Sayan Mountains

Sayan Mountains (säyän`), central Asia, chiefly in S Siberia. The Eastern Sayan Mts. extend c.680 mi (1,090 km) from the lower Yenisei River to the southwest end of Lake Baykal and rise to 11,686 ft (3,562 m) in the Munku-Sardyk; they form part of the Russian-Mongolian border. The Western Sayan Mts., rising to 10,206 ft (3,111 m) in the Kyzyl-Tayga, extend c.400 mi (640 km) NE from the Altai range to the central section of the Eastern Sayan Mts. There are a variety of mineral deposits in the Sayan Mts. Lumbering, agriculture, and hunting are the chief occupations there.

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Sayan Mountains

Large upland region on the frontiers of east-central Russia and Mongolia. The mountains form a rough arc stretching from the Altai Mountains to Lake Baikal and connecting with the Khamar-Daban mountain system of the Transbaikalia. The western and eastern ranges, each with a different geologic history, meet in a central knot where elevations exceed 10,000 ft (3,000 m). The range's highest peak is Munku-Sardyk, in Mongolia, which reaches an elevation of 11,453 ft (3,491 m).