Ulaanbaatar

Ulaanbaatar Улаанбаатар ᠤᠯᠠᠭᠠᠨᠪᠠᠭᠠᠲᠤᠷ[a]
Municipality
City centre with Sükhbaatar Square Gandantegchinlen Monastery Choijin Lama Temple Ger districts Ugsarmal panel buildings built in the socialist era National University of Mongolia Naadam ceremony at the National Sports Stadium
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s):  УБ (UB), Нийслэл (capital), Хот (city)
Ulaanbaatar Location of Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia Show map of Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Ulaanbaatar (Asia) Show map of Asia
Coordinates: 47°55′13″N 106°55′02″E / 47.92028°N 106.91722°E / 47.92028; 106.91722
Country	Mongolia
Monastic center established	1639
Final location	1778
Named Ulaanbaatar	1924
Government
• Type	Council–Manager
• Body	Citizens' Representatives Khural of the Capital City
• Governor of the Capital City and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar	Khishgeegiin Nyambaatar (MPP)[2]
Area
• Total	470.4 km2 (181.63 sq mi)
Elevation	1,350 m (4,429 ft)
Population  (2021)
• Total	1,672,627[1]
• Density	311/km2 (807/sq mi)
GDP [3]
• Total	MNT 34,008 billion US$ 10.9 billion (2022)
• Per capita	MNT 21,692,300 US$ 6,945 (2022)
Time zone	UTC+08:00 (H)
Postal code	210 xxx
Area code	+976 (0)11
HDI (2018)	0.810[4] – very high · 1st
License plate	УБ, УН
ISO 3166-2	MN-1
Climate	BSk
Website	www.ulaanbaatar.mn

Ulaanbaatar (/ˌuːlɑːn ˈbɑːtər/; Mongolian: Улаанбаатар, pronounced [ʊˌɮaːn‿ˈbaːʰtə̆r] ^ⓘ, lit. "Red Hero"), previously anglicized as Ulan Bator, is the capital and most populous city of Mongolia. With a population of 1.6 million, it is the coldest capital city in the world by average yearly temperature.^[5] The municipality is located in north central Mongolia at an elevation of about 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) in a valley on the Tuul River. The city was founded in 1639 as a nomadic Buddhist monastic centre, changing location 28 times, and was permanently settled at its modern location in 1778.

During its early years, as Örgöö (anglicized as Urga), it became Mongolia's preeminent religious centre and seat of the Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, the spiritual head of the Gelug lineage of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia. Following the regulation of Qing-Russian trade by the Treaty of Kyakhta in 1727, a caravan route between Beijing and Kyakhta opened up, along which the city was eventually settled. With the collapse of the Qing dynasty in 1911, the city was a focal point for independence efforts, leading to the proclamation of the Bogd Khanate in 1911 led by the 8th Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, or Bogd Khan, and again during the communist revolution of 1921. With the proclamation of the Mongolian People's Republic in 1924, the city was officially renamed Ulaanbaatar and declared the country's capital. Modern urban planning began in the 1950s, with most of the old ger districts replaced by Soviet-style flats. In 1990, Ulaanbaatar was the site of large demonstrations that led to Mongolia's transition to democracy and a market economy. Since 1990, an influx of migrants from the rest of the country has led to an explosive growth in its population, a major portion of whom live in ger districts, which has led to harmful air pollution in winter.

Governed as an independent municipality, Ulaanbaatar is surrounded by Töv Province, whose capital Zuunmod lies 43 kilometres (27 mi) south of the city. With a population of just over 1.6 million as of December 2022^[update], it contains almost half of the country's total population.^[6] As the country's primate city, it serves as its cultural, industrial and financial heart and the center of its transport network.^[7]

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