Location: The Miao are one of the minority groups found mainly in China, who are isolated by high mountains. They originally came from the North Plain of China which is now known as Mongolia, or the southwestern part of China, known as Tibet. According to legend, they inhabited the Yellow River Valley after the defeat of a tribal group, Jioli. That was about 4500 years ago. They crossed the Yellow River, and they shaped a kingdom, called “San Miao” or “Vaj Peb Hmoob” in the Jiang Wei Jing Zou region. That was about 22 BC to 220 AD. The provinces, Hubei, Jiansu, and Hunan now correspond to the Jiang Wei Jing Zou region.
The population of the Miao is approximately 8 to 9 million people. About 7.9 million people of the Miao are found in China. The rest are found in Vietnam, Laos, Burma, and Thailand. Approximately 300,000 of Miao people immigrated to the United States. Some of them also settled in France, French Guyana, Australia, and other countries. Those who relocated in the United States, France, and Australia came to look for freedom from Laos. They are also called Hmong rather than Miao in those countries.
The characteristics of Miao people are friendliness and hospitality. They also have many unique celebrations in which they sing songs, play music and dance. They area fashionable people, especially the women who wear traditional clothes and headdress that are neatly embroidered.
Language: Though they are ethnically one people, the Miao have a variety of languages including four main linguistic groups: far western Hmongic, Western Hmongic, Qiandong Miao, and Xiangxi Miao, and other dialects. However, most do not have a written language. While many cultures learn by reading, studying, classifying, examining, analyzing, and comparing, the people in oral cultures like the Miao learn by observing, listening, memorizing, imitating, and repeating. Therefore, Miao express their feelings by dancing, singing, and drawing. Additionally, they express themselves through stories, songs, proverbs, and sayings.
The Miao, who believe in spirits, worship those ancestors who died in old age. However, they believe that if an ancestor died by a tragic accident or disease, he or she brings great damage to his or her family and village. Although the Miao are animists, they are influenced by Christianity. Approximately 300,000 Miao people are Christians. China Inland Mission and Methodist missionaries first introduced Christianity to one of the subgroups of Miao in the late 1890’s. It spread among the Miao tribes.
Until recent years, Christian ministers and missionaries believed that the Miao should be literate so that they could read Christian doctrine. However, people in many oral cultures do not really need written scriptures to understand the doctrines of religion. For example, the Miao have succeeded to preach Christianity through storytelling of Bible parables. The Miao who wanted to convert to Christianity have struggled to acquire the right to become Christians because of the governments. Governments in China, Laos, and Vietnam have little acceptance for the practice of Christianity though they allow religious liberty. As a consequence, those who gave up fighting with the governments decided to immigrate to countries that tolerate Christianity.
Daily Life: The daily life of the Miao is simple compare to industrialized society. In the Eastern region, Miao people bathe and wash their vegetables in the river. In the far western region, Miao women make clothes for themselves or their families using a loom. This kind of loom would be found in almost all the Miao households. The Miao like to create beautiful embroidery for their clothes and accessories by using this tool.
The houses of the Miao are usually made of mud bricks, wood, or stone. They often consist of three stories. The third floor is used to store crops, the second floor is used as a living area for a family, and the first floor is used to house animals.
Their marriage style is one of their most unique features. For example, it is prohibited for someone to marry another person whose family name is the same as his or hers. Because only one or two clans habitat a village, it is possible that two people who have the same family name have the same ancestors. The Miao believe that a marriage within kindred is taboo. Therefore, young boys and girls are given chances to meet other youth from different villages in festivals. It is tradition that boys sing a love song for a girl whom he wants to marry. If a girl also likes him, the pair spends time together at each others house to get to know each other under the supervision of the parents.
References:
http://www.peopleteams.org/miao/
http://lennon.pub.csufresno.edu/~vc032/Miao.html (including 2 imagines)
Written by Eri Ito