share a common sense of active control in their own lives.

An interesting view of history also arises from these women's stories.One woman described her husband as having come from Inner Mongolia.She then amends this noting that, in fact, it was the husband?s ancestors who had immigrated over 200 years earlier; making it apparent that to this couple a sense of tribal history and of belonging to the tribe trancends the generations.Woven into each woman's tale are some details on Mongolian life and culture: how to set up and arrange a yurt, the making of buttered tea, traditional Mongolian painting styles, the making of felt. Avery shows her women working side-by-side with their men, equitable and outspoken partners in their relationships.

In some ways Avery?s book presents a limited and somewhat simplistic portrait of Mongolia.The individual stories are quite short, a feature that, although frustrating to the reader seeking a more comprehensive look at these women, does allows her to include over forty women and yet not overwhelm the more casual reader.She has carefully selected these women with an eye to diversity of both background and opinion.One major asset of the work is the exceptional collection of photographs that add intriguing cultural details like the storage of tools in a yurt or the variety of tribal costume.Avery sees herself primarily as a reporter, limiting her own interpretations to her preface, preferring to question and observe her subjects and let their responses speak for themselves.The benefit of Avery?s collection of stories is nothing specifically stated in the text, but rather the overall view, of these various Mongolian women as vibrant, hardworking and self-reliant individuals who choose to be active participants in their society and their own futures.

Grace under pressure
Ms Avery has written a wonderful book filled with beautiful photographs.She was one of the first Westerners to bring to us a glimpse of what life is really like for women and their families in modern Mongolia.As I read about these women and look at their pictures I find myself really caring about them and years later, still wondering how they are faring.
Do yourself a favor and buy this lovely, thoughtful book. ... Read more

Product Description
In this study Walther Heissig focuses on the existence in Mongolia of religious forms which have more ancient roots even than Buddhism. The forms of Northern Buddhism in Mongolia correspond in the main to those Tibetan forms from which they originated. Professor Heissig is mainly concerned in the present book with those beliefs and concepts which belong to the non-Buddhist folk religion of the Mongols. Scholars have in recent years discovered original Mongol texts and documents unknown till now, and professor Heissig´s own researches in European libraries have revealed more than seventy-eight manuscripts, containing prayers and invocations from the folk religion, all of which provide essential material on the non-Buddhist religious conceptions of the Mongols. His philological work on these Mongol texts is the basis for this account of the ancient religious ideas of the Mongols. He begins by describing the shamanism of the Mongols, then gives an account of the spread of Lamaism and the subsequent Lamaist suppression of Shamanism. The main part of the book is devoted to a study of the Mongolian folk religion and its pantheon, which includes heavenly beings, the ancestor god, the deity of fire, and equestrian deities. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Lao's review
A small but scholarly book on folk religions as practiced in Mongolia.Includes the pantheon (including a sub chapter on the Chinghis Khan cult), prayers and blessings.There are also a few black and white renderings of the most typical types of shamans and their tools.A very nice bibiography is included at the end.This was a nice book to find as I had not expected to find such a concise work on such an ecclectic subject. ... Read more

Product Description
Thisaccessible introduction to Inner Asia traces its history from the arrival of Islam, through the various dynasties to the Russian conquest. The contemporary focus rests on the seven countries that make up present-day Eurasia: Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Sinkiang and Mongolia. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, renewed interest in these countries has prompted considerable debate. While a divergent literature has evolved, no comprehensive survey of the region exists. This book will fill the gap and become indispensable for anyone studying or visiting the area. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

a breath of fresh air
I don't know why this book is so poorly reviewed. Yes, it is short on detail, if by detail you mean every minor battle between every minor clan, or every minor intrigue between each petty ruler and the three thousand four hundred and twenty seven claimants trying to wrest his power away from him. But I've had enough of skimming through that kind of history, and I found this book a breath of fresh air. This author distills a very complex history down into a few of its more important elements, and he explains things. Want to know where Fergana is actually located? This book will tell you. Want to know where the Uighers originally came from? This book will tell you. Want to know what distinguishes the Naqshbandiya from other orders of Sufis? This book will tell you that also.

If you are new to this subject, then none of that might seem important. But so many other works on Inner Asia presuppose that you already have this information in your head, it makes you want to hang the authors by their toes and boil them in oil. (Figuratively speaking, of course). As for the maps, they are not great, but they are several orders of magnitude better than I have seen in any other book on central Asian history.

