Our Brief History for the Young Folks
Posted on: Mon, Oct 15, 2007; 9:14 PM
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Our Brief History for the Young Folks
For those of you who are interested in reading/knowing a little bit of our history (Yao).
Our Brief History:
Yao people are one of the few oldest tribes living in China today. My dad (now passed away, who can read Yao/Chinese history books) used to tell me that our ancestors used to dwelled in the caves and used stones to carved in Chinese characters on the rocks in and around the caves. My dad also said that the Chinese character was originally founded by the Yao people. Since our ancestors kept moving, migrating from place to place in the mountains, they built schools to teach the young generations but often got destroyed, or burn down by the Hans. Therefore, the Yaos never really have any well established schools to teach their young ones. As time went on, our people tend to lose grips of their own language, lacking behind in reading, writing, and grammar skills, etc.
During the 1300’s Yao people were too busy fighting a civil war with the Hans. Our ancestors had an age-old revolutionary tradition. As early as the Han Dynasty, they fought feudal imperial oppression. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, they waged more rebellions against their Han rulers. Still later, in the 15 years from 1316 to 1331, they launched more than 40 uprisings. The largest revolt lasted for a century from 1371 – 1470’s. The frightened Ming (1368-1644) emperors had to send three huge armies to conquer the rebels. The Pan-Yao group suffered huge casualties due to the war. We lost that war to the Hans.
“Many Yao people joined the Taiping army and were known for their bravery. The Yaos played an active role in China's new democratic revolution which finally led to the founding of the People's Republic. The Yao Autonomous County of Bama in Guangxi today used to be the base area of the 7th Red Army commanded by Deng Xiaoping in the 1930s.”
Post War:
By late 1800s tens of thousands of Pan Yaos, also known as Guoshan Yao fled China headed West toward North Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand, with the passport called “Guo Shan Bang” (passport for crossing the mountains) issued by the Chinese government. Another Yao group under army Pingdi also known as Chen, or Chin Group had returned to China and lived under complete control of the Han. Chin Group did not migrate west with the Pan Group.
For more than 100 years, we Iu Mien (Yao) have lost contact with those living in the Mainland. Now in the 21st century, we have Media, phone, Internet, and airplane as our major sources of keeping contacts with our people world wide.
So, keep in touch, keep making friends, and love one another as a family because our ancestors been through extremely tough times just so we can be here today. So please don't forget who you are, and where you came from.
Thanks for reading.
Lauh deix aqv mv duqv caux meih tong fienx; corc se daaih naaiv iumien.com caux baengh orn nyei fai? Ie oix bun meih bieqc mingh www.3miao.net liuz doqc mangc ninh nyei introduction gorngv taux ninh mbuo nyei site nyei mbuox[wueic haaix nyungc ninh mbuo nyei site cingx heuc zoux 3miao]iem naaiv norm topic [你知道三苗网這個名字的來歷嗎？]
它就在首頁的下面;ninh duqv gorngv taux naaiv deix buo fingx mienh: 苗，瑤caux 畬族的來歷...in 4th paragraph...see how you think ?
I always wonder why they[the Chinese]grouped Hmong[Miao] and Mien[Yao] together...until i have read this story...it is an eye opening story !
--Camv-Norm Mh Zing Tengx Jienv Doic Mangc Buatc Duqv Gauh Jangv Gauh Cing--
you're welcome, but, if the word " Yangh-Ge" is not Iu-Mien language, then, i have no idea what it means or what it is.
--Camv-Norm Mh Zing Tengx Jienv Doic Mangc Buatc Duqv Gauh Jangv Gauh Cing--
Thanks for not being a stranger in here, Mey.
Also thanks for all those Qianjiadong pix that you sent me. Of course, I still remember you; in that Qianjiadong page, I put your name on there as the provider of all the photos, and your name is in ‘link’, which means if people click on it, they can send you an e-mail (incase someone has a question about the photos). If you do not like your name/link on there, please let me know and I’ll take it out.
