SACRED MOUNTAINS IN THE CONTEXT OF MODERN NATION: THE POLITICAL DIMENSION OF LANDSCAPE IN MONGOLIA1

Łukasz Smyrski

doi:10.23858/EP64.2020.002

Published: 2020-11-30

Vol. 64 (2020)

SACRED MOUNTAINS IN THE CONTEXT OF MODERN NATION: THE POLITICAL DIMENSION OF LANDSCAPE IN MONGOLIA1

Łukasz Smyrski

Etnografia Polska

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.23858/EP64.2020.002

Abstract

The aim of the article is to analyze the relationship between the landscape and the process of building national identity in Mongolia in the context of political transformation. I describe contemporary practices related to the public tachilga offering intended for the guardians of the most important mountains with national status in Mongolia. I consider how the local ontology based on the relational interaction between human and non-human entities is reflected at the level of state activities. Discussing the issue, I refer to the category of landscape and show how it has become a major actor in contemporary national discourse in Mongolia.

Keywords:

Mongolia, Altai, tachilga ceremonies, invented tradition, landscape

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Smyrski, Łukasz. (2020). SACRED MOUNTAINS IN THE CONTEXT OF MODERN NATION: THE POLITICAL DIMENSION OF LANDSCAPE IN MONGOLIA1. Etnografia Polska, 64. https://doi.org/10.23858/EP64.2020.002

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