Tsyben Zhamtsarano
Encyclopedia
Jamsrangiin Tseveen (1880 - May 14, 1942) was a Buryat
scholar and one of the leading figures in Mongolia
n politics and especially academia in the 1920s.
, where he began to visit neighbouring Buryat clans and to collect epics and materials related to shamanism, and Mongol law.
island, and his work proved successful enough to earn him more research trips over the next years, sponsored by the Russian Committee for the Investigation of Central and Eastern Asia. In 1904 he travelled to Urga and home to Aginsk, in 1905 and 1906 he again travelled to Transbaikalia and Outer Mongolia
. From 1907 to 1908 he taught Mongolian at the St. Petersburg University's Faculty of Oriental Languages. In 1909 and 1910 travelled to Inner Mongolia
and the Ordos
area. In 1911, he travelled to the Tungus
at the upper Onon
river, and in 1912 he took part in archeological studies at Erdene Zuu
, the former site of Karakorum
.
had sent a special envoy to Urga, Ivan Yakovlevich Korostovets. Korostovets planned the creation of a newspaper and the establishment of a secular school under Russian sponsorship, and offered Tseveen to edit the newspaper and supervise the school, both of which Tseveen accepted. In the following years, besides the work at school and the Shine toli ('New Mirror') and Niislel Khüreenii sonin bichig newspapers, he continued academic work and also translated some popular texts into Mongolian
.
troops in 1919, Tseveen became a professor at the Irkutsk University. He published articles on Mongolian law, but also travelled around Verkhneudinsk
, Kyakhta
and Maimaichen, where he met with discontented Outer Mongolians. At the founding congress of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party
in 1921, Tseveen got the task of writing the Ten Aspirations, the party's platform. After Urga had been liberated from Baron Ungern
's troops in the same year, Tseveen founded the Institute of Scriptures and Manuscripts (Sudar Bichgiyn Hüreelen), forerunner of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. A library was established, and in 1924 a museum was opened. In 1925 he travelled to Leningrad, and in 1926 he married Badmajab Tsedenovna, who was also a Buryat from Aginsk. In the same year, both travelled to Beiping
. His wife travelled to Germany
and France
in 1927 as part of an official mission, but Tseveen remained in Ulaanbaatar.
prison (Orenburg
). Details were released by the Russian government in 1993.
or the Mongolian Death Worm
.
Buryats
The Buryats or Buriyads , numbering approximately 436,000, are the largest ethnic minority group in Siberia and are mainly concentrated in their homeland, the Buryat Republic, a federal subject of Russia...
scholar and one of the leading figures in Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
n politics and especially academia in the 1920s.
Early life
Tseveen was born in the Aginsk district of Transbaikalia in 1880. He went to school in Chita and later to Badmaev's Buryat private school in St. Petersburg. From 1898 to 1902, he attended the Teacher's seminary in IrkutskIrkutsk
Irkutsk is a city and the administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, one of the largest cities in Siberia. Population: .-History:In 1652, Ivan Pokhabov built a zimovye near the site of Irkutsk for gold trading and for the collection of fur taxes from the Buryats. In 1661, Yakov Pokhabov...
, where he began to visit neighbouring Buryat clans and to collect epics and materials related to shamanism, and Mongol law.
Scientific career
In 1902 he and his friend Baradin returned to St. Petersburg and became auditors at the St. Petersburg University. An professor arranged for them to travel to Buryatia in 1903 to collect more material. Tseveen went to the northwest Baikal area and OlkhonOlkhon
Olkhon is the third-largest lake-bound island in the world. It is by far the largest island in Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia, with an area of . Structurally, it acts as the southwestern margin of Academician Ridge....
island, and his work proved successful enough to earn him more research trips over the next years, sponsored by the Russian Committee for the Investigation of Central and Eastern Asia. In 1904 he travelled to Urga and home to Aginsk, in 1905 and 1906 he again travelled to Transbaikalia and Outer Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
. From 1907 to 1908 he taught Mongolian at the St. Petersburg University's Faculty of Oriental Languages. In 1909 and 1910 travelled to Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the northern region of the country. Inner Mongolia shares an international border with the countries of Mongolia and the Russian Federation...
and the Ordos
Ordos
-Places:*Ordos Loop of the Yellow River, a region of China*Ordos Desert, in Inner Mongolia*Ordos City, city and district in Inner Mongolia*Ordos International Circuit, a race track in Ordos City.-People:...
area. In 1911, he travelled to the Tungus
Tungus
Tungus can refer to:* Tungus, an obsolete term for the Evenks of Russia and China* Tungusic languages* Tungusic people* Tungus meteorite, a name sometimes given to the Tunguska event...
at the upper Onon
Onon River
The Onon is a river in Mongolia and Russia of length 818 km and watershed 94,010 km². It originates at the eastern slope of the Khentii Mountains. For 298 km it flows within Mongolia...
river, and in 1912 he took part in archeological studies at Erdene Zuu
Erdene Zuu monastery
The Erdene Zuu Monastery is probably the most ancient surviving Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It is in Övörkhangai Province, near the town of Kharkhorin and adjacent to the ancient city of Karakorum...
