The population of Mongolia -- totalling about 2.7 million -- is comparatively homogeneous, with 90 percent being Mongols. Kazaks constitutes about four percent of the population. In addition, Chinese and Russians each comprise two percent of the population, with the remaining two percent including various regional peoples.
The predominant language is Halh Mongolian, which is classified along with other Altaic, Eastern, Oirat-Khalkha, Khalkha-Buriat linguistic typologies. The Kazaks speak a language of the Altaic-Turkic linguistic family. As well, Russian and Chinese are spoken by those particular ethnic minorities.
Buddhism is a traditional religion in Mongolia, although it had been discouraged during the 70 years of communist rule. Since the 1990s, Buddhism has been flourishing again, and up to 96 percent of the population identify themselves as followers of Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism. The rest of the population is Muslim, most of whom are the Kazaks. Shamanism and Christianity are also practiced.
The traditional nomadic lifestyle of Mongolians has changed to be more urbanized, with more than 50 percent of the population in Mongolia living in cities today. The country also has one of the lowest population densities in the world, about 1.5 people in per square kilometer. The population of Mongolia is young; about two-thirds of the total population are under the age of 30.
Human Development
The population of Mongolia has a healthy life expectancy at birth of 67.32 years of age (64.92 years for males, and 69.84 years for females), according to recent estimates. The infant mortality rate of Mongolia is 41.24 deaths per 1,000 live births. In terms of literacy, 99 percent of the population, age 15 and over, can read and write.
About 5.6 percent of GDP is spent on educational expenditures in this country; about 9.3 percent of GDP is spent on health expenditures. Access to water and sanitation is generally good, especially in urban areas; however, access is more problematic in rural areas.
In terms of standard of living, Mongolia today is a study in contrasts. As a country that has embraced capitalism, the economy has seen significant growth in recent times. But on the other side of the equation is the enduring poverty experienced by between 30 percent and 50 percent of the population, according to official government statistics. In the capital of Ulan Bator, enterprises are thriving, but so is the increased level of pollution. Meanwhile, the number of slum areas on the outskirts of the capital are also rising.
These realities have had political effects. While the government has said that one of its priorities is poverty allevation, in reality, the effects of such efforts have been difficult to identify. As such, there has been something of an outcry against the government by some factions, manifest most expressly by public demonstrations. Indeed, critics point to the growing chasm between the rich and the poor in Mongolia today.
One notable indicator used to measure a country's quality of life is the Human Development Index (HDI), which is compiled annually since 1990 by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The HDI is a composite of several indicators, which measure a country's achievements in three main arenas of human development: longevity, knowledge and education, as well as economic standard of living. In a recent ranking of 169 countries, the HDI placed Mongolia in the medium human development category, at 100th place.
Note: Although the concept of human development is complicated and cannot be properly captured by values and indices, the HDI, which is calculated and updated annually, offers a wide-ranging assessment of human development in certain countries, not based solely upon traditional economic and financial indicators.