Unfortunately, the majority of our ‘Good Old History/Sources’ are not written in English, vast of them are from the old Chinese books. But I don’t like reading the old Chinese books; besides, I’m not good in Chinese, so I go to our friendly website, yaozu, to do most of my researches. There it has tons of links that can take you to wherever, and whatever you want to know about the Yaos; from World Yao Nationality Research Center, History, News, Foreign Affairs, to Fashions, and Foods. But there’s a catch, you must know how to read in Chinese, at least at the basic level (like me…hehe). I’ve learned a lot about our history, and our King Pan from this website. I recommend it to you and everyone else who are interested in learning about Yaos. Wish you and your love ones have a happy new year.
I have never heard of this story before; being that its Mienh-related. And thank you for sharing.
- My bf who introduced the term Yang-Ge to me believes that its a name of the dialect that is used to write in our booklets. Since the Yao or Mienh were constantly migrating and moving on or along the Yangtze river and never strayed away from this main source of water in ancient times. He thinks that it refers to the "Yangtze," (Yangtze River) and in Mienh, it was pronounced as "Yangh-Ge". To me, it doesn't really sound so clear, and overall it was just an assumption. Perhaps I'll ask my dad tonight and see if he knows anything about this "Yangh-Ge".
may i join you young folks,
" Yangh Geh" base on my understanding, they were a group of bandits [soldiers] from southern China. They went to Laos to rob and steal treasures in the 1800s especially from the ruin temples. After the war between Laos and the Siam in 1800s, Laos lost the war and country was ruin and had no rulers. I remember there were a group called the "Horv Tung Dam" Black Flag Chinese in Lao language and "Horv Tung Leuangx" which is the Yellow Flag Chinese. The Thai government had to send troops to fight them. There even story about Iu-Mien fighters sided with Thai soldiers to fight them. Lao history is not very detailful, so i don't even know which province they were from--some said they were from the province of Guang Dong. If you can find Thai history about the war between Lao and Siam, you might find some info about the "Yangh Geh" i think. They called "Janx-Yangh Geh" because their marching flags were yellow.
--Camv-Norm Mh Zing Tengx Jienv Doic Mangc Buatc Duqv Gauh Jangv Gauh Cing--
Hhhhmmm, very interesting and informative. Thank you.
My names Mey btw; I'm the person who sent you the Qianjiadong pictures a while back. I don't know if you remember but I don't know to come off like some stranger.
I asked about the term "Yangh-Ge" because my bf refers to the writing in that fashion. His father and grandfather are both shamans and I never really had the chance to ask any of the elders who might know more but thank you very much for trying to direct me here.
I have the book called "The Yao: The Mien and Mun Yao in China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand" and I've finally just taken out some time to analyze the book. I don't know if you've ever come across it or think its a reliable source, but what sources do you recommend when it comes to learning about the actual history of our people (?)
Wow...this thread is very interesting, lots of information regard to us as Mien. I wouldn't have known much if this thread didn't exist. so i just like to say Thanks for the everything you guys post up here. For some people it doesn't mean a lot but for those who really want to know where we came form, this thread gives some idea where we at. Keep it up TommyPhan, Wm. Jy., and Oroville_man, you guys are very knowlegable persons.... again, laengx zingh camv.
kao
It says that Nushu was formed by ‘women only’ in the 1950’s and beyond. But I guess now it is pretty common among the Yaos and other rural minority people who live near the Yaos. Nushu was mainly used in folk songs, or, books of love (romance); they contain mostly metaphors, sort of like a twisting figure of speech if you will.. It is still being taught in Jiangyong, Hunan province. The phrases contain mostly simple Chinese characters; but when combined (put in a sentence), their meanings are usually deep. It’s probably easy for the ordinary Chinese readers to read the characters, but hard to understand what it really means, therefore he/she can easily get lost, confused by it. Let me refer to the popular English term: ‘a rolling stone gathers no moss’
Please correct me if I’m wrong, but I think that our Mien’s tradition books used for Sipv Mienv, or folk song books are somewhat similar to Nushu mentioned above. You can take any or all of those Mien Sipv Mienv, or Song books to a Chinese professor and ask him/her to read them. I bet he/she can read most, if not all of the characters in the books. But I don’t think he/she understands them.
Honestly, I don’t know what ‘Yangh-ge’ is, but there’s a popular Chinese folk dance called 秧歌 Yangge = a popular rural folk song/dance - (sprouting crops).
