Cultural Lesson: 5 Weird Things Mongolians Do

Is the Mongolian map upside down? If you want to learn about Mongolian Cultural and Language, check out this video, where we explore some things that you may find strange.
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"Nomiin Ger" Mongolian language school aims to provide a wide range of tailor-made Mongolian language courses to expatriates in Mongolia and non-Mongolian speakers outside Mongolia through Skype.
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[@rhizm]

We in Europe would definitely not put a bag on a chair but on the ground because by traveling the bag might be dirtier than your chair and we would be afraid to damage your furniture. That's a weird one for me.

[@gingertea2599]

In Ukraine if you accidentaly step on someone`s foot you can offer them to step on your foot back! I like this type of content, it's great to learn about behavears in other cultures.

[@mustafabilgin3645]

As a turk a couple of these behaviour so similar to us. One of them hospitality. Other one is put bag higher place. İt is little bit different in our culture. We are doing it to coats and also for bags. Direction names interestingly identical for a turkish native. This is a beautiful video keep it continue please

[@mongollanguage]

Yes there are many similarities between Turkish and Mongolian cultures, and language as well!

[@angelforc7299]

@@mongollanguage it is due to Xiongnu and then Parthes, Scythe people traveled from Central Asia and Turkish people are decent of those civilisations :))

[@hoolidii]

​​@@angelforc7299not Turkish people. Turkic people

[@IranLur]

Mongolian Direction names: East (Barun) West (Zuun) North (Huit, Ard) South (Umnu, Urid) Turkish Direction names: East (Dogu) West (Bati) North (Kuzey) South (Guney) Not similar. In fact I would say the East and West in Turkish is related to Iranic languages as Baghtar means West in Persian and Dorost means right in Persian.

[@vecksledrake8087]

Great video! I remember learning about the stepping on the foot handshake. I spent enough time in Mongolia that it is now ingrained in me to shake the person's hand. Now that I have been back in USA for a while, it still feels so strange to have someone clip my heel and not get a handshake.

[@csenegirl414]

we also don't leave our bags on the floor. They say "leaving your bag on the floor makes your money run away from you/account/wallet" :D we got hangers by the door on sofa

[@md.1276]

Wow reall? where are you from?

[@mongollanguage]

Very interesting!

[@csenegirl414]

@@md.1276 I'm from Poland :)

[@RyuDraco_]

Last week I started at a new company and one my coworkers is Mongolian. I'm trying to learn more about his culture. Cheers from Brasil 🇧🇷

[@Beanys728]

More videos like this would be awesome, honestly. There aren't a lot of resources for learning about Mongolia, nor for learning the Mongolian language. So, really anything you post is good, but these certainly might help to prepare would be travelers for their time in Mongolia. I also thought it was cool to see the inside of an apartment in, it seems they really are all a little different depending on where you are in the world. It was strange to me to see that the front door opened out into the hall instead of into the apartment. You would likely never see that in the US for any reason other than it being unable to open inwards. But an entry room would never be built in such a way to prevent the door from opening inwards. I'm not sure why it is exactly. Is there a reason the door opens outwards, or does it just happen to be that one door? Or maybe your apartment complex? Or is it another thing in Mongolian culture that we don't know? (Apparently doors in some regions of the US open outwards for safety reasons, particularly against hurricanes.)

[@zibadearden2686]

You should include touching the forearm when giving an item to another person and receiving the same way or with both hands.

[@mongollanguage]

Hi Ziba, yes we should do another video including some cool cultural things like this!

[@mangame5]

Andreas from Romania here, one of your students (Beginner level) Yes please! Things like this are fascinating!

[@mongollanguage]

Hi Andreas, of course, thanks for studying with us! We will try to do more videos like this if you like it.

[@user-od5vd8mf8v]

Great video! In Australia, a weird thing that we do is shorten words and add "vo" on the end, e.g., afternoon -> arvo, service station (petrol station) -> servo, avocado -> avo...!

[@jamesgray7301]

I live in Australia but was born and raised in Romania. I have many Mongolian students (adults), so I knew about the arm touching and the milk, but not about the directions. Interesting! (The universal north, by the way, is the Eurocentric way of looking at the world). I have recently returned from Mongolia and can say it was one of my favourite destinations of the many I have travelled to. Strangely, I felt as if I had gone back into my childhood; except for the people's Asian-looking faces, everything looked and felt so familiar. I loved it.

