Basic Language History Mongolian is a subfamily of Altaic
Altaic is mostly spoken in Asia The language is named for the Altai Shan, where
some believe it originated
Discovery of Turkic
Johann von Strahlenberg, a Swedish officer, realized the link between Turkic, Mongolian, and Manchu-Tungus
Sub-languages
Two main language groups: Western and Eastern Western languages are Oryat and Kalmyk Eastern Languages are Buryat and Mongol There are some outlying
languages but they have
no written language
Early Mongolian
A unified Mongolian language was recreated by linguists Unsure of origin Appeared to be spoken in the 12th century
Middle Mongolian
Middle Mongolian was used from 13th to 16th century Spread by Genghis Khan Outlying Mongolian languages were created from
conquest and destruction
Written Text
Written Text began in the 13th century This was the beginning of the pre-classical
period
Modern Mongolian
Modern Mongolian languages have been used since the 17th century
Lost many archaic features present in outlying languages
Full Written Text
It was not until the 19th century that the modern Mongolian languages (Buryat, Mongol, Oryat, and Kalmyk)
Famous Mongolian
Many people enjoy Mongolian custom and language
Some famous movies are: Prince Tsogt, 1948 State of Dogs, 1998 The Story of the Weeping Camel, 2003