Truth, history and politics in Mongolia : the memory of heroes

An examination of the relationships between politics and historical memory after the collapse of socialist rule in Mongolia. Using Mongolia as its example, this book examines how knowledge is transmitted and transformed in light of political change by looking at shifting conceptions of historical figures. It suggests that the reflection of people's concept of themselves is a much greater influence in the writing of history than has previously been thought and examines in detail how history was used to subvert the socialist project in Mongolia. This is the first study of the symbolic struggle over who controlled 'the past' and the 'true' identity of a Mongol, fought between the ruling party and its protesters during the democratic revolution. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 4 Contents......Page 5 Preface......Page 9 Acknowledgements......Page 12 Politics, memory and identity......Page 16 Ulaanbaatar, fieldwork and identity......Page 42 Democracy comes to Mongolia......Page 63 The symbols of democracy......Page 86 The icebergs of history......Page 107 Chinggis Khaan: creating the uls......Page 132 Zanabazar and Shbaatar: Defending and regaining the uls......Page 160 Social memory and evocative transcripts......Page 189 Glossary......Page 210 Notes......Page 211 Bibliography......Page 223 Index......Page 236 "Based on extensive field research spanning over a decade, Truth, History and Politics in Mongolia is the first English-language account of the Mongolian democratic revolution. Its questioning of preconceptions about socialist control over identity and the writing of history will be of great interest to those studying culture, history and memory, as well as those in the field of Mongolian and Post Soviet Studies."--Jacket. Politics, memory and identity Ulaanbaatar, fieldwork and identity Democracy comes to Mongolia The symbols of democracy The icebergs of history Chinggis Khaan: Creating the uls Defending and regaining the uls: Zanabazar and Shbaatar Social memory and evocative transcripts.