[@capngrimm3684]

The part about backpacks makes sense. Growing up in a Russian household, my dad thought it was really gross that most people in America (where we live) put their backpacks on the floor Must be his Tatar blood

[@mcp9683]

I really appreciate this video ! i didn't know about direction and bag ! that was really surprising to me Can't wait to see more cultural video like this, especially about modern Mongolian

[@NorthSea_1981]

Thank you for this lovely video, this was extremely interesting! Greetings from Germany

[@DarkTaurus]

If we refer to the international direction, shall we say "not universal direction"? Or if there another name?

[@mongollanguage]

International=Universal. We can use both.

[@elizabethshingola2787]

I really love this video! I'm so glad this channel showed up in my feed because I want to learn all things Mongolian❤🧡💛

[@monicaj3502]

Fascinating! Please clarify with a sample sentence how to we should refer to “northwest according to international directions” in Mongolian

[@mongollanguage]

Hi Monica, that's a good question. Universal Northwest in Mongolian would be 'Ертөнцийн зүгээр баруун хойно' NW = баруун хойно

[@myrthedehoe6210]

Thank you so much for your videos! I hope I can learn Mongolian and visit there someday

[@mongollanguage]

Hope to see you in Mongolia soon!

[@sijorojasjrchannel5340]

I don't need direction from people , the sun tell the directions 👍🏻 sunset > west , sunrise > East , so by knowing east and west we know where is south or north , but if we saw their home at open field , the door always facing South in Compass map 👍🏻 need to remember this , because probably have luck and visit Mongolia 👀

[@1969mmoldovan]

I am happy to have just recently discovered your channel! Great content!

[@graysutherlin7568]

I appreciated the video! It was helpful and I wanted a break from learning Mongolian anyway.

[@KarenCurr]

Thank you for your video! It was very interesting and enlightening!

[@user-ub-support-ukr]

Thanks a lot for your videos❤❤❤, it would really help to understand some situations and Mongolian people

[@lorifrench6861]

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. I live in the United States and recently met a lady from Mongolia. She speaks very little English and I am trying to communicate with the. Your videos help very much.

[@angelforc7299]

Such interesting video ! I decided to follow your channel to prepare my travel in your country. Good to know about the reason salty tea or the bag.

[@elizaminty]

In Australia sometimes we say "yea na" to mean no, and "na yea" to mean yes. Perhaps becuase were upside down? 😄

[@zelpha80]

Thank you for this video. I’m hosting a Mongolian student and your videos are helping so much.

[@eddiegreen7317]

Thank you! I love watch your videos. I mission is to learn Mongolian! In 3 months I will attain a basic conversational level! Wish me luck 😊

[@SerendipityTrouvaille]

Hello thank you for sharing this.

[@ll.l8376]

Thanks for sharing,…greetings from Germany

[@abeldasilva9368]

Hi Khisgee I have a question for you in 2018 I was in Mongolia during the nadaam. My Friends father would sit down on his chair then he would then pick up his very expensive looking Mongol bowl filled with airag with his left hand. Then he would dunk his right hand ring finger in the airag then he would pull away his hand and flick the ring finger and thumb in three directions. If I remember correctly the first one towards the sky, to the side ,and then towards the ground. What is the significance of this ritual if I made a mistake in describing the ritual please make the appropriate correction also noticed to he was mumbling during the sequence. Is it too much to ask what was he was mumbling too. This ritual seemed very special to me..

[@md.1276]

Yes, you are very observant. We are sharing the drink with our sky, mountain and soil. Airag is usually honorary drink during festivals.

[@md.1276]

Significance is that we express our gratitude and offering the drink first to the nature.

[@Janka007]

Got lost at the directions... But I'm rubbish with finding my way anyway. :D I love that you shake hands when accidentally stepping on foot. And yes, please make another cultural video like this! Could you also please explain the tradition of exchanging bottles that they smell when meeting? I saw it in videos about nomadic people and was always curious what is inside and what it could mean. Thanks a lot! :)

[@tamara2887]

That is called Hoorog 😅

[@Anaruoka.]

Ohh that bottle is called Hoorog, and its actually kinda powdered cigarette in a bottle

[@Mongolian.Script]

Number 4 is interesting 🤔 I am lost.

[@mongollanguage]

For example: the word 'урд' means front/south. Imagine you are standing in front of the entrance of a building which faces North. You are in front- however, you are not South of the building. So how can we know where you are if you say 'урд'? Mongolians must clarify these kinds of things. Hope this helps!

[@Mongolian.Script]

@@mongollanguage Many thanks for your explanation. It is very helpful.

