Color image of a Qeej (Hmong wind instrument) made by Shong Ger Thao of St. Paul in 1999.

Qeej (Hmong wind instrument)

Qeej (Hmong wind instrument) made by Shong Ger Thao of St. Paul, 1999.

Color image of a Man’s Hmong New Year outfit worn by Doua Cheng, c.1999.

Man’s Hmong New Year outfit

Man’s Hmong New Year outfit worn by Doua Cheng, c.1999.

Color image of a Hmong tb lub pov courtship ball used during a Hmong New Year celebration. Made by Mai Yia Thao of St. Paul on December 16, 1994.

Hmong tb lub pov (courtship ball)

Hmong tb lub pov (courtship ball) used during a Hmong New Year celebration. Made by Mai Yia Thao of St. Paul on December 16, 1994.

Color image of a Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year activities. Made in Ban Vinai, Thailand, c.1989.

Hmong New Year story cloth (paj ndaub) c.1989

Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year activities. Made in Ban Vinai, Thailand, c.1989.

Color image of a Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year courtship rituals. Made in Ban Vinai, Thailand, c.1988.

Hmong New Year story cloth (paj ndaub) c.1988

Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year courtship rituals. Made in Ban Vinai, Thailand, c.1988.

Color image of a Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year activities. Made in at a refugee camp in Thailand, c.1980.

Hmong New Year story cloth (paj ndaub) c.1980

Hmong paj ndaub, or story cloth, illustrating Hmong New Year activities. Made in at a refugee camp in Thailand, c.1980.

Color scan of a Hmong New Year postcard showing two young women in traditional Hmong dress, c.1980s.

Hmong New Year postcard

Hmong New Year postcard showing two young women in traditional Hmong dress, c.1980s.

Black and white photograph of ttendees at the 1981 Hmong New Year, held in St. Paul’s Highland Junior-Senior High School, participate in pov pob, a ball-toss courtship ritual. Photographed by Marlin Heise on December 19, 1981.

Pov pob at the 1981 Hmong New Year

Attendees at the 1981 Hmong New Year, held in St. Paul’s Highland Junior-Senior High School, participate in pov pob, a ball-toss courtship ritual. Photographed by Marlin Heise on December 19, 1981.

Black and white photograph of the 1981 Hmong New Year, held in St. Paul’s Highland Junior-Senior High School. Photographed by Marlin Heise on December 19, 1981.

1981 Hmong New Year

The 1981 Hmong New Year, held in St. Paul’s Highland Junior-Senior High School. Photographed by Marlin Heise on December 19, 1981.

Hmong New Year, St. Paul

The Hmong New Year in St. Paul is a unique annual event encapsulated into a weekend celebration held at the end of November. Since 1977, Hmong people have gathered in the city to meet, eat, celebrate the harvest, and enjoy cultural performances. Though the event is rooted in the agricultural history of the Hmong people and their religious traditions, it has found a new expression in St. Paul—the home of one of the largest communities of Hmong outside Southeast Asia.

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