Pahawh Hmong alphabet

Origin

The Pahawh Hmong alphabet was invented in 1959 by Shong Lue Yang (), an illiterate Hmong farmer living in northern Laos close to the border with Vietnam. Shong Lue Yang believed that the alphabet was revealed to him by God, a belief shared by many among the Hmong.

Shong Lue Yang and his followers worked uncessingly to improve and disseminate his alphabet, and to bring about a revival of Hmong culture. In 1971 he was assassinated by government troops who were worried about his increasing influence.

Shong Lue Yang also created an alphabet for the Khmu language (a member of the Mon-Khmer family), but it never caught on and soon disappeared.

Notable features

Syllables are written with the vowel first then the consonant, but are pronounced with the consonant first.
Hmong has 8 tones which are indicated in the Pahawh Hmong alphabet with diacritics.
Though few Hmong use the Pahawh Hmong alphabet, they are very proud of the fact that it exists and that is was created by one of their people.

Used to write:

Hmong, an Austro-Tai language spoken by about 5.5 million people in China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and the USA.

In China Hmong is known as Miao and is written with Chinese characters or with an alphabet known as Pollard Miao. In Thailand, it is written with the Thai alphabet.

During the 1980s and 1990s several other alphabets were invented to write Hmong: Ntawv Paj Ntaub, based on Thai letters and Chinese characters, and Ai Ao Lo.

Today most Hmong write their language with the Romanized Popular Alphabet (RPA), a version of the Latin alphabet developed mainly by William Smalley, a missionary linguist, in the 1950s. In the RPA tones are indicated by final consonants.

Pahawh Hmong alphabet

Consonants

Hmong consonants

Vowels

Hmong vowels

Tone indication

Hmong tone indication

Numerals

Hmong vowels

Sample text in the Pahawh Hmong alphabet

Hmong sample text

Sample text in Hmong (Miao) of northeastern Guizhou

Laix laix diangl dangt lol sob dab yangx ghax maix zit yef, niangb diot gid zenb nieef haib gid quaif lit gid nongd jus diel pinf denx. Nenx dol maix laib lix xent haib jox hvib vut, nenx dol nongt liek bed ut id xit deit dait.

Sample text in Hmong (Miao) of southeastern Guizhou

Leb leb nis zib youl nangs, mex ad sheit nangd zend yanl nhangs njanl lib. Mix mex lix xinb gaot liangt send, leb leb lies nhangs ghob nab ghob geud nangd.

Sample text in Hmong (Miao) of Sichuan/Guizhou/Yunnan

Cuat lenx cuat dol bongb deul ndax dex douf muax zif youx, nyaob shout zunb yinx tab ndas dos id, dax zis ib suk. Nil buab daf lol jaox muax lid xinf hlub hout tab liangx xinb shab nzhuk, yinf gaib keuk suk gud dix mol lol nit jinb shenx lol shib daf shib hlad.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Tower of Babel in White Hmong (Hmoob Dawb)

Books about the Hmong language and people