article
Hmong myths, legends and folk tales: a resource for cultural understanding
Hmong in the West : observations and reports • Minneapolis, Minn. • Published In 1982 • Pages: 86-98
By: Johnson, Charles R..
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This source presents a discussion of the basic elements of traditional Hmong myths, legends, and folk tales, but not the actual stories themselves. The purpose of the author in transcribing this oral literature into written form (Hmong or French) and then into English was to: (1) provide appropriate reading material to help Hmong refugees learn English; (2) demonstrate respect for the '…Hmong elders who know the oral literature and how to tell the stories, and who often have all too little place in the new life in this new land' (p. 87); and (3) provide a source of cultural information on the Hmong to Americans. Johnson believes that Hmong oral literature, if it is interpreted cautiously and used in conjunction with serious ethnographic accounts and in consultation with informants, can be a valuable resource for cultural understanding and interpretations (p. 96).
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Theoretical orientation in research and its results
- Organization and analysis of results of research
- Mythology
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- North American Hmong
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2000
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- North America
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Regional, Ethnic and Diaspora Cultures
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypesThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Educator
- Teacher
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- John Beierle ; 1991
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1976-1981
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- not specified
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, United States
- NotesAdditional notes
- [by] Charles R. Johnson
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 97-98)
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Hmong Americans