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Akha: The Akha, also known to the Thai as the Gaw or
the E-gaw (names that the Akha do not like), are located primarily with
Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces. The Akha are closely related with
the Hani of Yunnan province, China, the Akha-Hani complex numbers about
two to three million people, but with just over 70,000 members in Thai
territory. The Akha speak a language in the Lolo/Yi branch of the
Tibeto-Burman language group, but have no traditional written language.
There are a variety of schemes for writing Akha developed by
missionaries or linguists which employ Roman, Thai or Burmese
characters, but literacy in Akha is still virtually nil. The Akha are
traditionally subsistence farmers, growing a variety of crops including
rice and corn.
Though many Akha, especially younger people, profess Christianity, Akha
Zang (The Akha Way), a total lifestyle perscribed in the oral literature
of the Akhas, still runs deep in the consciousness of older generations.
The Akha Way combines animism, ancestor worship and their deep
relationship with the land.. For an Akha, the Akha Way is a way of life
which extends beyond simple religious practice and infuses every aspect
of their existence. The Akha Way emphasizes rituals in everyday life and
stresses strong family ties; every Akha male can recount his geneology
back over fifty generations to the first Akha, Sm Mi O.
But the chain of continuity so important for Akha people is being
broken. A combination of Thai schooling, land restrictions, some
missionary activities, technology and a feeling of social inferiority to
lowland Thais is making the once essential Akha Way less attractive and
relevant for younger generations who are rapidly integrating into Thai
society. 
Akha
Lisu: The Lisu have a legend quite similar to
that of many other tribes in Southeast Asia. Long ago there was a giant
flood. There were only two survivors: one man and one woman. These two
were brother and sister. They survived by living off the meat inside a
giant bottle gourd. Once the water had receded, the pair set out in
search of other survivors, but to their dismay, they found no one. They
became convinced they must be the last remaining man and woman in the
world. They realized that if they did not reproduce then mankind would
disappear off the face of the planet forever. Still, they
couldn't get over the fact they were brother and sister. Finally, they
decided to to consult the spirits. Seeing a grinding stone and a mortar
on top of a hill, the pair determined to separate the two parts and roll
them down opposite sides of the hill. When the grinding stone reached
the base of the hill it refused to stop rolling. Instead, it persisted
in rolling all the way around to the other side of the hill and
reuniting with the mortar, ending up in exactly the same position it had
been when on top of the hill. It did not matter what objects the pair
used to test their fate, the results were identical each time. The older
brother and younger sister agreed that God must have given his blessing
to the union. Soon they had produced a son and a daughter which marked
the new birth of the tribe.
Mien: Evidence of Mien (Yao) history as far back as
5th BC.
For the past 2000 years, the records show that the Mien lived in the
surrounding mountains near Tibet. The Mien moved constantly because they
did not like the controlling ruling from the Han. There were as many as
28 sub-names under the Mien. There were 4 major groups of Mien, the Phan
(Bienh), the Bunu, the Cha Sun, and Ping Ti. Out of the 4 groups, the
Phan (Bienh) group had the most man-power, and that was the group that
constantly moving from place to place. The Phan group had concentrated
in one large area of the country, where the Mien language was developed.
The Bunu and the Luc Jaa developed into separate languages.
child in hat
Legend of the Creation of the Mien People: In heaven, there were Daa Ong
(Grandfather) and Daa Gux (Grandmother). One day they decided to create
the Yao, or the Mien people. They planned to transform themselves and
live on Earth . During that time, there were two kingdoms already exist
on earth, one ruled by Baeng Hung (the good side), and the other by Gux
Hung (the bad side). They hated each other very much .
As they two had planned in heaven, Daa Gux would come down to earth
reborn as a third daughter of Baeng Hung (with a birthmark on one leg),
while Daa Ong would transform himself into whatever was needed. During
the war between Baeng Hung and Gux Hung. Baeng Hung announced to his
whole kingdom, "whoever can bring me Gux Hung's head, I'll reward you
with marriage to my third daughter and some land ." No one answered the
Baeng Hung's demand.
