Silver ornaments of Hmonk

Silver ornaments: The Hmong keep a great deal of their wealth in the form of silver jewelry. All Hmong-men, women, and children-wear silver neck rings, at least for special occasions. At the naming ceremony a silver neck ring is given to a Hmong baby to keep the soul in and signify that the baby belongs to the man-world. Silver has a special significance to the Hmong, symbolizing wealth and the essence of the good life.

Every household acquires as much silver as possible, and at New Year all the family silver jewelry is worn and displayed. Three styles of earrings are worn by Hmong women. One style is shaped like an arrow with the shaft bent around to form a circle. The second is an elongated S-shaped, flat or round, with a pointed plug worn through the earlobe, and either hooked up into the back of the turban, or allowed to hang down in front. A more modern type is a small silver hook with a number of small dangles hanging from it. White Hmong, both men and women, wear heavy engraved round silver bracelets. Blue Hmong wear narrow flat engraved bracelets. These may be of brass or copper rather than silver. Neck rings, solid or hollow, are worn either singly or in sets of up to six tiers-five being standard. Frequently heavy silver chains with lock-shaped pendants are attached to the neck rings. These 'locks' are added during curing ceremonies to keep the soul in the body. At New Year they may wear heavy silver chains with pendants of fish, butterflies, wheels, bells, and miniature grooming tools, and young women may wear a pointed ring on every finger. The amount of silver displayed at the New Year festival in an affluent Hmong village is most impressive.

Men's clothing of Hmonk

Men's clothing: Hmong men wear loose-fitting black pants folded across the waist, tucked in at the top, and often secured with a leather belt. Blue Hmong pants are extremely full, having narrow openings for the ankles with the very wide crotch falling mid-way between calves and ankles. White Hmong pants are less full, having a higher crotch.

Jackets are also made of black cloth-usually cotton, but sometimes velvet or satin. Both blue and white Hmong wezar short jackets leaving a bare midriff. Hmong in the Chiang Mai area commonly wear extremely short jackets. The collarless jacket buttons at the neck, crosses over the chest, and fastens on the left side with silver buttons. The piece across the chest is ornamented with the needlework customary for that branch of the tribe.

Many White Hmong men wear4 a longer jacket with a Chinese-style high collar, which, together with the cuffs and the front opening, are embroidered. Some Blue Hmong men now wear a similar jacket in cold season.

Men wear wide sashes up to six meters long. Some are folded on the bias so as to form pointed ends. The sash is carefully wrapped so that the heavily embroidered ends fall evenly together in front giving the appearance of an apron. White Hmong, and some Blue, wear red sashes which are squared-off at the ends and adorned with Mien-style embroidery.

Traditionally the men shaved their heads, except for the crown, where the hair was left long and sometimes braided into a queue. Blue Hmong in all areas and some White Hmong in Chiang Mai Province wear Chinese-style black satin skullcaps with a big fluffy magenta pompon on top.

Hmonk Women's cloting

Women's clothing: Blue Hmong women wear knee-length pleated skirts of hand-woven hemp or cotton cloth, hemp being preferred. The central horizontal panel is 25 to 30 cm wide, and is covered with a batik pattern. The pattern is drawn with beeswax onto the cloth with a tool made by their blacksmiths. After the wax has been applied, the cloth is immersed in a cold indigo dye. When the dye has set6, the wax is removed by boiling, then skimmed off to be used again. The Blue Hmong are apparently the only tribal people in mainland Southeast Asia skilled in batiking.

A 15 cm strip of plain cloth is attached to the top of the batiked panel, and a border with bright-coloured cross-stitch embroidery and applique of red and other bright colors is added to the bottom edge. The width of the border varies, with teen-age girls making their's wider than the adults. A strip of white is stitched to the bottom edge. The entire skirt, more than six metres for an adult, is accordion-pleated, anchored down with herringbone stitches. A thread is run through the pleats as they are made, holding them together in three or four places, and the skirt is stored that way until used.

Blue Hmong women's jackets are generally of black cotton; sometimes velvet is used. There are three types. The first has a five to six cm embroidered and appliqued strip stitched to each edge in front. The second has a wide zigzag coming down in three steps from the right shoulder, crossing over to the left side. The third has a finer zigzag pattern. The jackets are unfinished at the lower edge, and are bound down with a black sash that is wound several times around the waist.

There are two types of collars: one is a simple rectangle about 12 by 16 cm; the other has a similar rectangle, with a wide border tapering to elongated points on the jacket with the embroidered side down. There are many theories why the needlework is reversed, but the Hmong say they really do not know, only that it is the 'proper' way to do it.

