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The Hmong

The Hmong. Topics:. Population History Language Clans Religion Agrarians. Population (World). Asia China – 6,000,000 Vietnam – 787,604 Laos – 315,000 Thailand – 124,000 Burma – 2-3,000 Western Nations United States – 200,000-250,000 France – 8,000 Australia – 1,800 Canada – 767

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The Hmong

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  1. The Hmong

  2. Topics: • Population • History • Language • Clans • Religion • Agrarians

  3. Population (World) Asia • China – 6,000,000 • Vietnam – 787,604 • Laos – 315,000 • Thailand – 124,000 • Burma – 2-3,000 Western Nations • United States – 200,000-250,000 • France – 8,000 • Australia – 1,800 • Canada – 767 • French Guyana – 500-1,000 • Germany - 70 (Tapp, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia)

  4. 209,000 Hmong estimated in the U.S. 2006 American Community Survey Top 10 Hmong Metropolitan Areas in the U.S. • Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN – 40,707 • Fresno, CA – 22,456 • Sacramento-Yolo, CA – 16,261 • Milwaukee-Racine, WI – 8,078 • Merced, CA – 6,148 • Stockton-Lodi, CA – 5,653 • Appleton-Oshkosh-Neenah, WI – 4,741 • Wausau, WI – 4,453 • Hickory-Morganton-Lenoir, NC – 4,207 • Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI – 3,926 Top 10 Hmong Populations by State • California – 71,244 • Minnesota – 49,200 • Wisconsin – 38,949 • Michigan – 8,686 • North Carolina – 8,451 • Colorado – 3,875 • Georgia – 3,407 • Washington – 3,050 • Oregon – 2,729 • Florida – 1,856

  5. Hmong in America: Refugees of War • REFUGEE • “A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it." (United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees web site)

  6. Southeast Asia

  7. History • 2000-2700 B.C. Mesopotamian: Middle East origin • B.C. to 400 A.D. The first firm historical accounts can be traced back to the Hmong in China.

  8. 400 – 900 A Hmong Kingdom was established in China with a hereditary monarchy. • 900 In different locations within China, the Hmong continued to fight and struggle for independence. • 1800 The Hmong were lured to northern Laos by rich, fertile land and the promise of freedom in the seclusion of the Laotian mountains.

  9. 1893 Laos fell to French rule. • 1949 Laos gained independence • 1960 The American CIA spoke with VangPao to enlist his support in their fight against the Vietnamese communists. • In return for Hmong assistance, they would provide arms, training, and food.

  10. 1975 The war ended and the Americans pulled out of Southeast Asia. • 17,000 Hmong soldiers were killed. 5,000 Hmong civilians perished as well. • Vang Pao was ordered by the CIA to leave Laos. • The Pathet Lao (communists) began reeducating Hmong - often in concentration camps. • In retaliation for their support of the Americans, the communist Lao waged chemical warfare against the Hmong. • Many Hmong fled for their lives to Thailand. 100,000 Hmong were killed.

  11. 1980 Another 100,000 Hmong fled to Thailand. Some stayed in refugee camps up to ten years. Eventually, most were resettled in France and the U.S. • 2007 According to the 2000 census, approximately 170,000 foreign-born Hmong live in the United States.

  12. Language • Sino-Tibetan language, 1300 B.C. • Monosyllabic and tonal • Borrows from Ancient Chinese Mandarin • Eight tonal marks

  13. Written Language • Developed in 1950, F. M. Savina • Original written language was lost??? Some arguments here, but it seems that the Hmong people used… • Pictograph/Ideograph? • Paj Ntaub (flower cloths) • Story cloths

  14. Religion • Traditional Belief system (70%): Animism: “all life is produced by a spiritual force” or “all things in nature have souls” Ancestor worship Shamanism • Other religions practiced: Christianity (1/3), Buddhism or Islam (Percentages are provided by Lee and Pfeifer, 2006)

  15. Hmong Religion • Hmong who continue to practice Animism and Shamanism believe that a spiritual world continues to coexist with the physical world • The Hmong believe in many spirit types including ancestral spirits, house spirits and spirits in the natural world

