Culture of Mongolia
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The culture of Mongolia could be described as homogeneous; there is little variation within the population.
96% of the population are Vajrayana Buddhists in the Tibetan tradition. Mongolia has its own ethnic group, which comprises 85% of the country’s population. The official language, Khalkha Mongol, is spoken by 90% of the population.
Mongolia's population is about 2.6 million. 65% of the population are aged between 16 and 64, with only 4% over 64. HIV/AIDS has not made a significant impact, with only about 100 reported cases in the whole country.
There are about 2 to 3 children to each woman, and the population increase rate is high. The life expectancy, however, is low: only 63 years. The infant mortality rate is 6%.
The main festival is Revolution Day, also known as Naadam, which celebrates the anniversary of Mongolian independence from China, on July 11.
In Mongolia, the diet depends on region. In the south, a lot of mutton, camel and camel dairy products are eaten. In the mountains, however, beef is much more common. In the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, there is a wide range of food widely available, most of it imported. Vegetables are a somewhat new part of the Mongol diet, which is traditionally based on meat and dairy products.
Yak's milk butter is also very important to the Mongols, both as a food source and a fuel for lamps. In the past, because it was once almost their only fuel, schools were sometimes forced to decide between food for the staff and students, or lamplight for reading and learning.
See also: music of Mongolia