As for the fact that the weight of the book leans toward the present, I found that refreshing also. Too many books seem to end with the dismemberment of the Golden Horde or something like that, leaving you to scratch your head and wonder: but happened after that? My gripe is that the book doesn't come far enough into the present. It ends in the late 1990's, just when things started to really heat up in the area. But that's not the authors fault. He wrote it when he wrote it.

I do, however, agree with the reviewer who complained about the spelling of Chinese names. This is for all writers on China: Hello! Wade-Giles is dead! Pinyin is now the accepted standard. Please use it. It's not Sinkiang; it's Xinjiang! To refuse to use pinyin is to needlessly (and perhaps deliberately) create confusion. Get with it, scholars.

A reasonable book for Intro to Inner Asian history
This book covers great span of history and geography, it is reasonable intro text to Inner Asian history and will give you a sense of everything, but it tries to cover too much and gives nothing in-depth.

a very confusing book for beginner
There are few shortcomings of this book: needs more and better maps (unless you know Inner Asia geography very well), needs a glossary (too much foreign terms, needs a timetable (the author tend to go back and fore a lot).This book is not for beginner, I really hope he can write something less confuse.

Disappointing treatment of an interesting subject
By "Inner Asia" is meant the area corresponding roughly to modern Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and the Chinese province of Xinjiang. The history of this region is fascinating, and little known in the West. There is a clear need for books about it.
Unfortunately, "A History of Inner Asia" does not meet this need. It purports to cover nearly 1400 years, from the emergence of Islam to the present, but this coverage is very unbalanced - about a third of the book is devoted to the last 100 years. The challenge of a history covering such a diverse and complex region is to weave the threads into a coherent account. The author has not met this challenge. A lot of detail has been amassed between the covers of this book, but writing good history requires more than amassing detail. Consequently, the book does not engage the reader's interest.
The author displays a surprising failure of scholarship in his treatment of Chinese names. Instead of adopting the standard Pinyin transliterations, he uses an arbitrary mixture of transliterations, apparently at random. Mixed with Pinyin (Beijing, Xian) we find old Wade-Giles spellings (Hsi-Hsia, Hsuan-Tsang) and old British spellings derived from Cantonese pronunciation (Sinkiang). Sometimes the same Chinese character is represented in different ways on the same page! (Peiting, Beijing - the first syllable of both place-names is the Chinese character for "north"). Bei Lu is in Pinyin on page 266, but spelt "Peilu" in the index. Some of the transliterations do not follow any system; for example in Appendix 2, where the Chinese for "autonomous region" (zizhi qu, in pinyin) is rendered as "zeji chu". The author seems to have made it up, or possibly transliterated into the Latin alphabet from some Cyrillic transliteration.

A modern fascinating account
This book follows the history of 'inner asia' from the time of the Islamic conquests to modern day independence.The area covered is the steppe lands from Mongolia to the former soviet republics(Kazakhstan, Uzbek, Tajik, Turkmen and Kyrgiz) as well as the Sinkiang(Xinxiang/Uiguer) province of China.It covers with wonderful fluid writing the history from the original linguistic families of Turkic speaking tribesmen to the arrival of Islam.We see how the people were once Buddhist and how Arabic script colonized them only to be repalced by Cyrillic in modern times.We are told of the the story of the Kok Turks, and CHinese expansion into Inner and outer mongolia.Various dynasties are covered, including Persian influence and the lands of Bokhara and Khiva.The arrival of the Mongols is explained and the decline through to Soviet expansion

Most fascinating is the account brings us up to the modern day, explaining the Communist state of Mongolia and the Sovietization of Central Asia, including the various autonomous 'nations' the Soviets created for groups like the Bakshir nomads and other peoples of the Steppe, preserving, creating and in come cases fragmenting culture.

The soviets even impressed language onto peoples, such as the Uzbeks, giving alphabets and coercing natives.Modern times has seen war, famine, dictatorship, Chinese encroachment, Suppression, and of course Islamization of the region.Today seperatist movements are encoruaged in China and Pan-Turk ideals are pipe dreams.

