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Updates: 

Mongolia is resuming the use of daylight saving time in 2015. DST will take effect on the last Saturday in March at 1:00 a.m. and end on the last Saturday in September at 1:00 a.m.

FIPS 10-4 Change Notice 12, dated 2007-06-11, has changed the spelling of the names of two provinces: Darhan Uul to Darhan-Uul, and Govi-Sumber to Govisumber. (Actually, the i's should have a breve accent, which I haven't bothered to reproduce.)

Hans Wittebol mentioned that Mongolia would like to move its capital to Kharkhorin (also spelled Harhorin, Karakorum, etc.). The earliest date by which this could be done is 2020. Karakorum was the capital of the Mongol Empire at its height under Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan.

Change Notice 8 to FIPS PUB 10-4 is dated 2002-06-28. It deletes Darhan and Erdenet cities and adds Darhan Uul, Govi-Sumber, and Orhon provinces. I would have expected FIPS to describe this as a change of name from Darhan to Darhan Uul and from Erdenet to Orhon, without changing the status or FIPS code for either one; and since I understand that Govisumber was split from Dornogovi, I would have expected the FIPS code for Dornogovi to change. Either FIPS has deviated from its standard policies for codes, or my "Change history" section below has mistakes. In any case, the new FIPS codes are shown below; the names are already correct in the table.

Country overview: 

Short name	MONGOLIA
ISO code	MN
FIPS code	MG
Language	Halh Mongol (mn)
Time zone	(see table)
Capital	Ulaanbaatar

 

Mongolia in 1900 was under Chinese rule. At that time Mongolia included what is now Tuva republic of Russia (known for a while as Tannu Tuva) and parts of several Chinese provinces. It gained independence from China by stages, losing Inner Mongolia and Tannu Tuva in the process. During this period, it was sometimes called Outer Mongolia, to help distinguish it from Inner Mongolia. Mongolia became independent from China on 1921-07-11.

Other names of country: 

1. Danish: Mongoliet
2. Dutch: Mongolië
3. English: Outer Mongolia (obsolete)
4. Finnish: Mongolia
5. French: Mongolie f, Mongolie-Extérieure (obsolete)
6. German: Mongolei f, Äussere Mongolei (obsolete)
7. Halh Mongol: Mongol Uls
8. Icelandic: Mongólía
9. Italian: Mongolia f
10. Norwegian: Mongolia
11. Portuguese: Mongólia f, Mongólia Exterior (obsolete)
12. Russian: Монголия
13. Spanish: Mongolia
14. Swedish: Mongoliet
15. Turkish: Moğolistan (formal)

Origin of name: 

from ethnic name Mongol, said to mean brave

Primary subdivisions: 

Mongolia is divided into eighteen aymguud (provinces; sing. aimag or aymag) and four hotuud (municipalities; sing. hot).

