$ \newcommand\define[1]{\textbf{#1}\index{#1}} % Letters/Font \DeclareMathOperator{\F}{\mathbb{F}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bF}{\mathbb{F}} \DeclareMathOperator{\Q}{\mathbb{Q}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bQ}{\mathbb{Q}} \DeclareMathOperator{\Z}{\mathbb{Z}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bZ}{\mathbb{Z}} \DeclareMathOperator{\R}{\mathbb{R}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bR}{\mathbb{R}} \DeclareMathOperator{\C}{\mathbb{C}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bC}{\mathbb{C}} \DeclareMathOperator{\E}{\mathbb{E}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bE}{\mathbb{E}} \DeclareMathOperator{\N}{\mathbb{N}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bN}{\mathbb{N}} \DeclareMathOperator{\M}{\mathbb{M}} \DeclareMathOperator{\mM}{\mathbb{M}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bH}{\mathbb{H}} \DeclareMathOperator{\bP}{\mathbb{P}} \DeclareMathOperator{\cH}{\mathcal{H}} \DeclareMathOperator{\cA}{\mathcal{A}} \DeclareMathOperator{\cB}{\mathcal{B}} \DeclareMathOperator{\cC}{\mathcal{C}} \newcommand\bb[1]{\mathbb{#1}} \newcommand\mc[1]{\mathcal{#1}} \newcommand{\w}[1]{\wedge#1} \newcommand\mean[1]{\bar{#1}} \newcommand\conj[1]{\bar{#1}} % Grouping Operators \newcommand{\floor}[1]{\left\lfloor#1\right\rfloor} \newcommand{\ceil}[1]{\left\lceil#1\right\rceil} \newcommand{\parens}[1]{\left(#1\right)} % note that we defined bracks not brace/braces because brace is already used by amsmath \newcommand{\bracks}[1]{\left\{#1\right\}} \newcommand{\sqbracks}[1]{\left[#1\right]} \newcommand{\clop}[1]{\left[#1\right)} \newcommand{\opcl}[1]{\left(#1\right]} \newcommand{\angles}[1]{\langle#1\rangle} % probability \DeclareMathOperator{\Cov}{Cov} \DeclareMathOperator{\Var}{Var} \DeclareMathOperator{\median}{median} % https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/154530/resolved-a-conditional-independence-symbol-that-looks-good-with-mid \newcommand{\indep}{\mathrel{\text{\scalebox{1.07}{$\perp\mkern-10mu\perp$}}}} \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\left\lVert#1\right\rVert} % linear algebra \DeclareMathOperator{\rank}{rank} \DeclareMathOperator{\nullity}{nullity} \DeclareMathOperator{\rowrank}{row rank} \DeclareMathOperator{\colrank}{column rank} \DeclareMathOperator{\tr}{Tr} \DeclareMathOperator{\Tr}{Tr} \DeclareMathOperator{\perm}{perm} \DeclareMathOperator{\GL}{GL} \DeclareMathOperator{\imm}{imm} \DeclareMathOperator{\poly}{poly} % abstract algebra \DeclareMathOperator{\Aut}{Aut} \DeclareMathOperator{\id}{id} \DeclareMathOperator{\Inn}{Inn} \DeclareMathOperator{\irr}{irr} \DeclareMathOperator{\Frac}{Frac} \DeclareMathOperator{\Frob}{Frob} % category theory \DeclareMathOperator{\ob}{ob} \DeclareMathOperator{\Set}{Set} \DeclareMathOperator{\Grp}{Grp} \DeclareMathOperator{\Ring}{Ring} \DeclareMathOperator{\Top}{Top} \DeclareMathOperator{\Vect}{Vect} \DeclareMathOperator{\End}{End} \DeclareMathOperator{\Hom}{Hom} \DeclareMathOperator{\im}{im} \DeclareMathOperator{\op}{op} % number theory \DeclareMathOperator{\rad}{rad} \DeclareMathOperator{\Disc}{Disc} \DeclareMathOperator{\res}{res} % differential geometry \DeclareMathOperator{\Man}{Man} $

Mongolian Writing Systems

Published: 09 Apr 2020

Last updated: 09 Apr 2020

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This is a quick note based on a few conversations I had with people. First, I became interested in this because someone I know knows people living in Inner Mongolia (內蒙古), and she said that they frequently send voice messages there instead of typing on keyboards because there is not a reliable input method. I had not particularly looked for, nor found, information to corroborate this.

However, I did chat with someone on a Mongolia-based Discord server who said that they have three primary input methods there. First, there is an input method based on the traditional script that most people do not use or perhaps even have downloaded on their computers, and it is purely used for very formal, governmental and cereminal communications. This is likely do to the fact that the Mongolian traditional script is written vertically. I found news articles from the end of March 2020 that state that Mongolia will switch to using this traditional script to some degree, at least for all official government communication, by 2025. This website has typographical information about the traditional script: https://r12a.github.io/scripts/mongolian/#boundaries.

Second, there is a Cyrillic script that is used for professional purposes, and this script can accurately support common speech. Third, Mongolians use the Latin keyboard most commonly. This keyboard has issues because the function from the Latin keyboard characters to the traditional script is not injective. For example, injectivity fails for the letters u and h.