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如果您能够唤回曾经的爱, 就让我用一生等待
Its okay; I sensed that coming.
So since you've mentioned that some Chinese are able to read the form of the Chinese writing system we borrowed into our religion, does that mean this form is still being learned; or were only "certain" individuals able to recognize and identify the form that we still use (?) (as you've mentioned they could read it but didn't understand it. )
Is the form of Chinese writing that we use in our ritual manuscripts referred to as "Yangh-Ge" when spoken in Mienh (?) If so, what exactly does Yangh-Ge mean (?) Is it a dialect? Is it a form of writing used directly for our ceremonies only (?)
OMG! my sincere apology, I thought you're a guy all along...=))
For awhile, I was also off about the Nushu b/c I had it mixed up with something else..
No, I don't think 'Yao' necessarily means 'barbarian', especially the current Yao.
I think in the old days, it was pretty much up to the writer to manipulate certain story, how he/she perceived it at the time. If the writer was accurate, then it had to be the ancient Yao (w/ the 'human' radical).
PS. As far as the Yao with the 'king' radical, I think it is as good as it gets.
I'm a female btw =)
So, I don't know if I've interpreted this correctly, but from how I perceive it, the term "YAO" itself didn't and doesn't necessarily mean "barbarian," but it was in fact the "old" written form/character that was used to write "YAO" that was used on a derogatory note towards the Yao. Therefore, the current and used form of "YAO" is now replaced with a "King" radical which has no discriminating reference to it.
If I'm correct, then it may explain why some people or the Chinese to be exact couldn't understand why I said that "Yao" was used on a derogatory note against us. So, I suppose this sums it up.
I'm a female, btw =).
I have read this article few times before and was just curious of which forms of the Yao group(s) the Nushu system can be found in; but I suppose that the major factor here is that they are from the Jianghua County since it doesn't pin point clearly of which branch they're from.
Also, is the form of the Chinese system (writing) that is being used in the Mienh ritual manuscripts called "Yang- Ge," when spoken in Mienh? I've always just assumed that the writing system that we borrowed (for religious purposes) was an early form of Mandarin, or no (?) You've also mentioned that some Chinese are still able to read the writing that we've preserved. Does this mean that this form of Chinese is still being practiced in China or amongst the Chinese as well, or only certain individuals are able to recognize this form of pictograph- Chinese?
Root -- Meaning------- Full Word --------- Definition
亻= human/person ------- 傜 -------------- The Original Ancient Yao
犬 = Dog/Animal ------------ 猺 ------------- The Dog Yao (War time prior to 1949) imposed by the Hans
王 = King/Royal ------------- 瑤 -------------- The current & Official Yao
瑶族 = Yao Nationality; distributed over Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Hunan, Yunnan, Guangdong, Guizhou. Also, spreaded throughout the World, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Autralia, France, Canada, and The USA...
女书 = Nushu = women's book (Nu = woman, Shu = book) Please read below about Nushu:
Or, Visit the Yao's Nushu School in Jiangyong, China at: http://www.425400.cn/ys/wf/200704/796.html
In 1982 when Gong was doing research in the Jianghua Yao Autonomous County in Hunan Province, a local official told him that a language called Nushu was prevalent in the county only among women during the 1940s-50s. "My aunt and other women often held a paper fan with Nushu on it, while singing. Although at that time I was a primary school graduate, so I could not understand even a single character written on the fan," the official explained.
In fact, in the 1950s, a woman who had mastered Nushu came to Beijing. People who received her could not understand what she said nor what she wrote. Neither could people from other provinces. The woman was brought to the State Language Commission of the People's Republic of China, where the experts could not understand her either. After many setbacks, Gong located an old lady named Gao Yinxian, aged 81, who not only could write Nushu, but had also collected more than 10 volumes of Nushu tales, the content of which mainly related to love stories.
In 1985, Gong organized an investigation team of Nushu consisting of more than 50 college students from the Central-South China Institute for Nationalities. They conducted a thorough investigation in Jiangyong County in Hunan Province, looking for people who were able to write Nushu. At one time they collected dozens of Nushu works, altogether more than 10,000 words. On this basis, they compiled The Dictionary of the Mutual Translation Between Nushu and Chinese Characters, which could help people to translate some 1,000 Nushu words into 3,000 Chinese characters.