  16. Many ritual ceremonies are performed by the Hmong for the purpose of fulfilling the will of the ancestors and natural spirits • The Hmong use Shamans as a way to maintain communication between the physical and the spiritual world • Hmong people use Shamans to perform rituals and sacrifice animals with the goal of pacifying the various spirits and curing illnesses • Hmong believe in reincarnation

  17. Hmong Funerals • Hmong believe that proper burial and worship of ancestors directly influence the health, safety and prosperity of the family • Access to a traditional Hmong funeral ceremony is perceived as a religious freedom issue by non-Christian Hmong families. • The Hmong funeral ceremony in Merced usually involves a full 3 day process, it is often longer in Southeast Asia. Family members usually will stay awake for most if not all of the 3 days to take part in ceremonies and give proper respect to the deceased

  18. Family • Delineated roles (father, children) • Patrilineality

  19. Hmong marriage • Hmong may not marry a member of their own clan, no matter how distantly related. Marriage are chosen from among the other 17 clans. • What kind of marriage pattern is this called? Have we encountered it yet in our studies? • Hmong perceive a marriage as a relationship not only between the two households but also between the two clans. • Divorce is a taboo in traditional Hmong Culture but is becoming more common among younger Hmong in the United States. • Hmong Mej Koobs (M8 kong) are marriage negotiators who work to resolve past problems between the families involved while also setting the dowry. Two Mej Koobs represent the bride’s family and two represent the interests of the groom’s family.

  20. The bride-price is usually arranged by both sides. "Buying a wife" does not indicate that a wife is considered property to be bought and sold. • The bride-price can be seen as an insurance policy to assure that the wife will be highly valued and well-treated by her husband’s family. • Many Hmong in the United States continue to be married only to the Hmong culture and they do not have a U.S. marriage license (why do you think this is?). • This sometimes causes problems in obtaining health and other social program benefits.

  21. Demographics • Median Age of the Hmong Population in the U.S.: 16.1 Years (35.3 years among the U.S. Pop.) • 56 % of the Hmong Population in the U.S. under 18 Years Old (25.7% of the U.S. Pop.) • Average Hmong Household Size per Housing Unit: 6.27 persons (2.59 persons among the U.S. Pop.)

  22. Clanship • Basic social and political organization • 12 original clans? This is unclear due to massive disruptions in Hmong culture over the last 100 years • Branched out to 20 clans worldwide, 18 in the US (Thao, 1999)

  23. Clans The 18 Hmong Clans 1.Chang/Cha (Tsaab) 2.Chue (Tswb) 3.Cheng (Tsheej) 4.Fang (Faj) 5.Her/Hue (Hawj) 6.Hang (Taag/Haam) 7.Khang (Khaab) 8.Kong (Koo) 9.Lee/Ly (Lis) 10.Kue (Kwm) 11.Lor/Lo (Lauj) 12.Moua (Muas/Zag) 13.Pha (Phab) 14.Thao (Thoj) 15.Vang (Vaaj/Vaj) 16.Vue/Vu (Vwj) 17.Xiong/Song (Xyooj) 18.Yang (Yaaj) Functions of Hmong Clans • Clans are Hmong Family Groups, the Clan Name is the Family Name • Clans provide the basic form of social and political organization in Hmong society • At birth, a Hmong person takes his or her father's clan name and remains a member for life with the exception of Hmong women who marry and take on new identities in their husbands' clans (what kind of marriage practice?) • Hmong clans provide their members with social support. Members of a clan are expected to provide mutual assistance to one another. In the U.S. there continue to be Lee, Moua, Vue, etc. clan associations for this purpose • Hmong clans provide their members with legal and mediation assistance. Any dispute between two Hmong or different clans (such as a divorce) will typically be settled by leaders of the two clans • Traditionally, clans also provide economic assistance to their members

  24. continued… • Members of given clan are viewed as relatives (Lee, 2005) • Individual takes his or her father's clan name and remains a member for life • Hmong women who marry and take on new identities in their husbands' clans • Clans provide social support: provide mutual assistance, and legal and mediation assistance (Lee and Pfeifer, 2006)

