By Katrya Ly
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Celebrating xyoo tshiab the new year is an important tradition for the Hmong to give thanks to their ancestors for the year past and to welcome new beginnings for the year to follow. Historically, welcoming the new year is the largest community event and celebration for Hmong people. During this time, Hmong people are able to take a break from farm work, socialize with Hmong people from other villages, and take a rest in preparation for the year to come. While Hmong New Year celebrations have evolved over time, some of the traditional practices have carried on with the younger Hmong generations. The New Year Celebration continues to be a time of gathering and joy for Hmong people. It not only serves as a festival, but also an important act of cultural preservation and development.
Background
Hmong New Year is referred to as Noj Peb Caug, which translates literally as “eat thirty.” Some people believe the phrase “eat thirty” comes from the celebration lasting a minimum of three days with 10 different food dishes prepared per day, totaling 30 dishes to be eaten. Others have noted that “eat thirty” is because Hmong New Year is intended to be celebrated on the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month. Hmong people have historically not followed the lunar calendar and the date for festivities is often determined by village elders.
Celebrations often take place during the months of November to early January, signifying the end of the harvest season. Representatives from different neighboring villages would often be in communication to stagger their celebrations, allowing villagers to attend one another’s New Year’s festivities. Hmong people from different villages would visit neighboring villages in order to meet new Hmong people. For young and unmarried boys and girls, this might be a way for them to find a potential romantic partner. If a young man boy meets a young woman that he had interest in, he may stay longer in that village to court her.
This practice of staggering celebrations has continued on in the United States. The Hmong community in St. Paul, Minnesota, which has the largest urban population of Hmong people in the United States, starts their New Year festivities right after Thanksgiving weekend. Meanwhile the Hmong community in Fresno, California, which has second largest urban population of Hmong people in the United States, and holds the largest Hmong New Year’s Celebration, typically begins their celebration following the Christmas holiday. Many Hmong people travel to different states to experience the different Hmong New Year celebrations. Some may start their festivities in Minnesota and end in California. Additionally, some Hmong travel globally to America, Thailand, and/or Laos to experience the New Year celebrations there as well.
Typically, Hmong New Year celebrations last three to ten days, but globally celebrations vary based on the size of the local Hmong community. For smaller Hmong communities, the New Year event may only be one day long and they may travel to neighboring communities for larger celebrations. Larger Hmong American communities, like those of Saint Paul or Fresno, typically host celebrations that last three to four days. The scale of these festivals are also larger, taking up fairgrounds and attracting crowds of Hmong and non-Hmong people alike. In Saint Paul, organizers estimate that the Hmong New Year celebration draws an average of 40,000 people per day. While in Fresno, it is estimated that over 100,000 people attend across the days.
Purpose of the New Year
Historically, the purpose of the New Year festivities was to celebrate the end of the harvest and to give thanks to the ancestors for a fruitful year. Hmong family groups would each prepare a feast for their relatives, which included various meat dishes and food prepared with the crops they had harvest.
In addition to the feast, Hmong families paid tribute to their ancestors and asked for blessings in the upcoming year. Those who practice traditional shamanism – a practice that draws a connection between the spiritual and material world-also performs an in-house ritual offering to their ancestors.
The purpose of this offering is to thank ancestors for watching over the family and ask for continued blessings. In addition to the ritual offering, there is also soul-calling or hu plig. Hu plig is intended to call back and reunite the souls of each member of the family that may have wandered. The Hmong believe that a person exists in the spiritual world and material world. Those whose souls wander from their bodies may face illness and misfortune, so the ritual is intended to provide healing and protection.
The Hmong, originating from China, shares many traditional New Year practices with the Chinese. As scholars Gary Yia Lee and Nicholas Tapp noted, some of these practices are no longer practiced by the Chinese, but is still being carried on by the Hmong. A few common practices include cleaning one’s home before the new year, wearing new clothing during the New Year festivities, and taking a break from farming and work.
