Thailand Hilltribes

The Karen 

• The Karen, known in Thai as the Kariengs, occupy settlements along the north-western border of Thailand, in particular on the ranges west and south of Doi Inthanon. They are the longest established tribal group in Thailand, except of the Lawa, crossing the Salween river at least three hundred years ago in the 17th century. They probably number about 400,000 but there have been recent large influxes from Burma as the authorities there have tried to suppress a long running independence movement.
  
  

• There are two main subgroups in Thailand, the majority Skaw, and the Pwo, but many other affiliated groups exist in Burma. They speak a Tibeto-Burman language which linguists find very difficult to categorize.
  
  

• The Karen tend to live in permanent settlements of around 25 houses raised on stilts. Each household consists of the parents and their unmarried children. Married daughters and their families may also live in the same house. The highest authority is the village priest who runs the village along with the elders.
  
  

• The Karen have rituals to live harmoniously with the "Lord of the Land and Water", as well as with nature spirits in the rocks, trees, water and mountains that surround them. They also have guardian spirits and believe in the soul.
  
  

• In their villages in the lower valleys, they are cultivating wet or paddy rice, using a rotating agricultural system over a large area of land and do not cut all the large trees down when they clear a plot. They are probably the best forest conservers of all the minorities and are also skilled weavers and make some of the finest baskets.
  
  

• Karen cloth is hand-woven on back-strap looms and is predominantly red with white, blue or brown vertical stripes. Stitching is clear and decorative. The men may wear simple forms of this material in a sleeveless tunic (or northern Thai clothing), while the women wear more elaborate styles on their sarongs.
  
  

• The women's blouses are made of dark homespun cotton with horizontal embroidered patterns decorated with seeds woven onto the lower half. Unmarried girls of the Skaw group wear plain white shifts, while those of the Pwo are more decorated. The Karen are famous for their use of beads for ornamentation.

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