This is inner asia, a fascinatign region of diverse culture and history, fascinting linguistic ties and a history that must be told and read.A Highly readable book about an amazing place and a wonderful people.Anyone interested in the world, in history or new ideas will enjoy this read.

Seth J. Frantzman ... Read more

Product Description
Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "Mongolia," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have Mongolia in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with Mongolia when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (possessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts, including pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name Mongolia, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain. ... Read more

Product Description
An examination of the relationships between politics and historical memory after the collapse of socialist rule in Mongolia. ... Read more

Product Description
Charles Bawden was the first writer to chronicle in English the history of Mongolia from the colonial period to modern times, linking the story of Ghengis Khan´s Mongol Empire with the present-day Mongolian People´s Republic. Bawden shows how a feeling of cultural unity amongst the Mongolian people, buttressed by their acceptance of Tibetan style lamaism (the ‘Yellow Faith´) served to ensure their survival as a distinct entity even after their integration into the Manchu empire of China in the sixteenth century. In more recent times the Soviet Union has sought to preserve the existence of Mongolia as a buffer state on its border with China and has presided over the transformation of a society of nomadic herdsman into a centrally-controlled socialist state. ... Read more

Product Description
A significant aspect of this work is the emphasis on source materials, including some translated from Mongolian and other languages for the first time. The source materials and other articles are all fully contextualized and situated by introductory material by the volume's editors. This is the first work in English to bring together significant articles in Mongolian studies in one place, which will be widely welcomed by scholars and researchers in this field. This essential reference in two volumes includes works by noted scholars including Charles Bawden, Igor de Rachewiltz, David Morgan, Owen Lattimore and Caroline Humphrey. It also includes excerpts from translations of source documents, such as the works of Rashid al-Din, "The Secret History of the Mongols" and the "Yuan Shih". In addition, more recent historical periods are covered, with material such as Batmonh's speech that heralded Mongolia's versions of glasnost and perestroika, as well as Baabar's Buu Mart, a key work associated with the Democratic Revolution of 1990. ... Read more

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Until the collapse of the socialist system in Mongolia in 1990, Mongolian social sciences was fundamentally schematised in accordance with the prevailing political ideology of socialism, considering the country's history in the theoretical framework of historical materialism, the theory of socio-economic formation, and the feudalism model. Here, however, the author adopts a fresh approach and criticises the theoretical adaptation of the feudalism concept to nomadic culture while treating the history of Mongolia in view of the structural and developmental particularities of nomadic society. The book shows the economic conditions and everyday life of mobile livestock keeping, tribal and political-administrative organisation and the social strata of nomadic society during the 13th-19th centuries, demonstrating that development of nomadic societies in Central Asia cannot and should not be evaluated in accordance with European norms. ... Read more

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Land-locked between its giant neighbors, Russia and China, Mongolia was the first Asian country to adopt communism and the first to abandon it. When the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s, Mongolia turned to international financial agencies--including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank--for help in compensating for the economic changes caused by disruptions in the communist world. Modern Mongolia is the best-informed and most thorough account to date of the political economy of Mongolia during the past decade. In it, Morris Rossabi explores the effects of the withdrawal of Soviet assistance, the role of international financial agencies in supporting a pure market economy, and the ways that new policies have led to greater political freedom but also to unemployment, poverty, increasingly inequitable distribution of income, and deterioration in the education, health, and well-being of Mongolian society.
Rossabi demonstrates that the agencies providing grants and loans insisted on Mongolia's adherence to a set of policies that did not generally take into account the country's unique heritage and society. Though the sale of state assets, minimalist government, liberalization of trade and prices, a balanced budget, and austerity were supposed to yield marked economic growth, Mongolia--the world's fifth-largest per capita recipient of foreign aid--did not recover as expected. As he details this painful transition from a collective to a capitalist economy, Rossabi also analyzes the cultural effects of the sudden opening of Mongolia to democracy. He looks at the broader implications of Mongolia's international situation and considers its future, particularly in relation to China. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Deeply Flawed but Useful
This is the only book that comprehensively details the history of the post socialist period.However, it is extremely biased and ideological.The author presents every thing that happens through his anti-capitalist anti-IMF perspective.The book suffers from a complete lack of nuance and perspective.While I read it and found it useful at times, it was a slog and often infuriating in its lack of understanding and nuance.I live here in Mongolia and am very interested in its history, so I read it, but I had to grit my teeth to finish it.

