 |
|
More than anything else, the hilltribes of northern
Thailand are known for their colorful outfits. Colors represent a vital
role in each of the tribal colors and can be seen reflected in the
everyday lives of people who have long-since stopped wearing their
traditional clothing. Indeed, it is often possible to tell the tribe of
a person by the color of Western clothing he or
she is wearing.
The clothing tribal people, especially the Lisu, describes a vocabulary
of colors far larger than that which their languages describe.
Ironically, for peoples whose identity is so tied to the colors of
their clothing, most of their languages are barely equipped to describe
the colors in an eight-pack of Crayola crayons.
| Tribe |
Auspicious Colors
|
Inauspicious Colors
|
|
Hmong
|
Black
represents sturdiness, victory, success, and happiness for Hmong
people.
|
Red
is the color of death. Hmong funeral suits are red, thus you are very
unlikely to see a Hmong person wearing red clothing. Given the
contentious history Hmongs have had with the Chinese, it seems more
than coincidental that Hmongs would attach negative feelings to red.
|
|
Mien
|
Red
is the color of blood and represents hope and success for the Mien
people, much as it does for the Chinese from which the preference is
likely borrowed.
|
Black
is the color of death for Miens.
|
|
Lahu
|
White and a yellowish-orange are colors that
represent peace, victory and holiness for the Red Lahu. Ceremonial
flags in a Red Lahu village feature these colors as do the robes of the
Dtobo, the village religious leader.
No other villagers wear yellow or orange clothing, favoring bright
blues, reds and greens.
|
Black
is the color of secrecy and confusion for the Red Lahu people.
|
|
Lisu
|
Red
represents blood, bounty and success for the Lisu people, and is one of
the many, many colors employed in Lisu outfits. Lisus also value white
as the color of purity. Lisu bags, in contrast to their rainbow tunics,
are simple red and white affairs.
|
White and
black represent death for Lisus. White is a color that
holds dual symbolism, also having the positive connotations of purity.
Black represents loss, failure, and a lack of progress
for the Lisu. It is also about the only color that one will not find
employed in Lisu clothing.
|
|
Akha
|
Red
is the color of success, and of the dyed chicken feathers and gibbon
fur Akhas use to adorn their outfits.
|
Black
is the color of failure. Even so, black cloth, because of availability,
has become the standard replacement for the dark indigo handspun cloth
that Akhas traditionally wear.
|
|
Karen
|
Karens like red and white. Red represents strength,
victory, and progress for the Karen people. After marrying, a Karen
man's traditional shirt will be red. White represents purity.
|
Black
represents darkness, confusion, and loss for the Karen people.
|
So, there you have it, most hilltribe people like red but don't like
black. Hmongs, on the other hand, are exactly opposite. This topic
first came to our attention when Lek
(a Karen) and Yee
(a Hmong) were instant messaging each other using MSN and started to
have an argument because Lek had switched his font color to red. That's
something to keep in mind the next time you are chatting with someone
you have met on hmongfriendfinder.com.
|
|
|
Designed by Bannok