Cultural Heritage and Modern Challenges

Abstract

This video extensively discusses the transformation of Salhit pasture, and veterinary practices based on fifty years of work in the region. In addition to this, Irinchinara also explained the general history of the Torghuts in Khar Us, including Höhtolgoi Oboo worship, Epic Jangar, the folk song association, history of the Buddhist monastery, and the Torghut noble family. Two main topics explored here are. First of all, the Salhit pasture was established in 1958 with about eighty households. However, in the subsequent sixty years, fewer changes have occurred regarding the way of economic life and population, compared to neighbouring pastures and villages such as Tost and Ailch. The development of tourism in those regions has brought a large number of outsiders as permanent or temporary residents, whereas the Salhit pasture has seen fewer changes over the years. Instead, the outflow of the population has been serious in recent years, with people predominantly tending to settle in the regional centre of Khar Us and only returning to the Salhit pasture for short-term visits. Eventually, only 30 Torghut Mongolian households remain in the Salhit pasture. In the meantime, population inflow, particularly from other ethnicities such as Kazakhs, has significantly increased over the years. Secondly, before joining the veterinary team in 1972, Irinchinara received his education in the Kazakh language and later learned the Mongolian writing system independently. After joining the veterinary work, he accumulated extensive knowledge of veterinary medicine not only through communication with traditional Kazakh folk medicine but also through Mongolian traditional medicine, enriching his experiences. Now, Irinchinara is considered the best veterinary doctor in the region, capable of treating livestock in different ways and achieving mostly successful results. As shown in the video, he explained some of the diseases with examples of livestock.