1. MONGOLIAN STUDIES IN BRITAIN
By Jantsan Bat-Ireedui
The Institute for Mongolian Studies
National University of Mongolia
2. Foreword
• Mongolian Studies in Britain in modern times
began with historical research and the
translation and analysis of traditional
Mongolian texts.
• Professor Charles Bawden produced a
translation and commentary of the Altan
tovch for his PhD and this was published in
1955.
3. London, University of London
• Charles Bawden was Professor of Mongolian
Studies in the School of Oriental and African
Studies (SOAS) of London University many
years until he retired in 1984.
• He cooperated widely with other Mongolian
specialists in Mongolia and all over the world
and he has encouraged to many younger
scholars in their interest and work on
Mongolian studies.
4. London SOAS
• Alan Sanders has become the greatest British
authority on contemporary Mongolian politics
and economics development. He has closely
observed the development of my country since
the 1960s and published many books and articles
that are read not only by Mongolian studies
specialists but also social scientists and the
general public.
• Although Alan Sanders worked for many years at
the BBC, he also spent five years as lecturer in
Mongolian Studies at SOAS.
5. LEEDS, University of Leeds
• In 1961 a Department of Chinese Studies was
set up under a government initiative to
promote East Asian Studies,
• A well-known American Scholar, Owen
Lattimore was appointed professor and head
of the department.
• Owen Lattimore brought to Leeds Onin
Urgunge, a Daur Mongol, and together they
set up a Mongolian Studies programme.
6. Cambridge, University of Cambridge
• The major centre for research in Mongolian
studies in Britain is Cambridge as you will know.
• The Mongolian and Inner Asian Studies Unit
(MIASU) in Cambridge was developed by
Professor Caroline Humphrey, who is an
anthropologist.
• MIASU is now run by David Sneath, another
anthropologist, who has done much valuable
research on nomadic herding societies in
Mongolian lands.
7. Cambridge
• MIASU has attracted many young scholars, not
only from Britain but from other countries
too, who have gone on to graduate with PhDs.
They include Uradiin Bulag, Christopher
Kaplonski, Rachel Kempson, Dulam Bum-Ochir
and many more.
• They research topics range from shamanism
and Buddhism to history and memory.
8. Library collections on Mongolian studies
• SOAS library has a very good collection of Mongolian works
and works about Mongolia and the Mongols which scholars
from other universities are able to use.
• In Cambridge there are three valuable collections: one in
the University Library itself, Owen Lattimore’s personal
collection of books and journals in the Faculty of Oriental
Studies and Charles Bawden’s personal collection which has
been deposited with the Ancient Indian and Iran Trust
Library.
• The Mongolian collection in the Leeds University libraries is
smaller but it includes some useful materials for studiying
the 20th century including a collection given by Owen
Lattimore when he worked in Leeds.
9. Library
• The collection of Mongolian books held in the
British Library is more useful to Mongolists
now that it is being properly catalogued in
2006.
10. Cambridge
• One examined the de-collectivisation of
herding economies in Mongol lands and the
prospects for the rural economy for the
future.
• Another project aims to compile a database of
oral accounts of modern Mongolian history.
• A third project is helping to preserve
manuscripts of the writings of Danzanravjaa
held in Sainshand.