China's Mongolian Minority Facing Increased Pressure to Assimilate

There are 24 million people living in the Chinese autonomous region of Inner Mongolia, including more than 4 million ethnic Mongols. As such, this region of China is home to more Mongols than the independent country next door, which has a population of just 3.5 million. Mongolia – labeled as "Outer Mongolia” in old Chinese maps – was able to gain independence from the Qing Dynasty in 1911. Inner Mongolia, by contrast, remained part of China and became one of five autonomous regions.

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