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HMONG HILL TRIBES
The Hmong live in houses that sit right on the ground, not on stilts
as do most on the other tribes. However, the main floor of their
houses is not at ground level, but rests upon a kind of above-ground
basement or root cellar that they use for food storage. Moreover,
their house-fronts slope outward and downward, an architectural
feature that is the trademark of their villages.
The Hmong , even more than the other tribes, practice a strict
male-female division of labor. One custom that especially
illustrates this is that of giving a newborn boy a gift of metal
from which he will one they forge a weapon, whereas newborn girls
receive no special gift.
The Hmong are a diligent, patient, and independent people, fond of
wearing their silver ornaments during ceremonies and much devoted to
the sky spirit they believe has created both the world and their own
ancient way of life.
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