The Hmong
Culture
by Jennifer Xiong
DPI WEOP Office Eau Claire, jennifer.xiong@dpi.state.wi.us
Presented to DPI Staff on Oct 2004
1
History of the Hmong




Hmong means free.
Ancient people from Southern China
A few thousand years ago, the Hun
invaded from the North and the Hmong
began Southard immigrations.
Thousands of families began historic
travels down the rivers and mountain
summits to the South.
2




In the 19th century, they began to settle in the
mountainous regions of Northern Laos.
In 1954, the Hmong tried to remain neutral in a
political turmoil but were drawn to fight against
the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese, which
was supported by the USA.
The Hmong were trained as soldiers of special
forces to defend the Northeast region of Laos.
They were known as the secret army because
there was no official recognition of fighting in
Laos and the Americans have never heard of
Hmong soldiers.
3




Saigon fell in 1975 and the American forces
withdrew and the Hmong were left in the
hands of their enemy.
Many Hmong families stayed behind to fight
and protect their families while others were
driven from their homes and thousands fled
to safety by swimming across the Mekong
River to Thailand.
Before the war, the American government
promised that if the Hmong fought with the
US, they would be taken care of.
18 clans in the Hmong society
4





Everybody belongs to a clan, everybody with the
same last name
The reason for belonging to a clan is the ability
to identify themselves or be affiliated to other
Hmong people around the world.
If you know someone with the same last name
and you are not even related, you can not marry
that person. A person must seek marriage
outside of his/her clan.
The Hmong is a very tight-knit clan and very
family oriented.
Hmong households consists of extended family
members such as grandparents, uncles, aunts,
siblings, cousins, and their immediate family
members.
5
Religion





Animism/Buddhism
Many of the Hmong are now converted to Christianity by
missionaries in Laos.
When a child is born, that individual is welcomed in to
the family with a ceremony called hu plig or khi tes.
A big feast, with white strings tied to the hand for a great
future and good luck
When a man is married and has a couple of kids, he gets
an elder name added to his original name to signify
maturity. It is common for Hmong women to carry on
their husbands name.
6
Education



No formal education before coming to
America
Many children received one year or less of
education
Some refugees study English in the camps
from American volunteers
7
Diet





Rice
Vegetables with little meat or fish
Chicken, pork, and beef are dominant
In Laos, they usually raise cows, pigs, and
chickens to butcher
Rice is grown
8
Needlework



One of the distinctive features of the
Hmong culture is the elaborate and
colorful needlework crafted by Hmong
girls.
Most traditional clothing are made
Clothes are worn to new years and
celebrations
9
New Years




Socialize
Meet their future husband/wife
Ball tossing
Sing songs to each other
10
Funerals




3 days long
Animals such as cows are used to sacrifice for
the dead.
Trained elder used to guide person to their
destination.
A musical instrument called the “qeej” will be
played.
11
Weddings





Arranged/forced or Mutual
Reasons for forced marriages
-Girls side of family is poor and wants their daughter
to marry someone rich.
-Parents want their child to have a good future
-Close relatives.
Weddings are from Friday to Saturday night
Bride Price/Dowry
Feast or Wedding is held on Saturday after a negotiation
is made.
Bride and Groom will receive instructions on how to be a
good husband and wife.
12
Roles




Order of birth, age, gender, and leadership
play an important part in the decision
making
Best interest of family comes before the
individual
As children, they are taught to meet
other’s needs and respect the opinions of
their parents’ or of older people.
In a dispute or if a problem occurs and the
family can not resolve it, they always
consult with their clan members.
13
Etiquette for Interacting with the Hmong



The handshake is a new concept to the Hmong
culture. Traditional Hmong do not shake hands
with the female. Many Hmong female will feel
embarrassed shaking hands with a male.
Traditionally people greet one another verbally.
Holding hands tightly during a handshake will
embarrass a Hmong woman.
When conversing with a Hmong family, always
ask for the head of the household which is the
father.
Many Hmong possess a limited English
vocabulary so when talking to a less assimilated
Hmong person, one should use simple
14
terminology.


When entering a Hmong home, a seat will be
offered. If one does not sit, family members
may assume that their furniture is not clean or
contagious with diseases. Or that the visitor is
of higher status than the family members are.
Most traditional men do not want others to
touch their head or those of their children due
to personal values and religious beliefs.
15



Hmong teach their children to be well behaved
in the presence of guests. In a case where their
child is interrupting or not behaving, they will not
send their child to their room or discipline them.
Discipline is usually right after the guest leaves.
When talking to a Hmong person, he/she may
not look directly at you or give you eye contact.
The person you are talking to may look down or
away. Traditionally looking directly into the face
of a Hmong person is considered inappropriate.
It is considered inappropriate for the opposite
gender to sit too close to one another when
conversing. To avoid misinterpretation, a male
should keep a distance between himself and a
female when in conversation.
16



It is common for Hmong families to visit one
another without calling or setting up time.
Sometimes they will just show up at the door
and expect a warm welcome. It is considered
rude if you tell them you don’t have time to visit
with them.
Confidentiality is considered very important but
within the family itself, confidentiality may not be
thought of as important.
If a Hmong person offers you a drink, you should
not decline. This is considered impolite. To not
offend him or her, take the drink or object being
offered and hold it for a while before placing it on
the table. Refrain from quickly saying no.
17


There are many unusual physical marks which might
be found on the body of a Hmong person. These
are commonly the result of a home treatment for
traditional healing and health problems such as
colds and headaches. These marks may be bruises
or redness from spooning, cupping, or coining on
the neck, shoulder, back, chest, forearms, and
forehead. At times, Hmong will wear unusual red
necklaces, silver and brass bracelets, white strings,
or red and white strings on their wrist, ankle, or
neck. These are worn for health and religious
purposes.
When visiting a Hmong family, watch for a stick in
the front door. It is usually a branch of green leaves.
Sometimes there is a white or black woven octagon
shaped basket made of bamboo or plastic placed
next to the branch. If one observes this, one should
not knock or enter the house. The house is
18
protected from evil spirits.


