The Mongols burst onto the world scene in the 13th and 14th centuries and left a short but daring legacy that is remembered to this day. The stereotype of cruel hordes has survived, even though peaceful herding has been the norm ever since those long-ago days.

On the vast grasslands where they lived, Mongols found success as nomadic pastoralists, horsemen, and herders. They made their homes in circular tents (yurts or gers in Mongolian) of felt and canvas, supported by wooden frames. Women and children took an active part, caring for animals and collecting dung that would be burned for fuel.

A toughness born from their exposed, windswept life prepared the Mongols well for survival, which required the skillful handling of small horses while tending sheep, goats, cattle, camels, and yaks. Today such animals continue to be parts of the Mongols' diet.

Mongol culture has been strongly influenced over the years by Buddhism, a foreign faith introduced from Tibet and combined with indigenous shamanism. The nomads learned to use portable altars and devotional scroll-paintings that could be rolled up and easily transported.

In the 16th century the bond between Tibet and Mongolia became so strong that a Mongol khan bestowed the title of Dalai Lama, meaning "Ocean of Wisdom," on the Tibetan leader.

Today Mongols have their own country in north-central Asia. Known as the Republic of Mongolia, it encompasses a high, rolling plateau nearly three times the size of France and embraces a population of 2.6 million.

Even more Mongols—3.5 million—live across the southern border, in China's Inner Mongolia and other Chinese provinces. Additional clusters survive in Kazakhstan and Siberia.

Most Mongols now reside in towns and settlements, though many prefer to live in gers, even in the suburbs of Ulaanbaatar, the capital.

The popular revival of wrestling, archery, folk dancing, and horse racing reveals the Mongols' deeply rooted desire to maintain their age-old traditions.