One day Daa Ong transformed himself into a five-colored dragon-dog named
Phan Hu . The dog showed himself up at Baeng Hung's palace . The emperor
had never seen a dragon-dog such as this one, full of talent, with 120
beautiful spots on the top of its body, and could talk . The emperor
ordered his people to take a good care of the dog . The dog had become
Baeng Hung's trusted, loving pet .
One day, Baeng Hung and his staff had a meeting, planning the war with
Gux Hung. The dragon-dog was there at the meeting as well. At the end of
the discussion, the dragon-dog spoke up, he said "Baeng Hung doesn't
have to send thousands of armies, military equipments to fight Gux Hung.
I will volunteer to fight Gux Hung myself. Since I'm a dog, the least
respected animal, Gux Hung and her military probably will not think I
can cause any harm to them." Baeng Hung agreed with the dog. He wanted
to see what the dog could do.
Phan Hu (dragon-dog) prepared for the departure. He asked heaven to send
him a magic pill, which helped him endure his 7 days 7 nights swimming
accross the sea to Gux Hung.
mien clothes for man and woman
The dragon-dog arrived Gux Hung's empire. Gux Hung admired the beautiful
talking dog. She kept it as her own body guard. The dog became Gux
Hung's favorite pet as well. Gux Hung was confident with the dog,
therefore, she no longer needed her servants and body guards at all
times. One day, Gux Hung sent her servants and body guards out for the
daily chores. The dragon-dog took that opportunity, and bit Gux Hung's
head off then swam back across the sea with the head as proof to Baeng
Hung. In return, the dragon-dog was married to Baeng Hung's third
daughter (as promised).
As the wedding day neared, Baeng Hung, the emperor realized he didn't
really want his third daughter to marry a dragon-dog. So, Baeng Hung
called nine women who looked identical to his third daughter and then
dressed them up with identical gowns. The dragon-dog had to pick from
the ten identical women. Daa Gux (the third daughter) was one of the
ten. This ruse, however, did not fool Daa Ong a.k.a. Phan Hu
(dragon-dog). The dog looked for the birthmark on the leg. The
dragon-dog picked the third daughter of Baeng Hung and was married to
her. They moved to an isolated piece of land given to them by Baeng Hung
and had 12 children, six sons and six daughters. These six sons and the
husbands of the six daughters became patriarchs of the twelve Mien
clans.
jewelry
The Iu Mien 12 Clans: When talking about the original twelve clans, it
is difficult for almost any Mien to name all of them since a few of the
clans got lost or left behind when escaping from mainland China many
generations ago. Another complicating factor is that the names that the
Thais gave to each clan (which are the basis for today's Mien surnames
in Thailand and the United States) not only depended on what each Thai
interviewer heard their clan name to be, but also differs from the names
that Miens call themselves. For instance, Ann (Saefung) and Laosan (Saefong)
spell their official last names differently, yet each will identify
themselves as a member of the Bungz (pronounced Bpung) clan. Notice that
when Ann introduces herself, she first says her Thai name, then her Mien
clan (in this case calling it La Bpung), then finally her Mien given
name.
Hmong: Originally, the Hmong people were immigrants
from Tibet, Siberia and Mongolia, before migrating to China 3,000 years
ago where they settled down in areas around the Yellow (Huang Ho) River,
Kwaijoa, Hunnam, Kwangsi and Yunnan. During the 17th century, the Manju
Dynasty (Hmeng) wielded power in China. The King changed policy to
suppress Hmong people who refused to practice and believe in the Chinese
culture and tradition, because Hmong men have a similar character to
Russians which led the Chinese to believe that they were Russian.
Another reason was that the Hmong was a barbarian race, and constantly
fought each other.
Eventually, the Hmong people were defeated and moved to the south of
China, separating into small groups. Most of these groups lived on the
hills in Sibsongpanna, while another set of immigrants lived on the
northeast of the Lao republic around Haihin Dianbianfu. The Leader,
named ‘General Wungpor’ collected Hmong immigrants, and moved to
Thailand around 2400 in Buddhism era (c. 1857).
