Life style : Language

Mlabri speak their own language but it has no written form. Presently they are trying to collect their stories so they are not lost with the new generations. They are adapting the Thai characters to fit their language so they have written copies of their history. Below are samples of the written Mlabri language.         

Thai language.	Mlabri language.
Father	Muem
Mother	Mer
Grandfather	Ta
Grandmother	Ya
Daughter	Aew-aui
Son	Aew-yong
Children	Ai-Tak
Son-in-law	Aew-Kui
Brother-in-law	Ding-Kui
Sister-in-law	Kui
Daughter-in-law	Kui
Brother	Ding
Hello	A-lae-la
How are you?	Juk-krae-rae
Have meal	A-Er-lae
Eat already	A-Er
Where are you going?	Juk-Ga-lang
Where you been?	Juk-Ga-lang-lae
I love you	O-mak-man
I, me	O
Mother	You
Can	Dai
Can not	Ko-bor-dai
Yes	Oh
No	Gi-man
Couth the number (1-10)	Moy-Brae-Pae-Pon-Tung-Tal-Kul-Ti-Kha-Halmoy

However, Mlabri move to live in the lowland but them proud in their language that they are used. When the children are born, they will teach their own language is the first the language for their children.


 Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
                   5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewta

Life style : Marriage

     In the past, Mlabri people did not have wedding ceremonies. When a young couple would like to live together, the man would take his parents to talk with the parents of the woman. When the families of both acknowledged and agreed to live together, the man would take the woman to build their own house. Before that the parents of both would have blessed the couple’s marriage. When everything was done, they would live together in the house they built and be married. The woman would then change her first name to follow her husband’s, for example if her husbands name was Ali, she would become ‘YaAli’. Women would add Ya to the start of her husbands name. “Ya” means wife, so YaAli means Ali’s wife. When they have a child, then they will change the name of a child to follow the father’s name, first they will change the first word to be Ei as this means father name. So a child of Ali, will have a name as Eili, Eiti. 
      Meanwhile, the marriage of the Mlabri is prohibited so that they do not marry with their relatives no matter how many generations apart they may be. If they know they are related, then they are unable to marry. Also, in the past, Mlabri tribe did not encourage their children to marry outside the tribe because they feared new diseases such as AIDS and also feared that outsiders would bully or disliked their tribe. Nowadays, Mlabri people still perform weddings as in the past. They do not ask for a dowry, they are not engaged and they do not organize the ceremony. The parents simply talk to each other and make a decision. If the couples love is for another, parents do not mind it just means that they are husband and wife from then onwards.

Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewta

Life style : Occupation

When the Mlabri people were living in the forest, they did not have a career of any kind. They would rely on the forest to provide them with the necessary goods, such as food and building resources. However, when they later moved away from the forests to live with the Hmong people, they were employed as gardeners or farmers, with a fee of fish, rice and some pets. At this moment, the Mlabri people are starting to learn how to properly cultivate plants and harvest crops from the Hmong tribe. Other, they keep domestic animals such as chickens and pigs, which they can sell as food. An additional form of employment is the weaving and selling of hammocks. This is being supported by Development Aid for the Hilltribes, the Phare province and Mr. Boonyuen.
Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewt

Life style : The Musical Instrument

The Mlabri people make musical instruments to use when they have free time. They may use a blower leaf as a song or take a piece of bamboo and use it as a drum by hitting a rhythm. However, the blower leaf or the drum is not hit much unless they are sure that the area is far away enough from other people so that they aren’t disturbed. They didn’t teach their lineage, so they can not play, but they will play Hmong’s musical instruments such as reed mouth organ, guitar etc.

 

Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewta

Life style : Courting

        During courtship of Mlabri in the past, the young people would either talk to each other or the man who was falling in love with the woman would help to find a taro or potato to give to the woman’s family. When the young man who was falling in love with the woman goes into the forest, he would give the woman a memento and when he returns if the women still keeps it or has not married, it shows that the woman loves him. If both of them are in love then they will have a wedding ceremony. If they move to live on the lowland then they have to change the way they court each other such as writing a letter etc.
Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants:    1. Weera Srichawpa
                    2. Phin Srichawpa
                    3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
                   4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
                   5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewta.

Beliefs

In the past, a Mlabri person believed in the things such as ghosts, spirits, the natural, forests or wildlife. When they have illness then, they will raise a comfort or a ceremony ask for forgiveness at the place that they think has to sacrilegious or disparage without knowledge, then will have the older made the ring from bamboo and then go to perform the ceremony at that area by have praying. Or when someone is sick as terrible, the older will use the herbal for treatment or sometimes use the spell to blow out the evil from the body. Currently, treatment by use the herbal still exist but not common because they can go to hospital for treatment. They do not pass their knowledge about treatment from the spell or herbal to the lineage then, the older pass mean that they losing. Beliefs about the mystery, ghost and spirit.           The pass, Mlabri people has beliefs about the ghost or spirit. When in the village have someone sick, they believe that person do something wrong with the guardian spirit. They will have the ceremony to apologize. When they live in the forests, they will ignite a fire to protect them from the ghost or make a warmth and confidence for themselves.

Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewt

Comparing Mlabri Way of Life: Past and Present

When the Mlabri tribe used to live in the forest it was a peaceful and simple life for them. However, they struggled if there was little rain, food shortages and with dangerous wild animals such as bears and tigers. By moving into other communities they improved their standard of living.
          
Passing on Knowledge of the Forest to the Next Generation
           When they lived in the forest the parents would have to forage to find food and other goods.  They used to take the children with them as they feared leaving them alone and they could also learn what was edible and what was not. This would help the children in the future when they would have to forage for themselves.  When testing out a new food, the adults would try it first to see whether it was safe to eat.
The Mlabri have great skill and expertise when it comes to surviving in the forest.  The knowledge is passed down from generation to generation.  When one family finds something to eat they will share with each other so everyone has enough food.  If they get an excess of food such as taros, or potatoes they cook and dry it to store for later use.  This is also very useful to help maintain flavor.  They use a similar method with unripe bananas; they pit the banana and heat it so they do not have to wait for it to ripen.

 Source: The Mlabri community at Baan Boonyuen, Moo 13, Thambon Vieng, Rongkwang district, Prae province.
Informants: 1. Weera Srichawpa
2. Phin Srichawpa
3. Nlikarn Chawphanaprai
4. Duangporn Naamjaikiri
                   5. The youths: Mai, Nueng, Amara and Kaewta