Hi. I’m Zuag. I am Hmong. I was born in the Ban Vanai refugee camp at the end of the Vietnam War, emigrated to America before my first birthday, and therefore, primarily raised in America. I call myself the 1.75 generation.
I’m so happy you found me. If you are here, you care about the Hmong language too.
This website was inspired 8 years ago when my daughter was born although I didn’t know it then. My story started as a new mom with a baby searching everywhere for Hmong language resources for kids. At the time, I wanted to make sure that she had “Hmong children stuff” around in her environment. Although I peripherally knew that there weren’t as many Hmong materials for us, I was surprised to find that there were very few books, posters, or songs for Hmong children in Hmong. I started collecting everything that I could find. I found some but not nearly enough to keep my kids engaged. Consequently, I started creating my own rudimentary books, posters and songs and I spent many hours translating her favorite books into Hmong.
On this Hmong language journey, I found that what I was looking for was in me this whole time. I found a way to teach my kids and my partner the Hmong language in a way that works for our family and I would love to share it with others who also value learning Hmong. We have been using my method to learn Hmong for just 15 minutes a day and I can say, “It really works.”
This website was brought to life by my kids although the information I provide will be useful to anyone who wants to learn Hmong. The materials I share will be useful for parents, educators and solo language learners because I have created Hmong educational materials in accordance with expert guidelines on how to teach language acquisition. I also write stories that are pertinent to the Hmong American experience. Every resource on this website will assist you and your kids in learning how to speak, read and write Hmong but more importantly, it also will give you relevant Hmong American stories in Hmong. Because I know that the best way to learn a language is speaking, reading and writing about what interests you and learning the language is just a byproduct of that fun.
Now that you know a little about me, I hope you will join me in this endeavor. In my own experience, I can say, it has been empowering and gratifying to use my native language again and it has filled my heart to see my family recognize and say Hmong words. Our family has had great fun saying wrong words with wrong tones; we also have had many conversations about being a Hmong family beget from these language lessons. Additionally, I also have had the joy of seeing my father read books to my kids—something many of us with parents who are not literate in English can only dream of seeing . I can attest to the true connection that materializes between a grandparent and grandchild when a good book is shared between them and one finally sees the other’s life experiences.
In the end, I hope you find a way to use these materials that will work for you.
Look around and make sure to subscribe to get the latest updates and promotional freebies. Also feel free to contact me and let me know if there are materials you would like created and/or corrected.
It’s time to embrace our language and I’m willing to be a Hmong mom that teaches it.
