Mien in Asia

Here's a couple articles written about the Iumien/Mien by OMF International, a Christian Missionary.


IU-MIEN OF CHINA

The Iu Mien have a legend. It concerns an emperor of China named Pien Hung who was attacked by an even greater emperor, Kao Wang. Pien Hung was facing defeat when a dog, Phan Hu, broke through the lines, attacked Emperor Wang and brought back his head in victory to Pien Hung. He was rewarded with marriage to one of Hung's daughters. They ran off into the hills and eventually had 12 children. The descendants of those are the 12 clans of the Iu Mien. Many Iu Mien remember their ancestral heritage by three hand-written books: the "Book of Days" which they consult for auspicious days to marry or engage in important activity, the "Ancestor Book" which names nine generations of ancestors, and a "Mien Passport" which was issued by Emperor Pien Hung to Mien living in China, allowing them freedom to travel and cultivate land in his territory. Few, however, have their names written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Population and Geographical Distribution
Over 1 million Iu Mien live in the hilly counties of the provinces of Guangxi, Guangdong, Yunnan, Hunan and Guizhou. They are one of the Yao peoples, one of the 55 nationally recognized minorities in China. The word "Yao" is used to cover four major subgroups which are unrelated. These are divided into 15-20 people groups, each with their own language and culture. The Iu Mien are the largest of all those called "Yao," but not all Yao are Iu Mien.

Language
The Iu Mien language belongs to the Miao-Yao branch of the Han-Tibetan family, and many of its dialects resemble Miao dialects. Owing to centuries of contact with the Han and Zhuang peoples, many Yao speak the Han and Zhuang languages. There are five major dialects. Yao is a written language; written Han is also in common use.

Livelihood
The Yao living in the provinces of Hunan, Guangdong and Guangxi are dry rice farmers whose economy is similar to that of neighboring Han and Zhuang. Some Yao tribes engage in forestry, collect and sell medicinal herbs and make charcoal, as well as farm. Yao women are skilled at brocade, embroidery and batik. The Yao along Tea Hill in the Jinxiu (Yao) Autonomous County, Guangxi, work in the paddy fields and on hillsides and earn a good income from such cash crops as mushrooms, edible fungus and star anise.

Culture
The Iu Mien have been described as "slow-motion nomads" because they move their hillside villages from time to time when soil is no longer productive for their rice farming. From two to fifty or sixty might live in one house, married sons living with their parents, in wooden houses with thatch roofs. Two doors allow entry, one for men and guests, the other for women, leading to the kitchen areas. Another "big door" leads to the ancestral altar and gives easy entrance for the spirits when necessary.

Young people choose their mates with parental agreement and a substantial bride price is paid. The Iu Mien show special respect to their maternal uncles. In some places, the daughter of a paternal aunt must wed the son of a maternal uncle. The girl can only marry outside the family if the uncle has no sons, but the uncle is still entitled to a dowry from his sister's family. Harmonious relationships are very important in Iu Mien culture.

Though the women's basic costume is a black tunic and turban, everything from their loose-fitting pants to shoulder bags are intricately embroidered. The skull caps worn by babies and toddlers have large red pompoms.

The Iu Mien have a rich folk literature, including many myths, legends and folktales. They also produce many folk songs to express their thoughts and inner feelings.

Religion
The Iu Mien believe in Daoism and practice ancestor worship. They also believe in a variety of gods and demons, and fear spirits of the dead, especially spirits who were adversaries in life. Merit-making ceremonies and sacrifices regulate their relationship with the spirits.

They also believe an individual has many souls. When one soul leaves, sickness occurs; when all the souls leave, the person dies. One spirit, however, is reincarnated. Sickness is handled by a shaman, who is especially open to dealings with the spirit world. At death, a piece of silver is placed in the mouth of the deceased and a three-day ceremony follows with sacrifices of pigs and large amounts of paper money. The spirits are invited into a straw effigy of the deceased individual which is then beaten and taken out into the jungle to prevent those spirits from entering the village.

Church Situation
Early mission work by Catholic Christians brought the Roman Catholic faith to Iu Mien in Shangsi County of Guangxi and Liannan County of Guangdong. Prior to 1949 there was some Protestant mission work among the Iu Mien. Translation of the New Testament was completed in 1975 and it is being printed by Amity in China. According to some reports, there may be 10,000 Iu Mien Christians. In recent years Iu Mien living in Yunnan have come to know Christ because of gospel radio broadcasts in their language. In 2006 the complete Bible should be translated into their language.



MIEN OF THAILAND

Population and Geographical Distribution
The Mien are a sub-group of the Yao in China, and they originated from Southwest China. There are over 34,000 Mien living in 173 villages in North Thailand. Some are found in Laos (21,000) and Vietnam (531,000) with the majority still in China. There are about 1 million Yao living in China. The Yao found in Thailand are the Yiu Mien, one of the major Mien groups.

Language
Linguistically, the Mien language belongs to the Miao-Yao family. It has been rendered in Thai-based and romanized script. The Mien, however, have a tradition of writing based on Chinese characters.

Religion
The Mien combine two religious beliefs: animism and Daoism, as it was practiced in the 13th and 14th centuries. The National Statistical Office in 1988 reported 32% Buddhist, 37% animist, 26% Buddhist/animist and 5% Christian. The Daoist rituals are expensive, and the Mien appear to spend a great deal of time struggling to save enough money to afford the various ceremonies, such as weddings, merit-making and death ceremonies.

Livelihood
The Mien economy was previously based upon shifting cultivation of dry rice, corn, and small quantities of opium poppy. Today, the Mien are establishing farms and are more settled.

Christian Missions
OMF began working among the Mien in North Thailand in 1952. Today, a team of OMF missionaries continues to work among the Mien. One OMF missionary is currently preparing a new translation of the Bible in Mien. Having completed the New Testament and the Pentatauch, she is now translating the rest of the Old Testament. Christian Mien radio broadcasts are also being aired.

Christianity
There are 14 church groups that meet in three districts: North, Central and South. As the villages are small, the average congregation is around 20 adults. For many years, the main problem in the Mien church has been nominalism. Recently, however, many appear to have come into an understanding faith, but the church groups are still characterized by a general lack of commitment. Promising young Mien Christians leave their villages for the larger towns in pursuit of tertiary education and employment.