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My guess is that: Nushu could be the old traditional Mien/Yao's language (chinese), such Chinese characters that our older generations used to Sipv Mienv, or sing folk songs were different in terms of meaning. Many chinese people can read the entire Mien/Yao's Sipv Mienv, or folk song book, but he/she may not understand it . Ask Yinhlinh gorx he might know this.
of course, everything you say has to come from a source to prove that you're not lying.
I go to www.yaozu.com for most of my Yao researches, and some times www.china.org for other nationalities & ethnicities researches.
At yaozu.com you must know how to read some Chinese, or you'll get lost easily. It has many many links.....
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~ Mingh mbatc mbiauz orqc? ~
just wondering what sources can you back up your information
Hhhm interesting; I've never heard of any revelation between the Mienh and Chinese characters. But I have heard of the Nushu written language being found traced from the Yao nationality. Do you happen to know which branch or subgroup of the Yao nationality that the Nushu language was believed to be found from?
Also, you've mentioned above about the Pingdi branch aka as the Chen, or Chin; do they speak the Mienh dialect that we speak as well as of today? I'm also concerned about the gaps and migrations that each of these branches took off and separated from one another. Do you happen to know some of the timeline in which these migrations started?
I've spoken with a Hmong student and he's also told me that the term "Man" was used to describe people as savages, uncivilized, or barbaric. "Man" is actually a Hmong word as well, meaning in their language "Barbarian". So, could it have been the generalized word at that time? (not knowing where this word derived from? Possible chance it could've been Chinese?)
I've read in a Mienh-source that the term "Nanman" was also a term to describe the Southern-Barbarians at one point in time; including the Mien/Yao I believe.
..and You're Right, Oreville_Mien (My reply to your recent statement below)
Radical:
Man = was the original of Yao
Dog = During the Oppression / Civil-War / racism period
King = the Latest and Official/Current
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~ Mingh mbatc mbiauz orqc? ~
i read from some where that the new Yao was written with the man radical to show that we are people and not barbarians with dog, but i know that the character that we use is with the radical king.
people=傜
dog=猺
king=瑤
Answer to Hope916's question below:
Either Mien or Yao is fine with me.
In the USA I go by Mien but I told the Chinese people that I'm Yao b/c they don't know what Mien is.
When I'm in China, I'm all Yao and proud of it. If you're going to China and planning to meet or find the Yao folks. It's important that you know these:
1. Qian Jia Dong
2. Pan Gu
3. Yaozu.
The people there will believe that you're a genuine Yao, and truely one of their kind, most likely you'll be treated with top respect. No guarantee though...keke.
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~ Mingh mbatc mbiauz orqc? ~
"Never settle for less because you deserve more."
To TommyPhan:
I know they both mean the same thing, but would you prefer to be called Yao or Mien?
Good Question, sao_sieqv.
Yes and No:
Yes, because before 1949 (Republic of China) - the Chinese character 'Yao' spelled with a 'Dog' radical, or root, which interpreted as insult to the Yaos world wide. Many of those who are in Laos/Thailand/Vietnam still think the Yao character hasn't changed, but it did.
No, because after 1949, (People's Republic of China) - the Yao character was Officially changed by one of the Chinese presidents . The 'Dog' radical in the Yao character had been replaced with the "King" radical, in respect of our King Pan. Though, the character still pronounced the same "Yao" but with the King radical instead of Dog/animal. I'm sure if you ask your Dad or someone older who understands Chinese can explain or write them down to show you the differences of the two.
As of now, millions of Yao people in China today are happy with the change, and those who understands are also happy, I know I am happy too. I hope I have answered your question, Sao_sieqv.
New Official Yao = 瑶 (since 1949)
Click link to see the animal Yao (it's no longer in use, therefore, I can't find it in my software to copy it in here for u to see). http://www.angelfire.com/ca6/tomswebpage/yaodog.html
Awesome! But, I heard that "YAO" was used for us as an insult. Is that true?