Hmong Clothing Essay

History of Hmong Clothing

Hearing the guns shooting and running quickly through the forest with love ones trying to escape the Vietnam War, the Hmong people flee to cross the Mekong River. When crossing the river, many of the Hmong people died trying to save lives of others due to the battlefield the people were on. As the war ended in 1975, families that had escaped the war started their new life here, in the United States. Many Hmong people today still embrace their culture (“Hmong Needlework”). Hmong people around the world are known for many things, such as their help with the Vietnam War, culture, language, clothing, etc. Life now in the United States compared to life in Laos was different. In Laos, life of the fathers and sons would

go out and hunt for food to feed the family. Mothers and daughters would look after the house, cook, clean, and make embroidery. Making embroidery was a tradition to the Hmong culture (“Hmong Attire”). From a young age, Hmong girls learn how to sew and copy motifs from their mothers and grandmothers. Most girls would sew their own clothing for many celebrations (“Hmong Embroidery”). Hmong clothing symbolizes some of the most important religious beliefs of the Hmong culture.
The importance of Hmong clothing to Hmong people show and tells a lot about themselves. Hmong clothes show a lot of cultural and religious beliefs behind the Hmong history. The three primary reasons to wear traditional Hmong clothing was to identify oneself as Hmong, to display the wealth of one’s family, especially during the Hmong New Years, and to prepare oneself for the passage into the spiritual world (Condora). Hmong clothing also tells and documents stories behind their culture and religions (Vang). Documentations about the Hmong people are always sewn on a quilt called Paj Ntaub Dab Neej also known as a moral of Hmong history in English, which was to tell about the Hmong history throughout the years to children, elders, and also to many other Hmong clans. Story cloths is an outstanding example of new textile art form (Cha 19). These traditional story cloths are both old and present, it shows a link between the past and the continuing present of the Hmong community.
Hmong clothing are made from different types of materials and weaving techniques.

Most weaving technique that is used are the reverse applique quilting method. One major material that the clothing is made from is hemp. Hemp is a very important plant and the fibers of the hemp stalk are stripped, spun into fiber threads and woven into cloth (“Hmong Embroidery"). The continuation of the hemp weaving tradition is negatively correlated with an increased standard of living, improvements in infrastructure and exposure to market goods. Hemp continues to play an important role in the traditional ceremonies (Clarke). As the Hmong clothing evolve, synthetic fabrics were preferred over hemp. Traditionally, Hmong embroidery is used as a form of decoration on clothing to make it bright and beautiful. Hmong embroidery includes bright colors: pinks, reds, greens, as well as blues, and these are sometimes used to contrast with the colors of yellow and brown overlaid with white. “Today, many of the Hmong outsiders use sewing machines to make their embroideries” (Moua). Hmong women later adapted traditional motifs and developed new styles and decorations on the clothing (“Hmong

Embroidery").
Each subgroup of the Hmong people have different clothing when it came to dressing (Kislenko 124). Within the Hmong community, there are about ten subgroups and throughout those subgroups, there are eighteen different clans. Each clan, there are either Hmong white, green, black, stripe, Xieng Khuang, Luang Prabang, Miao, and many more. These are the different types of Hmong. Within the Hmong, there are eighteen clans, such as Chang, Chue, Cheng, Fang, Her, Hang, Khang, Kong, Kue, Lee, Lor, Moua, Pha, Thao, Vang, Vue, Xiong, and Yang. Each of these type of clans have different type of clothing for their subgroups. “There are differences in clothing based on their dialect” (Moua). For Hmong white, the design of the shirt is black with a blue or white trimming at the bottom sleeves, white skirt and black apron. In Figure 1 below, it shows an example of how the clothing looks like of the Hmong white. Hmong green has a floral print shirt, tribal print skirt and a synthetic apron to match the shirt (“Hmong Attire”). Hmong Luang Prabang dress in black pants, black or blue shirt and apron along with a headdress hat decorated with poms poms. Striped Hmong would wear striped shirts, pants that are black with a blue or black apron also with a circle hat headdress. Hmong Miao has similar clothing as the Hmong green, but it is more Chinese looking (“Hmong Attire”). These clothings show who they are and where they originate from, whether if they were from Laos, China, Vietnam or Thailand.
Hmong clothing can be used in many different ways whether if it is used during a funeral or a traditional wedding.

For example, to prepare for one's passage into the spirit world, they must be buried in their type of Hmong clothing either if they are white, green, stripe, etc. For the Hmong men, they are usually buried in a suit. While the Hmong women are to be buried in a traditional Hmong white or pleated skirt, wearing the shirt of their type along with a turban hat of their kind. It is traditional for the dead to wear Hmong clothing when buried in Laos because it show respect and it shows guidance for the soul to enter Heaven. Lengths of traditional Hmong funerals in Laos lasted up to almost a week, but here in America today, it lasts three days (Yang 254). Hmong funerals last long because it is to choose a good day for the dead to be buried. In the Hmong community, Hmong clothing is also used for traditional Hmong weddings. As the daughter of a family gets married, the mother in law is to prepare traditional Hmong clothing of their type for the daughter in law to wear as she goes back home for the wedding that is held at the daughter in laws house. The best man and the maid of honor will be dressed exactly the same as the newly wedded couple. After the wedding ceremony at the daughter in laws when the daughter is given away to the new son in law, the daughter is to wear the clothes that her mother had prepared for her to represent what type of Hmong her family is to

