The formation and distribution of procapitalist perspectives in Mongolia

Abstract

Mongolians not only perform capitalist activity in everyday life but also form their own capitalist philosophies and concepts. Since the mid-1990s, Mongolian intellectuals, including professors, translators and columnists, have translated dozens of procapitalist books from English and Russian into Mongolian. Some have established NGOs, student clubs, and foundations to promote capitalism by organizing lectures, as well as summer schools for the public. This article explores how these processes contribute to the understanding of capitalism and Mongolia’s current socio-economic situation. It ethnographically demonstrates the persistence of evolutionist thinking in the making of capitalism and development in Mongolia. It explores how procapitalist intellectuals tried to find ways to outgrow a perceived period of zerleg kapitalizm (wild capitalism) to reach jinhene kapitalizm (genuine capitalism). It examines the implications of these intellectual frameworks, exploring how the outgrowing of these perceived ‘developmental stages’ is often considered to be a ‘solution’ for Mongolia’s development.