A Miao Woman
Who are the Miao?
The Miao are a large and complex ethnic group with many subgroups that share unintelligible dialects and have much regional variation. In fact, Miao is a name coined by the Chinese to describe four distinct groups – the Hmu, Qo Xiong, A-Hmao and the Hmong. In China there are 9.6 M Miao, half of which reside in Guizhou Province, but there are also many Miao in Thailand, Burma, Laos and Vietnam due to a southerly migration of the Hmong group in the 18th century. The Miao have their own written script and language, which belongs to the Miao-Yao sub-family of the Sino-Tibetan language family.
The Miao religion is based on ancestor worship and spirits. The Miao culture includes many extensive festivals with people wearing elaborate dress and jewelry and partaking in dancing, music and parades. The Miao are the ultimate embroiderers, creating exquisitely detailed hand crafted items, and are producers of delicately worked items of silver jewelry.
Due to their extensive migration, the Miao are widely dispersed and, as a result, have become highly diverse culturally. The Miao have their own names to refer to their various subgroups but the Chinese designate them by the clothing they wear, which can vary from village to village. Hence, there are the red, blue (and other colors) Miao, the long (and short) skirt Miao, the big (and small) flower Miao, etc.
The history of the Miao, and their relation with the Han, has been long and difficult. Some scholars say that the Miao are amongst the first people to settle present day China, in the area along the Yangtze River, and may have been the first to cultivate rice, a practice then introduced to the Han. In more recent times, as competition for arable land increased and as the Han Chinese Empire grew in power, the Miao rebelled against the Han's excessive taxation and encroachment onto their lands. This led the Miao Rebellions that occurred in the 15th, 18 and 19 centuries.
Laotung Village, Guizhou Province, China
A Miao Woman
Who are the Miao?
The Miao are a large and complex ethnic group with many subgroups that share unintelligible dialects and have much regional variation. In fact, Miao is a name coined by the Chinese to describe four distinct groups – the Hmu, Qo Xiong, A-Hmao and the Hmong. In China there are 9.6 M Miao, half of which reside in Guizhou Province, but there are also many Miao in Thailand, Burma, Laos and Vietnam due to a southerly migration of the Hmong group in the 18th century. The Miao have their own written script and language, which belongs to the Miao-Yao sub-family of the Sino-Tibetan language family.
The Miao religion is based on ancestor worship and spirits. The Miao culture includes many extensive festivals with people wearing elaborate dress and jewelry and partaking in dancing, music and parades. The Miao are the ultimate embroiderers, creating exquisitely detailed hand crafted items, and are producers of delicately worked items of silver jewelry.
Due to their extensive migration, the Miao are widely dispersed and, as a result, have become highly diverse culturally. The Miao have their own names to refer to their various subgroups but the Chinese designate them by the clothing they wear, which can vary from village to village. Hence, there are the red, blue (and other colors) Miao, the long (and short) skirt Miao, the big (and small) flower Miao, etc.
The history of the Miao, and their relation with the Han, has been long and difficult. Some scholars say that the Miao are amongst the first people to settle present day China, in the area along the Yangtze River, and may have been the first to cultivate rice, a practice then introduced to the Han. In more recent times, as competition for arable land increased and as the Han Chinese Empire grew in power, the Miao rebelled against the Han's excessive taxation and encroachment onto their lands. This led the Miao Rebellions that occurred in the 15th, 18 and 19 centuries.
Laotung Village, Guizhou Province, China