Name of
Ethnic Group: Mong or H'Mong (Mong Do (White Mong), Mong Lenh (Variety Mong), Mong Si (Red Mong), Mong Du (Black
Mong) and Mong Sua (Man Mong)).
Population:
More than 558,000 people.
Locality:
The Mong are concentrated in the highland regions in the provinces of Ha Giang, Tuyen
Quang, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Lai Chau, Son La, Cao Bang and Nghe An.
Customs
and Habits: Each lineage lives within a group setting. The head of the village
assumes the common affairs for the lineage. Young Mong men and women are free to choose
their partners. Marriages are absolutely forbidden between men and women of the same
lineage. Matrimonial life of the Mong is very harmonious and divorce is very rare.
Culture: Mong language belongs to the H'Mong-Dao
Group. The Traditional Tet (New Year's Day) of the Mong is organized every December.
They refrain from eating green vegetables during the three days of the Tet Holiday. The musical instruments
of the Mong include various kinds of "khen" (pan-pipes) and lip organs.
After a hard working day and to celebrate spring, the young men and women often
play "khen" and lip organs to express their feelings for their partners.
Costumes:
The Mong make their clothes from linen. Women's attire consists of a skirt, a blouse
that opens at the front and has embroidery on the back, an apron to cover the skirt at the
front, and leggings.
Economy:
The Mong live mainly on slash-and-burn cultivation. They also grow rice and corn on
terraced fields. Their principal food plants are corn, rice, and rye. Apart from these
crops, they also grow medicinal plants and linen plants to supply the fibers for
cloth weaving.
|