Miao (Hmong)
There are currently 8,940,116 people in China belonging to the Miao ethnic group. They can be found mostly in the nine districts south of the Yangtze River: Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan, Chongqing, Guangxi, Hubei, Sichuan, Guangdong and Hainan. About 48% of the population live in Guizhou province.
The Miao in west Hunan call themselves "Guoxiong", those in east Guizhou call themselves "Mu" or "Damu", and Miao in Sichuan-Guizhou-Yunnan dialect region refer to themselves as "Meng" (or Hmong as in the United States). Miao is a name given to the group by the Chinese government after the People's Republic of China was founded.
The Miao does not have a written language but has a distinct spoken language. The language belongs to the Miao-Yao branch of the Chinese-Tibetan Language family. Many of the history and traditions of the Miao are passed on from generation to generation through songs, dances and stories.
The
Miao play an ancient instrument called the Lusheng. Visitors to
villages are often welcomed with dances and songs accompanied with this
ancient instrument as well as a traditional drum.
Listen to the sounds of the Lusheng!
Watch a Miao performance! (NOTE: big file, you must have a fast connection to enjoy)
The Miao believe in ghosts and gods, and worship their ancestors. They consider the water buffalo as sacred animals and often incorporate their image in costumes and traditions. One of the gods worshipped is the Dragon God. Sacrifices to the Dragon God, and incorporating the image of the dragon in art and costume is common.
In many villages, the Dragon Boat race is popular and is celebrated annually and is done in celebration of a good harvest. Many villages take the time to attend the race. It is typically a three day event that is filled with music, song, dance, food, and of course courtship. In the Miao culture, events are often the best way that young men and women can meet each other.
There are also a few number of Miao that has been converted to Christianity. Because all religion are carefully monitored in China, all religions have to register with the Chinese government.
(Click here to listen to this Christian woman sing a hymn in Miao.)
While there are variations in costumes between Miao villages, there are a predominant use of silver jewelry, embroidery, and batik in women's costumes. Silver is highly priced and silversmiths make a very good living. During special occasions, women can wear as much as ten kilograms of silver on her head and around her neck. They wear pleated skirts with stories embroidered on each pleat.
Unlike the men, the women often has more elaborate costumes. Women are expected to learn embroidery early and use their skill to make a ceremonial dress to be worn in events to show off said skills. Women dresses are often in bright colors for unmarried women, and more subdued blue, black, and gray for married older women. The older women has a distinct hairstyle and less silver adornments on their hair.
Women use tea tree oil to arrange their hair and keep it styled throughout the long hours in the fields. They often use a complicated side bun with a comb made out of water buffalo horn. The oil also keep the women's hair black through their later years.
Costumes often reflect religion, storytelling, and superstitions. The Miao believe that they are descendants of the butterfly and thus, reflect this image in a lot of their costuming.
The Han often differentiate Miao villages based on their costumes. For example, long skirt Miao, short skirt Miao, etc. While these differences in costumes do exist, the Miao culture is complex and rich in tradition.
Most Miao live in wooden houses with stone foundations that are set on pillars. They usually live on mountainous areas with very steep slopes. A typical house has two stories. The first story is kept for the livestock and for food storage. The second story is for living area.
Copyrighted 2006. Amihan Makayan. Images, videos, and audio maybe used by permission only.