Province	Type	HASC	ISO	FIPS	PC	UPU	Tz	Pop-2010	Pop-2000	Area(km.²)	Area(mi.²)	Capital
Arhangay	p	MN.AR	073	MG01	65	AK	8~	84,078	97,091	55,300	21,350	Tsetserleg
Bayanhongor	p	MN.BH	069	MG02	64	BK	8~	75,690	84,779	116,000	44,790	Bayanhongor
Bayan-Ölgiy	p	MN.BO	071	MG03	83	BU	7~	85,232	91,068	45,700	17,640	Ölgiy
Bulgan	p	MN.BU	067	MG21	63	BG	8~	53,065	61,776	48,700	18,800	Bulgan
Darhan-Uul	m	MN.DA	037	MG23	45	DK	8~	90,642	83,271	3,280	1,270	Darhan
Dornod	p	MN.DD	061	MG06	21	DR	8~	68,873	75,373	123,600	47,720	Choybalsan (Bayan Tumen)
Dornogovi	p	MN.DG	063	MG07	44	DG	8~	57,930	50,575	109,500	42,280	Buyant-Uhaa (Saynshand)
Dundgovi	p	MN.DU	059	MG08	48	DUG	8~	38,543	51,517	74,700	28,840	Mandalgovi
Dzavhan	p	MN.DZ	057	MG09	81	ZK	7~	64,924	89,999	82,500	31,850	Uliastay (Dzavchlant)
Govi-Altay	p	MN.GA	065	MG10	82	GA	7~	53,223	63,673	141,400	54,590	Altay (Yösönbulag)
Govisumber	m	MN.GS	064	MG24	42	GS	8~	13,081	12,230	5,540	2,140	Choyr
Hentiy	p	MN.HN	039	MG11	23	KHT	8~	65,335	70,946	80,300	31,000	Öndörhaan
Hovd	p	MN.HD	043	MG12	84	KH	7~	76,252	86,831	76,100	29,380	Dund-Us (Hovd, Jirgalanta)
Hövsgöl	p	MN.HG	041	MG13	67	HSG	8~	114,331	119,063	100,600	38,840	Mörön
Ömnögovi	p	MN.OG	053	MG14	46	UG	8~	60,855	46,858	165,400	63,860	Dalandzadgad
Orhon	m	MN.ER	035	MG25	61	ER	8~	87,118	71,525	840	320	Erdenet
Övörhangay	p	MN.OH	055	MG15	62	UK	8~	100,444	111,420	62,900	24,290	Arvayheer
Selenge	p	MN.SL	049	MG16	43	SG	8~	95,804	99,950	41,200	15,910	Sühbaatar
Sühbaatar	p	MN.SB	051	MG17	22	SB	8~	51,091	56,166	82,300	31,780	Baruun-Urt
Töv	p	MN.TO	047	MG18	41	TUV	8~	83,838	99,268	74,000	28,570	Dzuunmod
Ulaanbaatar	m	MN.UB	1	MG20	1x	UB	8~	1,154,290	760,077	4,700	1,810	Ulaanbaatar (Ulan Bator)
Uvs	p	MN.UV	046	MG19	85	US	7~	72,906	90,037	69,600	26,870	Ulaangom
22 divisions								2,647,545	2,373,493	1,564,160	603,900
Type: p = province; m = municipality. HASC: Hierarchical administrative subdivision codes. ISO: Codes from ISO 3166-2. FIPS: Codes from FIPS PUB 10-4. PC: First two digits of postal code (source [1]). UPU: Codes from a document called "Postal Addressing Systems", published by the Universal Postal Union; presumably these are province abbreviations for use in postal addresses. Tz: Standard time in province (hours later than UTC). Pop-2010: 2010-11-11 census. Pop-2000: 2000-01-05 census. Area: Source: National Statistical Office of Mongolia. Capital: Names in parentheses are older names, sometimes still in use.

Postal codes: 

Mongolia uses five-digit postal codes. The first digit determines a postal region of the country. The first and second digits determine the province. Ulaanbaatar uses several second digits.

According to available information in 2001, Mongolia used six-digit postal codes, where the first two digits indicated a town or provincial center; the next two indicated a district. The date of the change is unknown.

Further subdivisions:

See the Soums of Mongolia page.

The provinces are subdivided into soums (or sooms or sums), translated sub-provinces, districts, or counties. The municipalities are divided into districts. At the lowest level of administration, Mongolia is subdivided into bags (rural) and horoos (urban). There are currently 342 soums and 1681 bags and horoos.

Census reports sometimes give the populations by region, where the regions are as listed below. The region to which each province belongs is indicated by the first digit of its postal codes.

Region	PC
Central	4
Eastern	2
Khangai	6
Ulaanbaatar	1
Western	8

Territorial extent: 

The UN LOCODE page  for Mongolia lists locations in the country, some of them with their latitudes and longitudes, some with their ISO 3166-2 codes for their subdivisions. This information can be put together to approximate the territorial extent of subdivisions.

Origins of names: 

1. Choybalsan: after Khorloghiyin Choybalsan, revolutionary leader
2. Gobi: Halh Mongol gov': desert steppe
3. Sühbaatar: after Damdiny Sühbaatar, revolutionary leader
4. Ulaanbaatar: Halh Mongol ulaan: red, baatar: hero, knight, in honor of Damdiny Sühbaatar.

