Mongolia lies in the northern part of the Central Asian plateau between the meridian of 87° 44’ and 119° 56’ eastern longitude and in latitudes 52° 09’ and 41° 35’ north. The distance between the country’s westernmost and easternmost points is 2.392 km (1.486.6 miles), and 1.259 km (782.5 miles) between its northernmost and southernmost points. The total area of Mongolia is 1.566.500 sq.km (973.586.07 sq. miles) and is the 6th largest country in Asia and 18th in the world. Vast nearly 3 times the size of France and more than 4 times the United Kingdom. Mongolia borders on the Russian Federation and China. The 8,158 km (5.070 miles) state border passes exclusively through the land. To the north, Mongolia borders on the Russian federation along a 3.485 km (2.165.9 mile) line, and it has 4.673 km (2.904.3 mile) long common border with China in the south. Mongolia is a country with a remarkable variety of natural contrasts. Eternally snow-capped mountain masses, rising high above sea-level, a neighbor with vast hilly Plains covered with highland plants and marshy coniferous forests and deserts and semi-deserts and numerous clear-water lakes with solonchaks. Mongolia has an average altitude of 1.580 m (5.185.9 feet) above sea level. The highest point is the Khuiten peak (4.653 m or 15.272.4 feet) in the Tavan Bogd mountain range at a point where the state borders of Mongolia, Russia and China meet. The lowest point is the Hoh Nuur (Blue Lake), lying at an altitude of 532 m (1.746 feet) above sea level. The territory of Mongolia is in three time-zones-the sixths, seventh and eighth, starting from the prime meridian of 0 °. The population of the country is 3.100.000. The country is divided into 21 administrative-territorial units - aimag, including 3 big cities Darkhan, Erdenet, and Choir. The capital of Mongolia is Ulaanbaatar.
National flag
The State Flag of Mongolia is red-blue-red, arranged vertically with the State emblem-Soyombo- in the upper left-hand corner. The ratio of the flag’s width to length is 1:2.
Soyombo
Since ancient times the Soyombo ideogram has been the national emblem of freedom and independence of the Mongols. At the top of the ideogram is a flame, which symbolizes blossoming, revival, upgrading and continuation of the family. The three prongs of the flame signify the prosperity of the people in the past, the present and the future. Below the sign of the flame is the sun and the crescent, traditionally symbolizing the origin of the Mongolian people. The combination of the flame, the sun and the crescent expresses the wish: May the Mongolian people live and prosper. The triangles at the top and bottom of the Soyombo are a general expression of the people’s willingness to defend the freedom and independence of the country, while the rectangles are the symbols of honesty, justice and nobility. There are two at the top and bottom, personifying honesty and selfless service to the homeland. The fish, in Mongolian folklore, is a creature that never closes its eyes, i.e. remains vigilant. The two fish in the emblem symbolizes the unity of the people: men and women. The cumulative meaning is: May the whole people be united, wise and vigilant. The two vertical rectangles on the sides of the emblem signify fortress walls and are a graphic presentation of the ancient Mongolian saying: ‘Two men in friendship are stronger than walls of stone: ‘ In the Soyombo they have the meaning: May the whole people be united in friendship, and then it will be stronger than the stone walls of a fortress.
Administrative area
Mongolia is divided into capital city and aimags, with further division of aimags into soums, soums into bags, capital city into districts, and districts into horoo. There are 21 aimags (regions) with 3 ‘city-regions’ - Darkhan-Uul, Orhon, and Gobi-Sumber - Erdenet and Choir respectively. Local administration functions based on "self - government and central guidance". State power in the aimags and Ulaanbaatar is exercised for four - year terms by governors (zasag darga) nominated by the prime minister; local citizens elect hurals of representatives. The average population density of Mongolia is very low (1.5 persons per 1 sq.km), and of Omnogovi Aimag is extremely low(0.2 persons per sq.km). Mongolia is a comparatively young country. Two-third of the Mongolian population is below 45 years of age.