Ulaanbaatar
20th ‘Foremost Calligraphers of Mongolia’ contest concludes
PoliticsUlaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ 2017 marks the 20th anniversary of annual ‘Foremost Calligraphers of Mongolia’ national contest in traditional Mongolian script which is organized by ‘Khumuun Bichig’ weekly newspaper of national news agency MONTSAME.
The 20th national contest attracted more than 700 contestants from 19 provinces and the capital city with the most works being sent from Bayankhongor, Arkhangai and Tuv provinces.
Among the contestants of all ages, the youngest were students of the 4th grade who studied the traditional script by themselves. Traditional Mongolian script is taught from the 6th grade in Mongolian secondary schools. The only international participant of this year’s contest was Japanese citizen Shimamura Sho who took the 4th place in adult category last year.
An award ceremony was held today at Fine Arts Gallery where the best and foremost works were showcased, and J.Batsuuri, Minister of Education, Culture, Science and Sports gave opening remarks.
“I am pleased to be part of today’s celebration. Traditional Mongolian script is a valuable contribution by Mongolians to the world cultural repertory, and number of efforts and initiatives have been put forward in the last 20 years”, he said.
In order to enforce the implementation of state policy to revive the official use of traditional Mongolian script, the President of Mongolia issued a decree in 2010 regarding certain measures which are being realized at present. “The Ministry will pay attention to synchronizing traditional Mongolian script with the latest technological development and creating a base for its online use”, the Minister said.
With ‘Gem International’ LLC working as the main sponsor for the 7th year, the contest took place in 7 categories, and the 7th and the newest category in the contest ‘The Best Calligrapher Class’ collected more than 80 classes from around the country.
Following tradition, 4 winners of the category ‘The 12th Grade Students’ were awarded four-year scholarships in National University of Mongolia and State University of Education. The winners of ‘The Best Calligraphy’, ‘Professional Teachers’, ‘The Best Calligrapher Class’ and ‘Creative Work’ categories were awarded with certificates of overseas trip.
In addition to the main sponsor, individuals and organizations such as ‘Sh.Luvsanvandan Fund’, senior diplomats G.Luuzan, Ch.Namchin and actress R.Ankhnyam sponsored the competition. Moreover, another 20 participants were granted with a one-year free subscription to the ‘Khumuun Bichig’ newspaper.
