Answered by Mrs.Xiong
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Oct. 19, 2009 10:54
Well not exactly...Historically it has included many different people including the Hmong, Yao, Akha and etc.. Today the term has become synonymous with the Hmong. One has to be careful thought because to Hmong people all the people considered by the Chinese to be Hmong would not necessarily be Hmong. They might today still by Yao, or another group. There is no one Hmong culture. There is a great diversity of Hmong people on a continuum which Hmong people in the US are a part of on one end, to people that are totally unrecognizable the Hmong of Laos/Thailand/USA. Even the Hmong in Vietnam are distinct, and likewise that diversity is greatly exacerbated throughout China. Hmong people have lived as a tribal people for thousands of years, fitting in with each environment around them and likewise their cultures have become so diverse. However, in the Hmong language, which is its own distinct language family, the word for Hmong people (which means the people, not free) is Hmong not Miao. Miao is a Chinese word.