10 things: Hmong culture, food and language (2024)

10 things: Hmong culture, food and language (1)

This story was originally published in March 2015.

It's been 40 years since the Hmong people first began arriving in Minnesota. Today, the state boasts the second-largest Hmong population in the nation. An exhibit opens Saturday at the Minnesota History Center that tells their stories.

  • Related'We are Hmong Minnesota': A 40-year journey, remembered
  • Listen to the storyIn Hmong
  • MoreMinnesota's Hmong story

The Hmong are members of an ethnic group that have not had a country of their own. For thousands of years, the Hmong lived in southwestern China. But when the Chinese began limiting their freedom in the mid-1600s, many migrated to Laos, Thailand and other neighboring countries.

During the Vietnam War, the Hmong in Laos aided and partnered with American forces to fight Southeast Asian Communists in what is now known as the "Secret War."

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  • January 2015Looking back at 40 years of Hmong migration to U.S.

After the United States pulled out of Laos, Communist forces began retaliating against the Hmong for siding with the United States. Thousands fled — and died — and numerous refugee camps were set up in Thailand.

Many Hmong families eventually resettled in the United States, France, Australia and other parts of the world.

1.) First things first: How do you pronounce ‘Hmong?’

(And no, the plural form of Hmong is not Hmongs.)

2.) How did the Hmong end up in Minnesota?

There are several reasons. When the Hmong first came to the United States, the State Department gave the resettlement contract to volunteer agencies such as Catholic Charities, Lutheran Social Service and Church World Service.

"As such, they placed people where they have churches and were willing to sponsor a family," said Lee Pao Xiong, director of the Center for Hmong Studies at Concordia University in St. Paul.

Refugees were also placed in areas where jobs were available.

Finally, Hmong people come from a "collective society," Xiong said. "After the initial Hmong families settled here, they encouraged their relatives and friends to move here as well, so that they could support each other. So, a great deal of secondary migration took place after the initial resettlement."

3.) Where are the other major Hmong population centers in the United States?

According to 2010 Census data, California has the largest Hmong population in the United States — more than 91,000 call the Golden State home. Minnesota ranks second, with more than 66,000, and Wisconsin is third, with a Hmong population of about 49,000.

However, the Twin Cities easily tops other metropolitan areas. Most of Minnesota's Hmong population resides in the metro area (about 65,000); the second-largest metro concentration of Hmong people is in Fresno, Calif., with about 32,000.

Within the Twin Cities, St. Paul has the largest population by far with nearly 30,000 Hmong. Minneapolis is a distant second with about 7,500, followed by Brooklyn Park with about 5,200 and Brooklyn Center with about 3,200. Maplewood rounds out the top five with a population of about 2,200.

4.) Are all Hmong people from Laos? Does that make them Lao as well?

In a word, no. The Center for Hmong Studies' Xiong elaborates:

"The word 'Lao' is traditionally used to describe the Lao people, who are the majority in Laos. The Hmong are an ethnic group within the country of Laos. In Laos, the Hmong are called Hmong, even by the majority Lao. So as not to confuse people, Hmong are Hmong and Lao are Lao. It's like apples and oranges. Both are from (Laos), but labeled differently."

5.) Why does everyone have the same last name?

There are 18 clans in the Hmong culture, each with a different name. Children are members of their father's clan. Women, upon marriage, become members of their husband's clan, but typically retain their original clan — or, rather, maiden name. Members of the same clan consider themselves family.

The 18 clans (and surnames) are:

6.) What's the difference between White Hmong and Green Hmong?

The Hmong language has two dialects: white and green. They are similar to the British and American forms of English. If you're White Hmong, you speak the White Hmong dialect and vice versa.

The names — white and green — refer to the colors and patterns of each group's traditional clothing. White Hmong women typically wear a white pleated skirt.

But nowadays, most Hmong don't limit their fashion to the dialect they speak.

7.) Why do Hmong words look so different from how they sound when spelled out? For example, nyob zoo (hello) looks nothing like how it's pronounced, nah zhong.

Traditionally, Hmong passed down their history orally or through story cloths (paj ntaub). A Romanized writing system was developed by missionaries in the 1950s.

The Romanized Popular Alphabet takes into account the eight tones of the Hmong language; the final letter of each word indicates the tone.

Bee Vang-Moua, director of the Hmong language program in the Asian Languages and Literature Department at the University of Minnesota, said the Hmong written language is not a phonetic translation into English, as may be the case with other languages. For example, in Mandarin, hello is usually translated to ni hao, which looks how it sounds.

"It's harder to grasp when you see a language like Mandarin ... when they use the RPA system, Romanized letters, they are sounding it out," she said. "When you see the actual Hmong writing, it is the sound of the Hmong language.

"Using the same alphabet letters, people get confused, they think we're trying to write Hmong sounds that pertain to English readers but we're not. We're writing Hmong sounds for the Hmong language," she said. "That's why it doesn't look like the way it sounds."

Some Hmong words and phrases as written using RPA (spelling may vary):

  • Hmong: Hmoob (Mung)

  • Goodbye: Sib ntsib dua (She jee doua)

  • How are you?: Koj nyob li cas (Gaw nyaw lee cha)

  • My name is: Kuv lub npe yog (Goo loo bae yaw)

8.) Why do funerals last so long?

10 things: Hmong culture, food and language (2)

According to Hmong tradition, when a person dies, their soul must return to their birthplace, then travel on to meet their ancestors in the afterlife. Rituals during the dayslong ceremony are meant to ensure safe passage.

  • May 2013Preserving a tradition that prepares Hmong souls for eternity

Nowadays, funerals typically begin on a Friday morning and continue day and night until Monday, when the body is buried.