Change history: 

1. The area of present-day Mongolia was divided into khanates in 1900. From west to east, they were Kobdo, Jassaktu, Sain-Noin, Tushetu, and Tsetsen. (Many variant spellings exist.)
2. 1911: Name of country's capital changed from Urga to Niislel Khureheh (meaning "capital of Mongolia").
3. 1921-07-11: Outer Mongolia, consisting of Dzasagthaan, Saynnoyonhaan, Tsetsenhaan, and Tüsheethaan provinces and Hovd administative area, became independent from China. The Mongolian provinces of Ala-Shan, Ordos, Silin Gol, and Chearim remained part of China. Tannu Tuva split from Kobdo and became an independent country, called the Urjanchai Republic.
4. 1923: Names of provinces changed to Bogd haan uul, Haan hentiy uul, Hantayshir uul, and Tsetserleg mandal.
5. 1924-11-26: Mongolian People's Republic proclaimed. Name of country's capital changed from Niislel Khureheh to Ulaanbaatar (then usually transliterated Ulan Bator).
6. ~1941: Mongolia reorganized into the provinces of Arhangay, Choybalsan, Dornogovi, Dzavhan, Hentiy, Kobdo (Hovd), Hövsgöl, Ömnögovi, Övörhangay, Töv, and Uvs.
7. 1941: Name of capital of Choybalsan province changed from Bayan Tumen to Choybalsan.
8. 1954-02: A long strip of southern Mongolia was annexed to Nei Mongol province of China.
9. ~1954: Bayanhongor, Bayan-Ölgiy, Bulgan, Dundgovi, Govi-Altay, and Sühbaatar provinces formed.
10. ~1956: Selenge province split from Töv.
11. ~1963: Name of Choybalsan province changed to Dornod.
12. ~1963: Ulaanbaatar city split from Töv.
13. At this time, the divisions of Mongolia were:

Province	FIPS	Pop-1956	Pop-1960	Area(km.²)	Capital
Arhangay	MG01	60,300	66,700	55,000	Tsetserlig (Tselserlik) [Tsetserleg]
Bayanhongor	MG02	42,100	46,000	116,000	Bayan Hongor [Bayanhongor]
Bayan-Ölgiy	MG03	38,800	44,600	46,000	Ölögey (Ulegei) [Ölgiy]
Bulgan	MG04	30,900	34,600	49,000	Bulagan (Bulgan)
Dornod	MG06	35,100	37,900	122,000	Choybalsan (Choibalsan)
Dornogovi	MG07	23,400	26,100	111,000	Sayn Shanda (Sain-Shand) [Saynshand]
Dundgovi	MG08	24,600	26,500	78,000	Mandal-Gobi [Mandalgov']
Dzavhan	MG09	55,100	61,000	82,000	Jibhalanta (Ulyassutai) [Uliastay]
Govi-Altay	MG10	41,000	45,600	142,000	Yusan-Bulak [Yesönbulag]
Hentiy	MG11	34,800	37,500	82,000	Öndör Haan (Undur-Khan) [Öndörhaan]
Hovd	MG12	42,300	48,000	76,000	Jirgalanta (Hobdo) [Hovd]
Hövsgöl	MG13	58,200	64,000	101,000	Mörön (Muren)
Ömnögovi	MG14	20,200	21,900	165,000	Dalan Dzadagad [Dalandzadgad]
Övörhangay	MG15	49,900	54,700	63,000	Arbay Heere (Arbai Khere) [Arvayheer]
Selenge	MG16		35,000	43,000	Sühe Baator [Sühbaatar]
Sühbaatar	MG17	30,700	34,100	82,000	Barun-Urt [Baruun urt]
Töv	MG18	82,000	53,800	81,000	Dzun-modo [Dzuun mod]
Ulaanbaatar	MG20	118,400	164,000	2	Ulan Bator
Uvs	MG19	46,800	53,100	69,000	Ulaangom
19 provinces		845,500	955,100	1,565,000
Province: Source: Encyclopædia Britannica World Atlas, 1964 edition. In this table, names are given in their modern forms. These divisions were provinces except for Ulaanbaatar, which was an independent city. FIPS: these codes were assigned in 1971. Pop-1956: 1956-02-05 census. Pop-1960: 1960 estimates. Capital: Names are given as they appear in the EBWA. They are recognizably the same as the present-day capitals, except where a change occurred as listed below. Names in [brackets] are those given in the Sanders book, where different.

1. ~1966: Darhan city (Darhan-Uul) split from Selenge. Darhan was given FIPS code MG05 when they were assigned.
2. ~1979: Erdenet city (later named Orhon) split from Bulgan. Erdenet was given FIPS code MG22 at that time.
3. ~1994: Name of capital of Dornogovi province changed from Saynshand to Buyant-Uhaa; name of capital of Hovd province changed from Hovd to Dund-Us.
4. ~1996: Govisumber province split from Dornogovi.

