Ulaanbaatar

Alternative forms

• Ulan Bator

Etymology

From Mongolian Улаанбаатар (Ulaanbaatar), from улаан (ulaan, “red”) баатар (baatar, “hero”) (cognate to bogatyr). The name was adopted in 1924; before that, the city was known by a number of more prosaic names, including Их Хүрээ (Ih Hüree, “Great Camp”), Даа Хүрээ (Daa Hüree, “Great Camp”) (whence, via Chinese, its English names Kulun and Kuren), and Өргөө (Örgöö, “Residence”) (whence Urga).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌuːlɑːn ˈbɑːtə(ɹ)/

Proper noun

Ulaanbaatar

1. The capital of Mongolia.