13/11/2022
(Hmong) A rare snapshot of two Hmong women in traditional wedding clothes. This photo was taken almost 100 years ago in the high mountainous region of 'Tonkin' (Which was considered a French protectorate at the time, but is now considered part of the Northern areas of Vietnam).
The Hmong people are a sub-ethnic class of the 'Miao' people, a group recognised by the Chinese government as one of the 56 official ethnic groups in the country. Although they had originally lived in the South-Western regions of China, during the 19th century the Hmong community migrated to the hills of Burma, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam.
As of 2005, it was estimated that approximately 800,000 Hmong people lived in Vietnam, 315,000 in Lao and 124,000 in Thailand.
Have you heard of the Hmong community before? There were approximately 250,000 people of Ancestry living in the United States (after their first wave of migration during the late 1970s).
What are your thoughts about their traditional garments? In real life, the trims are actually quite vibrant and colourful.
Edit: There are several posters that have mentioned these two ladies are actually ‘Mien’ people. This photo was taken by Jean Brunhes and published in ‘Images du Monde Races’ in 1930 by a French Geographer named Jean Brunhes and it’s possible that he wasn’t aware of the nuances at the time or it had been mistranslated).
This is the first time I have heard of the ‘Mien’ people and would love to find out more about both communities and write more. If there are people from either Hmong or Mien communities, please reach out to me for future posts that I can eventually share with everyone else 🙂
~Photo enhanced and description written by
