Archaeological digs have uncovered human remnants in the Gobi desert and other regions of the country that date back almost 500,000 years. Dating that far back, Mongolia conquered and was conquered by multiple countries and regions, including China. Mongols were rivals of one another until the late 12th century. Then, a Mongol later given the name Genghis Khan (universal king), united them. They conquered China, but later Mongolia was forced to take their own medicine. Mongols were expelled from China in the 14th century, and were ruled by many people and countries from then until June of 1996, when multiple shorter stints of rulers and, more recently, 75 years of unbroken communist rule, were ended.