  25. Conflicting Worldviews • Holistic notion of the world • Speculative • Human and ecological co-existence • Harmony • Vertical relationship • Extended family • Interdependent • "Correct" social relationships • Respect for old age and authority • Group-oriented • Adult-oriented • Past-oriented • Status-quo oriented • Time is elastic • Take a day at a time or as it comes • Weigh and internalize needs, problems and frustration • Shame conscious • Things can be broken down and analyzed • Analytical, scientific • Survival of the fittest, man controls nature • Competition • Horizontal relationship • Nucleus family • Independent and autonomous • Relativity in values; situtational ethics • Rejection of authority • Individual-oriented • Youth-oriented • Future-oriented • Change-oriented • Time is precise, prompt • Plan for tomorrow • Express needs and problems verbally and publicly • Guilt conscious

  26. Agrarian • Southeast Asian swidden agricultural system • In Merced and other American environments that allow it, gardens are constructed featuring Southeast Asian plants that are created primarily with Asian agricultural methods and technologies recreating Hmong "home gardens". • Hmong agrarian culture, which includes a "land ethic" (Leopold 1949) in its ideology, is a part of an identity constructed in response to new American ecological, economic, religious and secular value systems. • Horticultural methods and land purchases result from persisting spiritual practices meant to ensure health, economic security and longevity

  27. Where the Hmong now live • In China: 3 million • In Vietnam: 200,000 • In Thailand: 200,000 • In Laos (“the homeland”): 100,000 • In the U.S.: 200,000

  28. Defining “shamanism” • “Shaman” is not a Hmong word; it is a Tungus word. The shaman in Hmong is known as Txiv Neeb (“master of spirits”)

  29. Defining “shamanism” • Shamanism is a belief system found throughout the world in which • an individual is chosen by the spirits to heal the afflictions of others, and does so by • achieving an altered state of consciousness (ASC), • enabling his soul to cross over to the spirit world • dialogue with the spirits • taps their power or persuades them to stop • and then to cross back over to the world of the living • Unlike the Maasi: shamanism is not spirit possession

  30. Dale’s affliction • Dale is young Hmong man who lives in Syracuse • About a year ago, began to lose weight, energy, desire to interact • Went to a doctor, who diagnosed “depression”; prescribed counseling and visit to neurologist for possible chemical imbalance • Family dissatisfied

  31. Dale’s diagnosis by the shaman • Dale’s mother went to cousin who is a “txiv neeb” • the cousin threw divination “horns” • diagnosed Dale’s illness as loss of soul: it had wandered in search of girl, captured by evil spirits • Agreed to go to Otherworld and negotiate release

  32. The Hmong View of Souls • The body houses between five and thirty different souls or life-forces • These occupy the body loosely, especially the younger one is unstable • Can wander off at night, or when visiting unfamiliar places

  33. Health, Illness and Soul-Loss • For Hmong, the body is healthy when all souls remain in the body, cooperating harmoniously • Illness is due to prolonged separation of one of the souls from the body: getting “caught” in the Otherworld • Soul-loss due to longing for a loved one, sudden frights, spiritual kidnapping, wandering into the otherworld

  34. Soul-loss fear as reflection of Hmong social values • The body sometimes called the soul’s “house” or “village” • The idea of a solitary soul that has strayed from the body is frightening and dangerous • reflects Hmong value that a person should not want to be independent of the group; one who has strayed from the group is dangerously vulnerable and alone • Physical health is achieved by return of soul to body; social health achieved by return of person to group

  35. The shaman’s journey for Dale • Family built altar and “horse” • Extended family filled house • Shaman entered trance (opium, sonic meditation) • Traveled with his spirit-helpers on a horse to the Otherworld to find lost soul • Pig sacrificed, blood daubed on Dale • Negotiated with evil spirit for soul’s release • Returned and bound the soul to Dale’s body • Feast

  36. Why did it work? • The Hmong view? • The Biomedical view?

  37. How shamanism looks • Between two worlds [videorecording] : the Hmong shaman in America / directed and edited by Taggart Siegel ; produced by Taggart Siegel and Dwight Conquergood. • Call Number: XD0129

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