Hilltribes - Palong

PalongThe Palong call themselves "Ta Ang". They belong to the Mon - Khmer branch of the Austro-Asiatic linguistic family. At present the total population of the Palong is about 250,000. There are very few Palong villages in Thailand, all of them came from Burma.In general, the Palong can be found in Burma, in the mountainous north-western corner of the Shan State, in the southern part of the Kachin State, and a few - perhaps 20, 000 - in the ,est of China's Yunnan province. About thousand Palong people are to be found in Thailand, all of them in the northern part of Chiang Mai province along the border to Myanmar (Burma).The Palong are subdivided the Gold (Shwe) and Silverer (Pale) Palong, a distinction based on slight differences their costumes.Their main livelihood is the cultivation of tanatep, a large leaf to wrap burmese cigars, and Tea. Besides tea, the they also grow rice, beans, yams, sugar cane, hemp, chillis and other crops. Both men and women decorate their teeth with gold. They [men and women] smoke tobacco and chew betel nuts.Courtship takes place especially during the tea harvest. Marriages are often conducted several together, followed by a three-day party.Their houses are thatched wooden constructions, raised on stilts.The Palong are easily recognized by the striking custom of their women, red sarong like garments, mostly a blue jacket with red collar and broad silver waistbands. Formerly animist, most Palong have converted to Buddhism. They practice a Shan-type Buddhism mixed with animism, which includes ancestor worship and the celebration of the spirit festival in September.