[@benc2397]

Баярлалаа Хишгээ!!! 😊

[@kater123bln6]

I rented a flat across the street of the scene with the wrist grabbing. I even had a Basketball game with some kids at the Basketball court that can be seen in front of the block. Good memories. 😀

[@sssdddd5143]

"Maybe the floor is the worries largest table." Legendary

[@TheStickCollector]

If I visit, this will be useful

[@mongollanguage]

Absolutely! Hope you can come soon Yoshi bro.

[@user-vd9pf6pu3o]

Very interesting and cool. Love the hospitality of nomadic people.

[@Ivan-qg2xi]

interesting ... 👍

[@garyranieri3856]

If you put your bags on chairs, where do the people sit? On the floor? Seems funny to picture a room full of people standing while the chairs are all filled with bags. And is it true that people aren't supposed to touch the door jambs i.e. the sides of the door openings?

[@mongollanguage]

😄 Often we put our bags next to us as we sit. We can manage! As for the doors, you should not step on the threshold when exiting a Ger. The side of the door is no problem. If you accidentally trip on the threshold going out, you may have to add some wood into the fire, otherwise wealth may leave the ger with you...

[@garyranieri3856]

Bayalalaa. Did I get that right? And your English is very good. Going fro English to Mongolian seems very difficult so I imagine that going from Mongolian to English is also very difficult so you must have put a lot of study into it. btw, I always heard that the adjective is 'Mongolian' e.g. 'the Mongolian language' but the noun is 'Mongol' making you a Mongol and not a Mongolian. Your thoughts?

[@sikoyakoy2376]

@@garyranieri3856 Well, I think both "Mongol" and "Mongolian" are correct. I think you're overthinking. It's very normal for languages to have variations of names for things. "Mongolian" though might be more appropriate for when referring to people who are citizens of Mongolia, in addition to being an alternative name for the ethnicity. "Mongol" to me seems like it might be more for the ethnicity only. Well, I'm not a Mongolian but I have native-level English as someone who grew up in Australia. I also have an interest in languages and linguistics and this is what I would say.

[@garyranieri3856]

Can't quite place the ethnicity of your name. Are you saying that you are a native Australian aborigine? Your English is very good and congrats that you have an understanding of Mongolian

[@biosaari]

Not putting bags on the floor is also recommended around the world at hotels with the global bedbug resurgence.

[@seemabadrees3562]

How do you say , wait !!! In Mongolian ?

[@biosaari]

In the Covid world, this whole handshake thing with stepping on feet I found very disconcerting.

[@Steve-bm4ek]

I laughed … this is so true Another one is Joroo when drinking Vodka. First time i drank the cup empty. Instead of passing it on. Great video

[@NomadJournalistNews]

Random linguistic question: Do Mongolians use the words "left/right/in front of/behind" for objects, or do they use cardinal directions? For example, is the television "to your right" or "west of you"?

[@mongollanguage]

Good question. Yes we use the same word, баруун тал = right side. As in: 'Зурагт чиний баруун талд байна.' (The TV is on your right)

[@Ambsdr723]

I like to sprinkle some salt 🧂 in my coffee ☕️ It’s very good 👍

[@seemabadrees3562]

My friend is from Mongolia and she doesn’t know how to speak English yet

[@rmmn7]

сайн охин.👌

[@markemerson8399]

Do people mainly offer milk tea without asking, or do some people offer milk coffee? If a person comes to visit should I only offer milk tea?

[@md.1276]

Nobody drink coffee in rural areas. It is a western thing to ask and it might sound too arrogant and people will call you acting like royals or something.

[@markemerson8399]

@@md.1276 Haha, thank you! Yes, you are right that in such matters we should follow the hereditary customs of the people.

[@lanamacdonald8070]

From what I understand “universal” direction = international = cardinal. So if I’m in front of a building in UB that doesn’t face south, I can say: би байшингийн урд байна, ертөнцийн зүгээр биш, байшингийн үүдний хажууд. (I’m in front of the building, not universal direction, but by the main door) Is this correct?

[@md.1276]

Yes definitely you are right.

[@mongollanguage]

Яг зөв!

[@robertsohnrey9760]

What if a male foreigner flirts, is this considered rude or asks an individual for coffee or tea? Thank you for this video very informative 🙂

[@md.1276]

Flirthing is not the thing of mongolia. Asking for tea or coffee means you want to spend time together and means you are asking out.

[@sssdddd5143]

Nr. 3 is the exact same in the Balkans😂🔥🤝