, the former site of Karakorum
Karakorum
Karakorum was the capital of the Mongol Empire in the 13th century, and of the Northern Yuan in the 14-15th century. Its ruins lie in the northwestern corner of the Övörkhangai Province of Mongolia, near today's town of Kharkhorin, and adjacent to the Erdene Zuu monastery...
.
In Autonomous Mongolia
After Mongolia had declared independence in 1911, RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
had sent a special envoy to Urga, Ivan Yakovlevich Korostovets. Korostovets planned the creation of a newspaper and the establishment of a secular school under Russian sponsorship, and offered Tseveen to edit the newspaper and supervise the school, both of which Tseveen accepted. In the following years, besides the work at school and the Shine toli ('New Mirror') and Niislel Khüreenii sonin bichig newspapers, he continued academic work and also translated some popular texts into Mongolian
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
.
In Communist Mongolia
After Outer Mongolia had been occupied by ChineseRepublic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
troops in 1919, Tseveen became a professor at the Irkutsk University. He published articles on Mongolian law, but also travelled around Verkhneudinsk
Ulan-Ude
Ulan-Ude is the capital city of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located about southeast of Lake Baikal on the Uda River at its confluence with the Selenga...
, Kyakhta
Kyakhta
Kyakhta is a town in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the Kyakhta River near the Russian-Mongolian border. Population: The town stands directly opposite the Mongolian border town of Altanbulag.-History:...
and Maimaichen, where he met with discontented Outer Mongolians. At the founding congress of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party
Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party
The Mongolian People's Party formerly the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party is an ex-communist political party in Mongolia. The party is abbreviated MPP in English and ' in Mongolian...
in 1921, Tseveen got the task of writing the Ten Aspirations, the party's platform. After Urga had been liberated from Baron Ungern
Roman Ungern von Sternberg
Baron Roman Nikolai Maximilian von Ungern-Sternberg was a Russian Yesaul , Lieutenant-general, and a hero of World War I...
's troops in the same year, Tseveen founded the Institute of Scriptures and Manuscripts (Sudar Bichgiyn Hüreelen), forerunner of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. A library was established, and in 1924 a museum was opened. In 1925 he travelled to Leningrad, and in 1926 he married Badmajab Tsedenovna, who was also a Buryat from Aginsk. In the same year, both travelled to Beiping
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. His wife travelled to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1927 as part of an official mission, but Tseveen remained in Ulaanbaatar.
Exile and death
In 1932, Tseveen was dismissed and exiled to Leningrad, where he again worked at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the University under Prof. Nicholas Poppe and edited the milestone Mongol chronicles of the XVII-th century. He was arrested in 1937, convicted to five years imprisonment on February 19, 1940, and died on May 14, 1942 in Sol-IletskSol-Iletsk
Sol-Iletsk is a town in Orenburg Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Ilek River , south of Orenburg. Population: 22,000 ; 11,802 ....
prison (Orenburg
Orenburg
Orenburg is a city on the Ural River and the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies southeast of Moscow, very close to the border with Kazakhstan. Population: 546,987 ; 549,361 ; Highest point: 154.4 m...
). Details were released by the Russian government in 1993.
Trivia
One of his many interests was research into cryptozoological organisms like the YetiYeti
The Yeti or Abominable Snowman is an ape-like cryptid said to inhabit the Himalayan region of Nepal, and Tibet. The names Yeti and Meh-Teh are commonly used by the people indigenous to the region, and are part of their history and mythology...
or the Mongolian Death Worm
Mongolian Death Worm
The Mongolian death worm is a creaturereported to exist in the Gobi Desert. It is generally considered a cryptid: an animal whose sightings and reports are disputed or unconfirmed.It is described as a bright red worm with a wide body that is long....
.
Literature
- "Jamsrano, Peveeniy" in: Sanders, Alan J.K., Historical Dictionary of Mongolia, Lanham (The Scarecrow Press, Inc.) 2003, ISBN 0-8108-4434-6, p. 169.
- Robert A. Rupen: Cyben Žamcaranovic Žamcarano (1880-?1940), in: Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, Vol. 19, No. 1/2. (Jun., 1956), pp. 126-145 (subscription needed for online access)