HMONG (MEO)
The Meo call
themselves "Hmong". They are
the most widespread minority group in south China. Today they live scattered in
many provinces of mainland China, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. In Thailand, the number of Meo people is
approximately 16.52 percent of all tribes in the country. Their settlements are concentrated in 13
provinces, such as Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Phrae, Tak, Lampang, Phayao,
Phetchabun, Mae Hong Son. Kamphaengphet, Phitsanulok, Loei and
Sukhothai Three sub-groups of are found in Thailand:
1.
Blue Hmong, which is also
known as Black Hmong or Striped Hmong.
2.
White Hmong, the women of which
wear a white pleated skirt during
ceremonial occasions and put on indigo-dyed trousers at work.
3.
Gua'm-ba Hmong who entered the country from Laos very recently and
remain largely confined to refugee camps.
The Hmong family is extended and
patrilineal. This has resulted from the Hmong's practice of polygamy
marriages. In social organization, the
family stands as the most important basic unit of all affairs. Beyond the family level, a clan serves as the
centre for all activities that mark their uniqueness and cooperation.
Hmong prefer to live at very high
altitudes. They are primary shifting cultivators. They grow rice and corn as
main crops for food supplies and grow opium as a cash crop. They are criticized
for heavily engaging in opium production,
probably do so more than other tribes in Thailand.
The religion of the Hmong in
Thailand is a combination of animism and shamanism with an emphasis on ancestor
worship. The shaman has much influence on the villagers. He is their chief hope
in crises, their only powerful doctor, and their guide in many actions where
there is danger or doubt as to the outcome. It is no wonder, therefore, that
families prefer to live where there are shamans. The shamans, likewise, prefer
to live where there are clients
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