Prior to the new year, Hmong people clean their homes to symbolize a fresh start. Throwing away old things and cleaning one’s home symbolizes getting rid of any bad energy or events from the previous year. Additionally, months leading up to the celebration, mothers and elder sisters may prepare and sew new clothing for the family to wear. These typically bright and intricate outfits are meant to be shown off at the New Year festival. Wearing new clothing symbolizes a fresh start for the new year. Finally, this period is a time of rest and joy for families who are typically working long hours farming in the fields. It serves as a way for families to reconnect and enjoy time together away from work.
Socializing and Courting
One major aspect of the New Year celebration was for unmarried Hmong boys and girls to meet and court. Courtship was in the form of a pov pob, a ball toss game, that would give them an opportunity to get to know each other and sing songs together. They lined up across from one another and toss a ball, made of cloth scraps. While a fairly simple game, players took the task quite seriously. The first of the pair to drop the ball must sing a kws txhiaj sung poetry song, forfeit an item such as a hairpin or handkerchief, or buy candy or a treat for the other person. All punishments for dropping the ball served as ways for pairs to get to know each other and/or meet at a later and more private time. For example, a boy might try to return the forfeited item to his partner at a later time or the pair may retrieve the won treat together. Present day, pov pob is still a popular game played during Hmong New Year, now usually with a tennis ball or more decorated handmade sequined balls. At New Year celebrations across America, you can find the line of pairs throwing balls back and forth. Additionally, pairs utilize the time throwing the ball back and forth in order to ask questions and get to know one another. Just like its origin, pov pob is a fun pastime activity that allows for Hmong people to socialize outside of their everyday lives.
Differences Across Time
Over the decades, Hmong people have added to and adapted Hmong New Year festivities. Modern day Hmong New Year festivities include new activities such as fashion shows, dance competitions, and beauty pageants that traditional celebrations did not have. These activities have added to the showcasing of Hmong culture and are one way that Hmong people partake in cultural preservation and development.
Fashion shows are one way to show off the beauty and history of Hmong clothing. While each fashion show is different, they often feature different styles of Hmong traditional wear fused with modern styles. At one Hmong New Year fashion show hosted by Helping Mentor Our Next Generation, a student success program at Sacramento State in California chose to showcase the difference in Hmong clothing from China to Southeast Asia to America. Other organizations like Hmong Nouveau, a fashion and lifestyle organization, hosted a joint fashion show and concert. The show featured 11 designers that utilized familiar Hmong motifs, such as prints and silverwork, with non-traditionalunfamiliar and modern silhouettes. At the heart of Hmong fashion shows, there is the desire to preserve Hmong culture, to demonstrate the beauty and intricacies of Hmong clothing designs, and to provide space for Hmong designers and artists to showcase their work.
Dance showcases and competitions during New Year celebrations feature Hmong dance groups that blend traditional Hmong dance with Hmong music. Dance competitions during New Year celebrations are an opportunity for dancers to showcase their artistry and technique of various Hmong dance styles. In the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, Hmong American dance groups consisted of only girls and women. While there is still a heavy focus on girls and women in Hmong dance groups, newer groups have included Hmong boys and men. Many of these dance groups are Hmong university clubs and organizations, such as the University of Minnesota Rochester or the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Hmong dance provides an avenue for the younger Hmong generation to wear Hmong clothing, listen to Hmong music, and dance in traditional style.
Beauty pageants are one avenue for Hmong women to preserve Hmong culture, history, and language. For example, the Miss Hmong Minnesota pageant has been ongoing since 1984 with the vision of empowering Hmong women to be leaders. These competitions allow young women to connect to Hmong culture, build sisterhood, and support their local Hmong community. Prior to the competition, the women competing may train months in advance to learn leadership skills and build community with one another. Additionally, the winner and runner-ups of the pageant are able to utilize their platforms to support their local Hmong community.
Conclusion
Each year, Hmong New Year celebrations continue to grow and shift with the evolving Hmong community. While many practices and customs such as clothing and ball tossing have remained, the new Hmong generation has adapted to differences in their living environments and communities. What truly remains is the strong desire from the community to preserve their culture and history across the globe.
References
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Salazar, G. (2021, December 29). Over 100K visitors expected for Hmong New Year celebrations in Fresno. YourCentralValley.com. https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/local-news/over-100k-visitors-expected-for-hmong-new-year-celebrations-in-fresno/
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Contributing Editor: Yia Vue
Illustrator: Alex Yang