While some of his critiques of the changes brought after end of the socialist period are legitimate, he fundamentally misunderstands the nature of the transition.He fails to understand that the changes were necessary because the old system was fundamentally flawed and in the end it self-destructed. For example, he faults the international financial institutions (IMF/World Bank/ADB, etc) for "forcing" a reduction in social spending missing the point that while social spending under the socialist period had some extremely positive outcomes (dramatic improvements in health care, education, etc), the government did not have a choice.The old system left the Govt broke and massively in debt to the Russians.The socialist system was fiction.Not only was the Mongolian govt massively broke and hugely in debt to Russia (something like 8 times their national GDP if I remember correctly - Mongolia is still paying it off today), but the entire basis of their economy collapsed with the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Another example is his critique of the privatization of the herds.He makes it sound like the Socialist period of collective herds was really great. Except that every herder I have spoken to, hates that period.Yes, privatization has led to some serious problems, and the collective approach had some benefits, but the people themselves prefer the new system by a wide margin.A point lost in the authors anxiousness to critique privatization.

There are legitimate and serious critiques that can be made about the world's response to Mongolia's predicament, but this book completely misses the target.In the end, if you are really interested in learning about the post-socialist period, then you should read it (but with a healthy dose of skepticism).

Un-Skeptical
I find the comments below by Mr. Bikales disingenuous in light of his position as an economist for the Asian Development Bank, one of the donor organizations responsible for the debacle in Mongolia. Not only does he fail to acknowledge his vested interest in Mongolian development, he makes several specious allegations in an attempt to undermine the character and credibility of the author of "Modern Mongolia." Mr. Rossabi does not have a private plane or live in lavish comfort in New York. His interests in the situation in Mongolia stems from his deep knowledge of Mongolian-Chinese relations and Mongolian history and culture having studied and lectured on these subjects for nearly 40 years. Mr. Rossabi is deeply committed to social and economic justice in Mongolia (and the world in general), and the way he lives his life is a reflection of that.

Mr. Bikales is right about one thing though, Mongolian political leaders do live in the real world - unfortunately that world is often controlled by more powerful invested donors and agencies.

"Modern Mongolia" is the most comprehensive and thoughtful assessment of the situation to date. You may want to read "Bounty from the Sheep" a wonderful autobiography of a nomadic herder translated by Mr. Rossabi's wife, Mary Rossabi, for a more personal look at the plight of the newly "liberated" and thereby impoverished people of Mongolia.

Darren Byler, Grad. Student, East Asian Studies, Columbia University

Major contribution to the development debate
Morris Rossabi's Modern Mongolia is an excellent book, an essential read for the development assistance community and a fascinating source for any serious student of comparative politics, international relations, and the history of nation-building in Asia. Rossabi writes from a unique vantage point. As a major historian of China and Mongolia with extensive firsthand experience in the region, he is able to draw upon an extraordinary range of materials to present his analysis of Mongolia in the post-Soviet era. At the same time, this role allows him enough distance from his central subject--the impact of the shock therapy, pure market approach to development--that he can provide an assessment based not on policy intentions but on actual results. And, as he so convincingly demonstrates, rapid, across-the-board privatization with minimal state involvement has resulted in serious degradation of social services, growing income disparities, and deepening poverty, particularly within Mongolia's traditional herding community. This is hardly the outcome desired by any of the people involved in shaping Mongolia's development programs. Rossabi's biggest contribution is to encourage government planners and outside aid donors alike to come up with more Mongolia-specific, innovative solutions in the face of obvious setbacks, solutions that take as a starting point ensuring a minimum safety net for the poor and building the institutional capacity within government to monitor and implement enterprise development efforts. As a China-Japan historian who spent a decade working on World Bank China projects (including the preliminary study for the southwest China poverty reduction project), I find Rossabi's arguments for a history and institutional knowledge based approach to development planning most refreshing. If Modern Mongolia serves to excite discussion and debate, so much the better for Mongolia's future.
Paula Harrell

Finally, someone said it! Long overdue!
Modern Mongolia is an excellent book: balanced, easy to read and very insightful. I believe Dr. Rossaby deserves applause for being able to formulate in such a structured way all that new rulers (both Democrats and MPRP) and their advisors (USAID and IMF) inflicted on Mongolia and its people.

