Runic Inscriptions and Tamgas in Govi-Altai Province

Abstract

The great significance of ancient inscriptions is that they become the evidence of that historical period. Approximately 170 runic inscriptions, dating back to Old Turkic, Uighur period, have been registered in the territory of Mongolia so far. These inscriptions can be classified into Western, Central, Eastern, Southern, and Northern regions generally according to where they have been detected and registered. Inscriptions found in Bayan-Ölgii, Khovd, Uvs, Govi-Altai, and Zavkhan provinces are linked with the Mongolian runic inscriptions of the Western region. In this article, reading, lexicological features and relevant tamgas of 18 inscriptions discovered in Govi-Altai province have been studied. As of today, a total of 18 runic inscriptions have been discovered in 7 places of this province. Being the first of these inscriptions, the Biger inscription was discovered in 1969 during the studies of the "Researches on Inscriptions" project which was carried out by Mongolia and the Soviet Union jointly for researching historical and cultural elements. And finally our project team has discovered Davirt II inscription in 2020. Additionally, ground expedition unit of Archeology Institute of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences has rediscovered Höşööt Tolgoi inscription. The research team has completed a hand painting of 95 tamgas related to these inscriptions.