return back home to her husband’s family. This is to show and represent for the daughter to know and remember what kind of hmong she is, whether if she is hmong white, green, stripe, black, etc (Condora).
Hmong clothing can be found all around the world, even at occasions. In different states, each year a Hmong New Year is held for Hmong families to gather around and catch up. Hmong New Years can be held at different times of different months. For example, in North Carolina, the Hmong New Year is held during Thanksgiving week, in another state such as California, their Hmong New Year is held on the last week of December to the first day of January (“Annual Hmong International Hmong New Year”). Throughout the Hmong New Year, there are many things that can be found such as Hmong clothing, vendors, sports, ball tossing, singing, beauty pageants, etc. According the Hlee Moua, Hmong clothing at the New Years are to be used to express their ethnic identity and display of cultural heritage. At Hmong New Years, many people wear Hmong clothing. It is known that it brings them good luck, health and prosperity as the new year arrives (“Hmong Embroidery”). This give the Hmong community more presentable look of who they are.
Throughout the forty years that the Hmong have been living in the United States, there has been significant changes in the Hmong outfits.
The patterns, color and decorations have been enhanced. In the past it has been plain and simple because it was more for everyday wear. Today because it is only worn during the new year events, every outfit has its own intricate details, needlework, unique design and elegance to it. As the Hmong changed their designs and way it has been seen, it has changed how the hmong clothing is seen in the past compared to today. (Moua)
In Figure 2 at the right, it shows a comparison of how Hmong clothing was back then compared to present time. Many of these transformations of textiles are now mass-produced and machine sewed. This allows annual response to the American fashion trends of today (“Fashion, Tradition and Cultural Authentical”). Many young women of the Hmong community can purchase
printed. As the new style evolves, Hmong clothing has had fewer layers of cloth, light weight fabrics and plastic beads. This is because young Hmong girls today in the society have complained that the Hmong clothing in the past is too heavy, bulky and time consuming (“Fashion, Tradition and Cultural Authentical”). In the United States as the new trend of thin and lightweight hmong clothing evolves, more and more younger generations of the Hmong community wears the new style of Hmong clothing.
Traditional Hmong clothing are still being used and are still passed down from generations to generations. As older young generations begin to grow more and more into learning about their culture and history, they will soon learn about how needlework has always been a source of great pride to Hmong women in the past and even today in the present time. Although living in the United States today, Hmong women have changed and adapted traditional motif and developed tapestries, it is still a form of traditional textile of decorations on clothing (“Hmong Embroidery”). Today in the present time, many younger Hmong women have made self designed clothing of their choice with Hmong clothes and other different kinds of fabrics. As they make these self design clothings, the designs and patterns that are shown on the clothing still represents who they are and which subgroups they represent. Once Hmong women have evolved the clothing and made their own self design clothing, the needlework and textile throughout the outfits is still together as one, because it still incorporates the history behind the Hmong community and their cultural beliefs. Whether if the Hmong clothing is made in Laos or in the United States, the variations of styles and designs are incredible and amazing.
Embroidered Hmong clothing are still displayed all around the world today. Productions of Hmong clothing has become transnational in sales and production. Cross stitching on many of the women’s clothing is still valued for traditional costumes for the New Year's festivals, but the more difficult reverse appliqué was seen very little on new garments (Craig). Although Hmong needlework changed over years that they have lived here in the United States, the Hmong community hopes that the textiles on the designs will still define and identify who the Hmong are and that it will not be lost and forgotten within the newborn generations that is slowly forgetting their culture and history of who they are. Many newborn generations today in the Hmong community may not know the importance and history behind the clothing. As the Hmong continue to live in America, their lifestyles have changed because of employment and education(“Hmong Embroidery”). Today, Hmong women and young generations do not have as much time as in the past to make the beautiful needlework as they did in Laos.
As of today in the present time, American clothing has had a small taste of the Hmong needlework designs. From around the years Hmongs have been living here, American clothing from around the world had shown a small amount of Hmong needlework in their clothing. Hmong needlework designs are shown on purses, shirts, pants, shoes, belts, etc. These items have became the new style of the American and Hmong trend.
Hmong clothing is still important to the Hmong culture as of today in the Hmong community. Even though many Hmong people nowadays may not know what the meaning of Hmong clothing is, it is still traditional to everyone in the Hmong clan and region. Without the clothing, Hmong people would have not been known. Hmong clothing is still a traditional religious belief to remember the past, present and upcoming future of the Hmong people and it still represents who they are. The importance of Hmong clothing is to identity the Hmong people, show their cultural beliefs, display wealth of one’s family, and to prepare for one’s passage into the spirit world. Their needlework is made out of hemp, which is a plant and its fibers are woven into thread for the cloth. Throughout the Hmong family, there are eighteen different clans and within those clans there are different subgroups. These subgroups have different clothing to tell who they are and where they originate from. These amazing needlework and embroidery can be found at Hmong New Years that are held at different times in different states. Hmong clothing that is shown at the Hmong New Years is to express their ethnic identity and display of cultural heritage. Throughout the forty years that the Hmong refugees have been living in the United States, Hmong clothing has been changed and has evolved over the years. Layers of the clothing have become light weight and more colorful. Although Hmong clothing has changed and adapted traditional motif and developed tapestries, it is still a form of traditional textile of decorations on clothing. Needlework has always been a source of great pride to Hmong women in past and present. American clothing from around the world included Hmong needlework into their clothing throughout the past few years. This new style of incorporating the Hmong embroidery to American clothing has became a very popular trend today. As Hmong clothing has evolved from the past, young generations may not know the importance of Hmong clothing and the art of Hmong embroidery can soon be lost among the new and young generation. It is still being continued to be produced by Hmong artists today and it still symbolizes some of the most important religious beliefs of the Hmong culture in this country and in Laos.