Women wear an apron over the front of the skirt, which for everyday wear is black. Festive aprons, elaborately embroidered and appliqued, tie on with a red, pink, or orange sash, and have long tassels hanging down the back. For full dress occasions extra red sashes are wound around the waist until a woman seems grossly overweight. Quite often a silver belt is worn over this. At New Year an unattached batiked bib is worn with the apron. Often silver coins and ornaments are stitched to it.

Clothing of Hmong-2

Needlework for babies and children

Hmong mothers devote their finest skills in making carrying-cloths and caps for their babies. A carrying-cloth resembles a bibbed apron. It is made of two rectangular pieces of cloth, the smaller at the top, joined together at the borders. Long red straps attached to the top corners are used to tie the baby on the back. The Blue Hmong use batik material for the larger rectangle, accented with strips, squares, and triangles of bright red appliqued pieces. The smaller top rectangle may be ornamented with a combination of cross-stitch embroidery, applique, and tiny shocking pink pompons. The White Hmong do not use batiking, but ornament their baby-carriers with a variety of embroidery stitching, applique, and reverse applique-the process of cutting a pattern into a cloth and stitching it onto another.

Many styles of caps are made for the babies, most of them very elaborate. All are ornamented with typical needlework of the respective branch of the tribe and many pink, red, or magenta pompons. Children's clothing is mainly a miniature version of adult garb. For festive wear-especially ornament the clothing of even the smallest with their best needlework.

Clothing of Hmong-1

A tiny needle, strands of bright thread, lengths of vari-colored cloth, and the genius of a Hmong woman-these are the ingredients of some of the most exquisite needlework to be found anywhere. Throughout their long history, Homong women have devoted their artistic skill and industry to the development of an amazing variety of techniques using needle and thread. They adorn the clothing of every member of the family, from the smallest baby to the oldest grandparents. Even the corpses are richly endowed with embroideries to take to the next world.

Nowadays much of the cloth used is purchased from itinerant traders or in the marketplace, but traditionally it all had to be produced within the Hmong household. Even today many women prefer to weave their own homespun hemp or cotton cloth for much of the clothing worn by the family, using looms that combine back-strap and foot-treadle techniques. The weaver sits on a bench with one end of the loom attached to a belt. She controls the tension with her back, while shifting the warp threads with foot treadles.

HMONK (MEO)

The Hmong or Mong are called Meo in Thai. This ethnic group, like the Yao, belongs to the Meo Yao branch of the Austro-Thai linguistic family.

The Hmong are one of the most spread out minority groups. They are scattered Throughout South China in Kweichow, Hunan, Szechwan, Kwangxi, and Yunnan provinces. There are also hmong communities in North Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and even a few in Burma. In Thailand, the number of Hmong people in 1995 was approximately 124,211 the second largest group after the Karen and made up 17.88 percent of all tribesmen in the country.

The Meo settlement is concentrated in thirteen provinces : Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Phrae Tak,Lampang, Phayao,Phetchabun, Kamphaeng Phet, Mae Hong Son, Sukhothai, Pitsanulok and Loei. Three subgroups of Meo are found in Thailand:

The Blue Hmong (Mong Njua), who are also known as the black Meo, Flowery Meo or Striped Meo in Thai. Women in the subgroup wear the distinctive indigo-dyed pleated skirt or kilt with a batik design.

The White Hmong (Hmong Daw). White Hmong women wear a white pleated skirt only on ceremonial occasions, but when engaged in everday work, they put on indigo-dyed trousers.

The Last subgroup is known as the Gua M'ba Meo (Hmong Gua M'ba) which literary means Armband Hmong and only recently entered Thailand from Laos. They are actually a subgroup of the White Hmong. Most are confined to refugee camps.

The extended Hmong family is patrilineal, and polygyny is allowed. The family is the most important basic unit of social organization. Beyond the family level, the clan serves as the centre for all activities that mark the uniqueness and unity of the Hmong people. The available information indicates that there are eleven clans in Thailand. The names and origins of these clans are recited in Hmong legends.

Hmong religion is a combination of pantheism and shamanism with the emphasis on ancestor-worship. The Chinese influence is obvious in their beliefs and practices.

The Hmong prefer to locate their villages at high altitudes (1,000-1,200 m.). They are pioneer of primary-shifting cultivators. Rice and corn are the main subsistence crops, and opium is the principal cash crop. The Hmong are more heavily engaged in opium production than any other highlanders in Thailand.

The New year celebration which normally takes place in December is the most important festivity.