Traditionally the Hmong are a patrilineal society with extended households of married sons and their families. The Hmong language, from the Hmong-Mien or Miao-Yao family of languages, is spoken by a portion of the ethnic Miao living in southern China, northern Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Shamans are people who mediate between the visible and spirit worlds through ritual practices conducted for purposes of healing, divination, and control over natural events . The ceremony is an occasion for naming the child and for relatives and community members to offer blessings and words of wisdom to the child. Before entering a Hmong home, ask if visitors are allowed to enter. Whether the guest wants to eat or not, he or she should take part in the meal, just taking a bite or two will make the family happy. Also, many Hmong in the United States have embraced Christianity, Protestantism or Roman Catholicism. (Donnelly, 2006). One common conflict is the misperception of being adult at 18 years old. (Culhane-Pera, et .al., 2003), When dealing with a Hmong family, confidentiality is considered to be a very important issue. In both ceremonies, animals are sacrificed in thanks for the child and his/her souls. When entering a Hmong home during mealtime, guests will be invited to join the family in eating. Many women continue making tradition-derived needlework that finds its way to market, usually through fairs or the Pike Place Market. The CIA coordinated efforts against Laotian Communists, the Pathet Lao, in partnership with Hmong military leader General Vang Pao and the Royal Lao Government. Hmong Leadership: The traditional model. (2004) Kinship Networks Among Hmong-American Refugees, (pp.51). The role of women in traditional clan culture is more ambiguous; their spirits were cared for in the afterlife, but their social status was low. Seattle, WA 98144, Spokane Hmong Association The Plain of Jars in the northeast and the Bolovens Plateau in the southern panhandle sit about three thousand feet above sea level. This is still practiced by some clan members. Children generally grow up with their needs responded to quickly and help in the work of a family at a young age. By the late 20th century there was greater proximity between the cultural groupsmore intermarriage occurred and mixed settlements had become commonplaceyet the sense of difference between the divisions still remained strong. Corrections? Date Authored: May 01, 2007 Other healing techniques include massage, coining or spooning (rubbing an area vigorously with a silver coin or spoon), and cupping (applying negative suctioning pressure on the skin with a cup). The groom enlists the help of his male clan relatives to raise the dowry. The worldwide Hmong population is approximately 6,000,000 in China where the Hmong are called Miao; 788,000 in Vietnam; 315,000 in Laos; 124,000 in Thailand; 2-3,000 in Burma; 250,000 in the United States; 8,000 in France; and 1,800 in Australia. Hmong health professionals consider this new habit of drinking juice, punch, sodas and/or alcoholic drinks during meals to be a factor for the rising diabetes and chronic diseases among many Hmong adults and elder people. Hmong Refugee Resettlement. al., 2003). The body must be kept in the house until the deceaseds family and relatives arrive. In Laos, men may marry multiple wives, but due to the custom of bride price, polygamy has been mostly restricted to wealthy men. Former CIA Director Colby credited Hmong with saving thousands of U.S. soldiers by blocking the North Vietnamese from extending the Ho Chi Minh Trail into Laos. The main material of the Hmong traditional costume is flax. Since clan identity passes from the father to children, a person is allowed to marry into their mothers clan and there is a custom of doing this. Boys moved from village to village for the purpose of meeting girls and participating in festivals where they had relatives. In addition, Hmong is mono-syllabic so one syllable represents one word or meaning. Secondly, she gains status by having lots of sons. The clan is the primary organization of the Hmong who gain lifetime clan membership and relations passed from father to children through birth or adoption. New villages could be a considerable distance away from a groups previous locale. At all levels, the Hmong are communitarian in nature, surviving on relationships. The beautiful embroidery and appliqu work from the mountains of Laos is now, with different colors and mingling of styles, applied to pillow covers, bedspreads, jackets, aprons, and other useful items. Ancestral spirits include any deceased member of the family. Law enforcement: Police officers may be perceived as frightening authority figures and bearers of bad news. If the formalities are not followed disrespect is shown to both sets of parents, and can bring shame to the families. Traditionally, women are hard working and hospitable, primarily caring for the household and raising children, not going to school or holding a job outside the home. An ideology of brotherhood unites the men of a particular clan, so that a man of the Li clan may expect to find hospitality from other Li brothers, wherever they may be living. From the late 19th through the 20th century the Hmong have periodically risen up in armed revolt against colonial and postcolonial authorities, a response to the exploitation and hardship imposed by more dominant peoples. In the late 19th century the opium poppy was introduced into the highlands by outside traders, and the Hmong began to cultivate it in an integrated cycle together with corn and dry rice. Within some families, divisions have resulted when some members have converted to Christianity and others have not. Nevertheless, couples without sons may seek to adopt them or may allow the husband to marry a second wife in the hope that she will bear male children. Excessive alcohol is consumed during traditional Hmong wedding ceremonies, both in the homeland and in the US. The differences in dialects are due to the geographic separation of Hmong living in China. Phone: (202) 