Now, Hmong people in Thailand have set up villages on the hills, or the
lowlands, around Chiang Rai, Payao, Chiang Mai, Prae, Lampang, Khampang
Phet, Loei, Phisanulok, Phetchabun, Tak and Mae Hong Son. The current
population of Hmong people stands around 151,080.
Karen: The Karen residing in Thailand can be
divided into two large groups: The Sgaw and the Po. In addition, there
are also two smaller and lesser known groups: the Kaya (also known as
the Baway), and the Dtawng Soo (also known as the Pa O). Although the
customs and traditions of these four groups are quite similar to one
another, their style of dress is definitely unique and distinct. Thus,
the manner of dress is one tool for distinguishing between the groups
and for observing the individual beauty which each group expresses.
These days, it is only the Po and Sgaw Karen groups which still wear
their traditional outfits in daily life. The Kaya and Dtawng Soo have
changed in their traditional outfits for more modern wear. The manner of
dress not only differs between different groups of Karen, but also even
within the same group when spread out over different regions. For
example, the traditional dress of the Po Karen from Amphur Mae Sariang
in Mae Hong Son province is more colorful than that found in Chiang Mai.
Sgaw women in Mae Hong Son and Amphur Mae Chaem (Chiang Mai province)
decorate their shirts with elegant patterns, which are much more
detailed than those found in Tak. The patterns of the Po Karen located
in Kanchanaburi province are quite different from those found in the
North. Karen from the province of Chiang Rai have begun coming up with
their own new patterns, adapting to the styles they see around them.
They are totally different from anything found elsewhere in Karen
tradition. The Karen in Chiang Rai have begun selling their cloth and
have come up with little tricks to catch the eye of the buyer, taking
advantage of new innovations in technology and drawing inspiration from
the fashions of the times. They have created table cloths, for example,
with all kinds of fresh new patterns based on those found in traditional
Thai art and dress.
One tradition in dress
that will likely remain preserved amongst the Po and Sgaw Karen of
Thailand is the distinction made between single and married women. A
female who has not yet married must dress in a long white outfit which
stretches down from the shoulders to the ankles. In Karen it is called
the "Chay Kwa," Once a woman has married she must begin wearing a black
shirt known as "Chay Mo Soo," accompanied by a single tube-shaped skirt.
Once married, a woman is prohibited from wearing the long white Chay Kwa
again. As for the Karen men, both Po and Sgaw living in the north of
Thailand tend to wear black, or steel blue-colored pants. The Karen men
in Tak province and Amphur Lee (Lamphun province), however, prefer to
wear sarongs. Young men from all Karen groups wear red. They differ only
in the size, shape and intricacy of the patterns on them. When dressing
for special occasions such as New Year's, or a wedding, Karen will try
to wear new clothes. If attending one of these special events it will be
hard not to notice the obvious attempts made by both young men and women
to prim and groom themselves into beautiful perfection, all done in the
hopes of catching the eye of the other sex.
Lahu: The Lahu are a strong independent and very
diverse ethnic group who number about 60,000 in Thailand. The Lahu are
located primarly in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai provinces, but can also be
found in considerable numbers as far south as Tak province. Their
settlements are usually remote from roads and towns, due to their strong
commitment to the maintenance of the Lahu way of life.
The Lahu are complex and diverse ethnicity. In Thailand there are no
fewer than six different Lahu tribes, some of whose languages are not
mutually intelligible. The majority of Lahus in Thailand are Red Lahu,
pantheistic animists who follow a Dtobo, a messianic leader. There are
also a significant number of Black, Yellow and Shehleh Lahus in
Thailand, many of whom have been Christian for nearly one hundred years.
Black Lahu are the most populous throughout Southeast Asia and theirs is
considered to be the standard Lahu dialect.
Although primarily subsistence farmers, growing rice and corn for their
own consumption, the Lahu are also proud of their hunter-warrior
heritage. They remain a strict, serious people governed by strong
principles of right and wrong, every individual in the village answering
to the common will of the elders. While less importance is placed on the
extended family than in other hill tribe communities, the Lahu are still
strongly committed to principles of unity and working together for
survival. Lahus may have the most gender-equitable society in the world.
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