As reported by MiddleAsianNews, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea has announced the change of the city's name from 'Ulaanbaatar' to 'Ulaanhbaatar'.
The integrated portal of information on state policy of the Republic of Korea recommends using the spelling "몽골 수도는 '울란바타르'로 표기하세요", which translates to "Please indicate the capital of Mongolia as 'Ulaanhbaatar'."
The official change of the spelling of the capital of Mongolia in the Korean language was announced by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Institute of the Korean Language.
The request for the correction of the spelling came from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in connection with this, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (under the leadership of Minister Choi Hwi-yeon) and the National Institute of the Korean Language held discussions, resulting in the decision to change the name from 'Ulaanbaatar' to 'Ulaanhbaatar', as reported on the integrated portal of information on state policy of the Republic of Korea.
Previously, the name of the capital of Mongolia in the Korean language was traditionally referred to as 'Ulaanbaatar'; however, this spelling did not correspond to the local spelling and pronunciation, which created certain inconveniences. In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs approached the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism with a request to consider the possibility of changing the spelling from the previously used Russian style to 'Ulaanhbaatar', in order to align it with local standards and take into account the opinions of the Korean and Mongolian public.
As part of the solution to the issue of spelling the capital of Mongolia in Hangul, the "First Meeting of the Committee of the National Institute of the Korean Language on Foreign Proper Names 2026" was organized. After discussions that considered local pronunciation and spelling rules, it was decided to use the spelling 'Ulaanhbaatar'.
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Mongolia on March 26, 1990, the countries have actively developed cooperation, and the exchange of people and goods between them has significantly increased. Representatives of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Institute of the Korean Language expressed hope that the new spelling, reflecting local pronunciation, will contribute to strengthening mutual understanding and trust between the two states.
A representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that "the Mongolian side requested to change the spelling of the capital's name in light of the close relations between our countries. We welcome this decision, as the public has long expressed requests to eliminate confusion in spelling. This change, in our opinion, will contribute to the development of bilateral relations and strengthen friendly ties between the peoples of both countries."