Other names of subdivisions: 

There are many ways to transliterate from Mongolian. The same letter in Mongolia's modified Cyrillic alphabet may be transliterated 'kh' or 'h', and similarly for other letters. This list shows some that have appeared in print.

1. Arhangay: Alahangai, Ara Hangay, Ara-Khangai, Archangaj, Arkhangai, North Hangay, North Khangai (variant); Archangai (German)
2. Bayanhongor: Bajan-Chongor (German); Bayan Khangor, Bayan Khongor (variant)
3. Bayan-Ölgiy: Bajan-Ölgij, Bayan Ölögey, Bayan-Ulegei, Bayanulgee, Bayan-Ulgii (variant); Bajan-Ulegei (German)
4. Bulgan: Bulagan (variant)
5. Darhan-Uul: Darchan, Darhan, Darkhan, Darkhan-Uul (variant); Darchan-Uul (German)
6. Dornod: Choibalsan, Choybalsan, Doronad, Doronod, Eastern (variant)
7. Dornogovi: Dornogobi, Dornogov', Dorono Gobi, East Gobi (variant); Dornogow', Ostgobi (German); Góbi Oriental (Portuguese)
8. Dundgovi: Central Gobi, Dunda Gobi, Dundgobi, Dundgov', Middle Gobi (variant); Dundgow', Mittelgobi (German); Góbi Central (Portuguese)
9. Dzavhan: Dsawchan (German); Dzabhan, Dzabkhan, Dzavchan, Psapchyn, Zavhan, Zavkhan (variant)
10. Govi-Altay: Gobi-Altai, Gobi Altay, Gov'altaj, Gov'altay, Govyaltaj (variant); Gow'altai (German)
11. Govisumber: Gobisumber (variant)
12. Hentiy: Chentii, Chentij (German); Hentey, Hentii, Kentai, Kentei, Khentei, Khenti, Khentii (variant)
13. Hovd: Chovd, Hobdo, Khobdo, Khovd, Kobdo (variant); Chowd (German)
14. Hövsgöl: Chövsgöl, Chuwsgul (German); Hobsgol, Höbsögöl, Hubsugul, Khubsugal, Khubsugud, Khubsugul, Khuvsgul, Kossogol (variant)
15. Ömnögovi: Góbi do Sul (Portuguese); Ömnögov', Ömönö Gobi, South Gobi, Umnu, Umnugovi (variant); Ömnögow', Südgobi (German)
16. Orhon: Erdenet (obsolete); Orkhon (variant)
17. Övörhangay: Öbör Hangay, Övörchangaj, Ovorkhangai South Hangay, South Khangai, Ublhangai, Ubur-Khangai, Uvurkhangay (variant); Öwörchangai, Uwurchangaj (German)
18. Selenge: Selenga (variant)
19. Sühbaatar: Sühe Baatar, Suhe-Bator, Sükhbaatar, Sukh-Batar, Sukhe-Bator (variant); Süchbaatar (German)
20. Töv: Central, Töb, Tub, Tuv, Tuvaimag (variant); Töw, Tuw (German)
21. Ulaanbaatar: Oulan-Bator (French); Ulan Bator, Ulan Bator Choto (variant); Ulán Bator (Spanish)
22. Uvs: Ubs, Ubsa Nor, Ubsa Nur, Ubsu Hur, Upsanol, Uvs nuur (variant); Uws (German)

Sources: 

1. [1] Mongolia , on the YouBianKu wiki, which is devoted to postal codes (retrieved 2013-06-18).
2. [2] Sanders, A.J.K. "The People's Republic of Mongolia." Oxford University Press, London, 1968.
3. [3] Population and Housing Census of Mongolia, 2010  (retrieved 2014-02-25).
4. [4] Mongolia 2010 Population Census : Main Findings, by Ochirsukh Ya (retrieved 2014-02-25). This page has conflicting and incomplete information, but some of it serves to confirm source [3].
5. [5] "Mongolia to observe Daylight Saving Time from March 28, 2015 " on InfoMongolia news website (retrieved 2015-03-15).