Even if there is no branch of green leaves present,
before entering a Hmong home always ask the person
who opens the door to see if visitors are allowed to enter
the house. Hmong families sometime have just had a
shaman perform a ritual. For a period of time after this
ritual, visitors are not allowed to enter, wear shoes, and
carry handbags when entering the house.
If you visit during mealtime, guests will be offered to join
the family in eating. Whether you want to or not, he or
she should take part in the meal. Just take a bite or two
and that will make them happy. Otherwise, the family
will stop eating and talk to the guest until he or she
leaves.
19
School system and the Hmong
taken from Unfamiliar Partners (a report from the National Coalition of advocates for students)

Hmong parents want teachers and
administrators they can trust.
 People who are truly concerned with the
growth and welfare of their children and who
are sensitive to the ways children are
brought up.
 Hmong parents never had any formal
education and no voice in their children’s
education.
 Whatever happens to their children would
be seen as the faults, mistake, or abuse of
20
the schools.



Parents had no role to teach their children
academically but they do teach their children
about family values, morality, and manners.
Parents have high expectations from teachers
and tend to withdraw from American teachers
when they fail to meet these expectations.
Parents blame their children for not studying
hard enough and think that is the reason they
don’t perform well in school.
21


Parents say they don’t speak the language so
they can’t participate in their children’s
education.
Many parents feel that they are unable to meet
with teachers and principals because they can
not speak English.
22
Using Children as Interpreters



Results in Negative outcomes such as role
reversal and power dynamics in the
parent/child relationship
Parent’s role may be undercut if a child is
asked to deliver a message about the child’s
behavior or failure to attend school.
Easy for child to manipulate the message or
fail to deliver it entirely to avoid the
consequences of a parent’s displeasure.
23




A child who has mastered English may not
have the ability to communicate with adults in
their first language.
Phone calls and letters sent home are only
accessible to children.
In a household where the children open the
mail, children have the opportunity to dispose
the letter before it even reaches the parents.
Children often don’t listen to their parents
because they feel they know better. It is not
unusual for Asian kids to feel embarrassed by
their parents lack of English.
24


Many parents feel that children are less
respectful in the US and have too much
freedom because of the influence of TV.
Time out and taking away privileges do not
work for Hmong families when children play
the role of adults in most communication
outside the family.
25



In the U.S. children use child protection laws
to threaten their parents. Parents are afraid
to say anything because their children will call
the police and they can’t speak the language.
Child protection laws have taken away
traditional methods of punishing a child,
“because they are here and this is a free
country”.
One of the difference between Asian schools
and American Schools is that they were
allowed to physically discipline students.
26
Communication Barriers Between the
School System and Hmong Parents


Asian parents don’t feel that suspension will help
children not wanting to attend school; rather
causes students to drop out.
One result of poor communication between
parents and teachers, language barriers, and
failure of school personnel to learn about the
culture is poor attendance by Asian families at
school-sponsored events for parents.
27


Schools hesitate to send written materials home
in the Hmong language because they worry
about the accuracy of verbal and written
translations and can not afford to hire someone
to double check for accuracy.
Schools may say they can not afford bilingual
teachers, aides or if they have the resources,
say they can not find a qualified individual.
28
Two way communication


School meetings are often scheduled at a
convenient time for teachers but not for the
parents. Immigrant families may work two or
three different jobs.
In order for the schools and parents to
understand each other, one must lay their
traditional assumptions regarding parent
involvement aside and be as concerned about
learning the needs of parents as they are about
making parents aware of school needs.
29



Asian parents may feel like coming to US
schools with an “us vs. them” situation
Schools should have an accurate understanding
of the cultural and linguistic background.
Schools may try to impress parents to meet their
needs by telling them they will try to hire a
bilingual/bicultural staff.
30



Talk with parents directly rather than assuming
that they don’t care about their child’s education.
Provide diversity training to staffs on a regular
basis.
Hmong parents like schools to meet them half
way such as bilingual teachers calling them in
the evening or making home visits.
31
Improving home/school communication
from Unfamiliar Partners (National Coalition of Advocates for students)

Hmong parents need personal contact. Use
individuals in the community to communicate with
parents.


School staff need to be truthful. If Hmong children
are placed two or three grades below where they
should be placed, tell them. Parents think their
children are receiving straight A’s but when they
graduate they can’t go to a 4yr college but instead a
community college.
Use parents’ expertise in a positive way, rather than
impose on what schools want parents to do for their
children, for example, storytelling, chaperone a trip,
32
crafts, etc.


Hmong parents don’t feel as if they belong in
America, until they can be made to feel as an
equal part of the community, they will not feel
comfortable and fully engage in school.
A lot of schools have a large Hmong population
and very few Hmong professional employed.
More Hmong professional and staff are needed.
33
School Meetings



Select facilitators who feel comfortable with
communicating in the primary language and also
who can identify with the concerns of the
parents.
Make sure information is shared rather than
taught, and the tone of the meeting is friendly.
Send invitations in their language and follow up
with a phone call.
34



Car pool for those who don’t drive.
Provide childcare for younger children.
Provide a translator if needed.
All parents want what’s best for their kids,
and Hmong parents are not different.
35