9.) What are some common Hmong foods — and where can I try them?

10 things: Hmong culture, food and language (3)

Hmong cuisine has similarities to the food in surrounding Asian countries, and is characterized by the use of spices and herbs. Simple soups and rice are a staple of the Hmong diet. (Try these recipes for sticky rice and everyday rice from The Splendid Table.)

Check out the food courts at Hmongtown Marketplace at 217 Como Ave. in St. Paul, or Hmong Village at 1001 Johnson Parkway in St. Paul. (Warning: The shopping centers get extremely busy on weekends and parking can be tricky.)

Other local restaurants that serve Hmong food include:

  • Maiv's Egg Roll Basket — they serve dessert egg rolls — 1935 Beam Ave. N., Maplewood

  • Thai Cafe, 371 University Ave. W., St. Paul

  • Hmong House, 2112 11th Ave. N., North St. Paul

Some grocery stores, like Sun Foods on University Avenue near Dale Street, also have delis.

Popular dishes:

  • Hmong barbecue and Hmong sausage

  • Pho (Fuh) This beef noodle soup is a Vietnamese dish but the Hmong love it. You can get a good bowl anywhere in St. Paul's Frogtown neighborhood or on Eat Street in Minneapolis, but try iPho by Saigon or Pho Ca Dao on University Avenue and Quang on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis.

  • Larb (Laa) A minced meat salad combined with mint and other herbs. (recipe)

  • Papaya salad A great place to get some of this tart and crunchy salad is at Coco's Island Papaya -N- Deli at Hmongtown Marketplace, but you can't go wrong at most places. You can have the salads made as mild or as spicy as you'd like.

  • Khaub poob (Kah poong) A curry noodle dish. A good bowl can be found at either of the food courts mentioned above.

  • Nab vam (Na vah) A coconut-rich, tricolored tapioca dessert. Served with ice.

Be sure to try to some purple sticky rice, as well. It's served at celebrations — especially New Year's — and oftentimes with Hmong barbecue or sausage.

10.) I'm interested in learning more about the Hmong. What are some good books to read?

History

Memoirs and anthologies

Food

Don't miss

Online resources:

10 things: Hmong culture, food and language (2024)

FAQs

What are important things to know about the Hmong culture? ›

Hmong people are traditionally not individualistically oriented, but identify the self as a member of the family, clan and community. Hmong culture emphasizes relationships between relatives and clan members, with respect for elders and strong families.

What is the Hmong culture for kids? ›

Hmong parenting practices are governed by the idea that children are possessions of parents; children must listen to and obey their parents and elders. Infants are not shown physical affection for fear of spoiling them; parental love is demonstrated through gifts and the meeting of basic needs.

What are the characteristics of the Hmong language? ›

All Hmong-Mien languages are tonal languages, some with large and complex inventories of tones. For example, five of the eight Shidongkou Hmu (“Black Miao”) tones are level tones that are spoken at different pitches, a world-record number of pitch level distinctions.

What are cultural foods? ›

Cultural foods — also called traditional dishes — represent the traditions, beliefs, and practices of a geographic region, ethnic group, religious body, or cross-cultural community. Cultural foods may involve beliefs about how certain foods are prepared or used.

Is Hmong a culture or race? ›

Hmong, ethnic group living chiefly in China and Southeast Asia and speaking Hmong, one of the Hmong-Mien languages (also known as Miao-Yao languages). Since the late 18th century, the Hmong alone among the Miao groups have slowly migrated out of the southern provinces of China, where about 2.7 million still remain.

What is considered rude in Hmong culture? ›

Laughing or making rough comments is rude and shows insincerity. Sitting too close to the opposite gender while talking is inappropriate. When entering a Hmong home, take off your shoes and don't step on the doorsill.

How old is the Hmong culture? ›

The earliest written accounts show the Hmong living in China since 2700 B.C. However, following conflicts with the Han Dynasty, during the 19th century, some Hmong migrated in large numbers to the highlands of Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand in an effort to maintain their cultural identity (Quincy, 1995).

What do Hmong believe? ›

The Hmong religion is traditionally animist (animism is the belief in the spirit world and in the interconnectedness of all living things). At the center of Hmong culture is the Txiv Neeb, the shaman (literally, "father/master of spirits").

Is Hmong a hard language? ›

Is Hmong Easy to Learn? I think the best answer is this: Hmong can be easy to learn. If you compare it to many other languages, Hmong has a very low barrier to entry. One of these is that the written language uses only roman characters with no special characters or diacritics at all.

Is Hmong a rare language? ›

While the exact number of speakers worldwide is unknown, it's estimated that 2 to 3 million people use the language. The standard dialect of the language is Western Hmong, a group of dialects spoken in southwestern China, Northern Vietnam, Northern Thailand, and Laos.

Are Hmong considered Chinese? ›

The Hmong are an ethnic group of people with specific language and culture. The Hmong originally came from China with over 4,000 years of history. Some Hmong left China to Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Burma beginning in the early 1800's as a result of land expansion by the Chinese government.

What is Hmong taboo? ›

Culturally, it is a taboo for members of the same surname to marry, due to the belief that members of the same surname share an ancestral line regardless of whether or not they are actually blood related. For the Hmong, marriage is the pathway to adulthood.

How is the Hmong diet characterized? ›

Hmong do not consume tobacco and alcoholic products excessively. Rice, chicken, beef, and eggs were the most frequently identified food items. Fruits and vegetables were also identified. Low alcohol and tobacco consumption may offer Hmong some protection against certain diseases.

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