The
Hmong–Mien (also known as
Miao–Yao) languages are a
language family of southern
China and
Southeast Asia. They are spoken in mountainous areas of southern China, including
Guizhou,
Hunan,
Yunnan,
Sichuan,
Guangxi, and
Hubei provinces, where its speakers have been relegated to being "
hill people", whereas the
Han Chinese have settled the more fertile river valleys. Within the last 300–400 years, the Hmong and some Mien people have migrated to
Thailand,
Laos,
Vietnam, and
Burma. As a result of the
Indochina Wars, many Hmong speakers left Southeast Asia for
Australia, the
United States,
French Guiana, and other countries.