463-2118, Lao Family Community, Inc. of Tulare County The soul may be lost due to injury, wounds, a fall, a loud noise, being unconscious (including from anesthesia), fear, or feeling sad and lonely. In the 20th century the Hmong of Southeast Asia were divided by the conflicts between communist parties and states. (Lee and Pfeifer, 2005). The first Hmong refugees began arriving in the US in late 1975, mostly sponsored by religious groups and non-profit organizations. Eggs, pork and some fish may be added after the first 10 days. This is an on-line learning module, but you can download the module as a PDF and print the cultural profile by filling out a short survey. Extended families often live together under the same roof, though may separate to different dwellings as siblings marry and have children. In Laos, wine is consumed on special occasions such as New Years feasts or weddings. Shelters were thin. Jefferson, North Carolina, and London: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. The clan is obligated to respond. Elders, shamans and spiritual leaders are held in very high regard. As mentioned above, traditionally, infants and toddlers in many Southeast Asian countries have worn amulets or protection strings around their necks, wrists, or waists. Synonyms for facial features include features, appearance, countenance, face, lineaments, looks, mien, physiognomy, profile and visage. The couple may come together in various ways, including mutual consent, elopement, or parental arrangement. The reason is that she belongs to her husband and her in-laws household, so she is called only by her husbands name once she is married. The countrys major means of transportation is the Mekong River. Most of the population does not have access to clean drinking water. When a person visits a family, all members of the family are expected to greet the guest by saying welcome (koj tuaj los which literally means you have come). In the US, changes happening between the generations are beginning to alter this tradition, as children are not learning the art of the appliqu decoration. Women prefer natural tearing and healing to clinical episiotomies. Sub clan is a sub unit of the clan whose members are made of many families who may or may not share the same ancestor but who subscribe to a particular religious practice or ritual, for example certain post-partum, funeral, or taboo rituals. Due to the food bias, Hmong people practicing the new religion may decline to attend family gatherings organized by relatives who still practice shamanism, weakening the Hmong community network. These accessories may be worn for health and religious purposes. Madison, WI 53713. Smaller descent groups within these clans comprise people united through a known common ancestor and shared ancestral rituals. However, in relation to the overall Hmong population across the US there are few resources available to preserve Hmong language due to barriers in planning and funding language and cultural classes. A family may show up unexpectedly and still be warmly welcomed inside. There is no traditional form of writing for Hmong, but legends explain how they lost their writing at the dawn of time and describe the circumstances under which it will one day be restored. Through this article, we will discover its various features and influences on the Hmong community. He calls on healing spirits with Laotian and Chinese words and incense. Shamans perform divination procedures for diagnosis, and trance rituals for curing and further protection. People may be hesitant to say much or respond to questions asked by the police, being afraid of saying the wrong things due to their limited English ability. In the United States, Hmong men often wait to marry until their late teens or early twenties when they are finished with their education, though it is still relatively common for girls to marry in their middle teens. In fact in any culture this is true. An adult male is expected to have full knowledge of traditional values passed from his father or male relative. From main page access theOnline Research Library at http://www.hmonglibrary.org/. This issue contributes to social problems caused by teenagers having no supervision at home after school. Today, in the US, the US legal system is sought to resolve such offenses, with the exception of domestic violence. It is common for the same names to be used by both genders. In cases of serious sickness or misfortune, a shaman is invited to the house, where he enters a possessive trance in order to visit the otherworld and locate the missing soul of the patient. Variations in rituals are found in the practices among different clans and lineages and are passed down from generation to generation through oral tradition. St. Paul, Minnesota This process continues, if required, until the conflict is satisfactory solved. Any medical decisions should be made in consultation with your doctors. Minnesota Historical Society - Hmong in Minnesota, UNPO: Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization - Hmong, Researchers Note: Hmong population figures and self-name. Sometimes a shaman acts as a political leader, as there is no specifically Hmong political institution above the level of the village or local descent group. Over centuries, people migrated south into Tibet and China, in the provinces of Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Hunan. In Laos, opium is used as a treatment drug to cure muscle aches after a hard day of farm work or severe injury to the body. In Seattle, the Lao Highland Community Center is a membership organization located at 3925 S. Bozeman St., in the Rainier Valley. Due to respect, a widow cannot marry her husbands older brother because he is like a parent to her has higher birth status than her husband . Feelings of isolation and helplessness (due to physical health or acculturation factors like lack of English language skills) are possible reasons for many of the undiagnosed/untreated mental health cases among Hmong adults and elderly.
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