For years, rumors and accusations of misappropriation, corruption and erroneous policy decisions floated within the Mongolian society. And the evidence of those stared bluntly into one's face in form of new houses and prosperous companies being owned by government officials, and dire poverty into which almost 1/3 of the population descended. This book brilliantly showed that both Democrats and the MPRP essentially pursued same policies, and one was as corrupt as the other.

More importantly, this book criticized the "help" of the donor community. For too long Mongolia remained the darling of the US and IMF for implementing their advice without question. And for too long the donors lip-served the government on their "achievements". At the same time, the government was constantly undermined by the donors' insistence on certain policies, the benefits of which to the country sometimes were, at best, doubtful.

This book sets the precedent for structured criticism of donor activities in Mongolia. It adds a strong voice to growing demands for reassessment of current policies and priorities.

As a Mongol myself, I am sick and tired of foreigners painting a rosy picture of Mongolia's "democratization", it is time for a book like this!

Excellent account of recent events in Mongolia
Dr. Rossabi's account of Mongolia's recent history is a compelling read and excellent starting point for anyone interested in this remote country. This book's well-researched and factually accurate narrative of events and people will prove to be invaluable experience for both researchers and casual readers of contemporary history in the region. Dr. Rossabi's criticism of international donor organizations is well-argumented and long-deserved. It is a welcome change from endless rhetoric and self-righteousness of "experts" and "consultants". Highly recommended!!!

P.S. to "Sceptical": 4 out of 5 Mongols would like to see better reforms and more equitable changes in society, and any support for further changes does not indicates endorsement of policies thus far implemented by both Government and international donor community.

... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Great Insight into Mongolia - if somewhat dated and inaccurate
This is a fascinating book about Mongolia written at the end of the Socialist period.It gives good insight into Mongolia and is one of the few books that deals with greater Mongolia (i.e. including Inner Mongolia in China and the Mongolian portions of Russia).Well written and it covers a nice range of topics.However, it is now a bit dated and there are several inaccuracies in the book (probably because information about Mongolia at that time was hard to come by).Similarly, I'd quibble with the cover - which is actually a photo of two Kazakh eagle hunters.Overall, minor quibbles and if you are interested in the modern-day Mongols, get this book.

I did not expect to like this book
I am not a great reviewer of historical material.having that out of the way, I appreciated the journeys, descriptions of landscape, insertion of histories, cultural & political unrest.I was unaware of the great not so publicized sufferings of the mongolian people, the Russian butchering of innocent people for political ideaology.how could any people survive these ordeals is a testement to the spirit strength of these peoples.I am in the process of wanting to learn more in terms of archeology & geography of this part of the world.I do not always appreciate Jasper's description of cultural & religious affairs & find his understanding of Buddhism lacking.I think that he tries diligently to report as much as able & perhaps his sometimes lack of in depth understanding has to be sacrificed if it was even there to begin with.I enjoy the fact that Jasper is British & gives a different perspective for that reason.I think that his writting is confusing at times &I needed to re read sections of paragraphs regarding the paraphrasing of word structure.Other people may not have this problem.Of course, I have problems at times understanding the different dialects of English.I think overall that this is an important book to read & I have already bought another of the author's books to read.This book provided for me a much needed education of worlds whose world views, history & so on was different then the world I am accustomed.I experience an expansion of mind experience upon reading this book. ... Read more

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Perhaps higher if I were an educator
I bought several works on Mongolia.This particular piece is more of an academic thesis.I confess that I was reading it to learn something about the culture to assist me in my upcoming work in Mongolia.As someone with an advanced degree -- but not an education degree -- I felt the book missed or at least did not fully consider the fact that many Mongolian leaders have been educated in the Western World.No doubt this played an important part in the transfer of educational approaches.The Mongolians are very educated, industrious, and open to improvement. ... Read more

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Mongolia has recently come to the attention to global strategic planners.This report puts these executives on the fast track.Ten chapters provide: an overview of how to strategically access this important market, a discussion on economic fundamentals, marketing & distribution options, export and direct investment options, and full risk assessments (political, cultural, legal, human resources).Ample statistical benchmarks and comparative graphs are given. ... Read more