苗族简史（中英文版）

贵州河湾苗学研究院

河湾苗学研究院成立初期，为了给步入研究院的人们了解苗族五千多年的历史，就在研究院中的苗族博物馆里，用文字和图片的方式，对苗族历史作了简略的介绍。

良渚文化出土的饕餮纹即蚩尤纹

作者：杨培德(贵州河湾苗学研究院院长）

翻译：蔡洁（美国华侨）

图片：安红（苗族博物馆馆长）

苗族简史

距今五千多年前的上古时期，生活在长江三角洲环太湖地区的九黎古国（即当今良渚文化考古遗存）是苗族先民。蚩尤是其天子，《尚书. 吕刑》注说：“九黎之君，号曰蚩尤。”《史记. 五帝本纪》集解记载说：“蚩尤，古天子。”从良渚文化玉器上的饕餮纹可看到，蚩尤九黎国的神徽就是饕餮。

苗族人文始祖蚩尤神像

蚩尤九黎国强大后北上占领东夷（今山东一带）《逸周书•尝麦篇》对此有记载：“昔天之初，……命蚩尤宇于少昊，以临四方。”不断强大的蚩尤九黎继续北上发展，与由西向东发展的炎帝和黄帝古国交汇于燕山涿鹿地区。这一时期的蚩尤九黎有八大创造：水稻种植、金属冶炼、金属兵器制造、刑法创造、设立宗教、开创兵法、掌握历法、运用医药。

河北涿鹿大战示意图

蚩尤九黎为了与黄帝炎帝争夺资源，在中原涿鹿地区发生长期战争，《太平御览》记载说：“黄帝与蚩尤九战九不胜。”《庄子杂篇》说：“黄帝不能致德，与蚩尤战于涿鹿之野，血流百里。”后来黄帝用水攻，打败了蚩尤九黎，蚩尤被杀。九黎国从此逐渐退出中原，迁徙到长江中游的环洞庭湖地区，建立了三苗国。《国语. 楚语》记载说：“其后三苗复九黎之德。”三苗国在与中原的尧、舜、禹相处中不断发生战争。禹与三苗国的战争最为惨烈，《论衡》说：“三苗之亡，五谷变种，鬼哭于郊。”
三苗国失败后，苗族分三大支迁徙，一支往西北的甘肃一带然后南下，经过川西到贵州西部乌蒙山区，一支迁洞庭湖荆州一带绵延至武陵山区，另一支迁至黔东南的月亮山和雷公山区。
苗族最早迁入贵州是春秋战国时期。苗族亚鲁王带领苗人最早在黔中建立格洛格桑城（即贵阳古代城池），所以民间一直称贵阳为“老苗城”。
在荆州一带的苗族，被汉文文献称为“荆蛮”，商周时期“荆蛮”被讨伐，《今本竹书纪年》说：“方叔帅师伐荆蛮”。
春秋战国时代，楚族与苗族共建楚国，《国语. 晋语》记载这一历史说：“昔成王盟诸侯于岐阳，楚为荆蛮。”秦汉至元、明、清，苗族分布很广，已经遍及武陵五溪相邻的现今鄂西、渝南、黔东北、黔东南、黔中以及黔西北大片地区。

苗族在迁徙中形成两大聚居区，一个是湘西腊尔山区，另一个是黔东南的雷公山区。这两大山区一直独立自主，被封建王朝称为“生苗”地区。到了清代，清王朝对这两个地区进行了三次大的战争。第一次是雍正乾隆年间对雷公山地区征剿，苗人死亡30万。第二次是乾隆嘉庆年间对腊尔山地区征剿，苗人死亡40万。第三次是咸丰同治年间，清王朝与张秀眉领导黔东南苗族的战争，时间长达18年，苗人死亡100万。陶新春领导黔西北苗族与清王朝的战争长达12年，苗族人在战争中共死亡近150万。
苗族在清末参加民国的建立，在抗日战争期间，大批苗人参与抗战，成建制的三个苗族师在几次大的会战中全部牺牲。在解放战争期间，在共产党领导下，成立不少地下游击队，迎接解放军，迎接新中国的成立。
英文版

A Brief History of Hmong

About five thousand years ago, a group people lived at what is now the Tai lake rimbeside the Yangzi River. In ancient times, it was the Jiuli Kingdom. Its ancient
archaeological remains provide insight for what is today’s Liangzhu culture. They were the ancestors of Hmong. Chiyou was the ancient king of the Jiuli Kingdom, as noted in the book of 《Shangshu-LuXing》(《尚书。吕刑》)as well as in the book of 《Shiji-WuDi BenJi》(《史记。五帝本记》). Just like the jade patterns discovered in Liangzhu culture, Taotie was the emblem of the Totem-God for Chiyou Jiuli Kingdom. When Chiyou Jiuli kingdom became powerful, they marched north and conquered Dongyi (today’s Shandong province). In the book of 《Yizhou Shu-ChangMai Pian》）(《逸周书。尝麦篇》) , it was said, “At the beginning of the civilization, …, heaven’s son, Chiyou, lived at Shaohao, over looking the east, south, west, and north.” When Chiyou’s Jiuli continued to grow power, he led his people and explored further to the north. At the region of Yanshan Zhuolu, they met the two kingdoms of Emperor Yan and Emperor Huang who were expanding the territories from west to east. At that time,Chiyou’s kingdom had created eight innovations: cultivating rice, smelting metal,
manufacturing weapons, developing criminal law, establishing religion, mastering the calendar, and applying medicine.In order to compete for natural resources, Chiyou and Emperor Yan and Huang started a long-term war at the central plains of Zhuolu area. The book of 《Tai Ping Yu Lan》(《太平御览》) said, “Emperor Huang could not defeat Chiyou after nine battles.”
Chiyou’s troops were eventually defeated when Emperor Huang applied water-flooding strategy. Chiyou were killed during that battle. Jiuli Kingdom then gradually treated from the central plain and migrated to the midstream region of the Yangzi River at around today’s Dongting Lake, where they developed the “Three Miao Kingdom”. The people of the Three Miao Kingdom continued the virtue practices from Chiyou Jiuli. The Three Miao Kingdom continued to have conflicts and battles with the descendants of Emperor Yan and Huang. Among the battles with Emperor Yao, Shun, and Yu, the battles with Emperor Yu were the most tragic ones, which defeated Three Miao Kingdom completely. In the book of 《Lun Heng》 (《论衡》), it described that “ When the Three Miao Kingdom perished, field crops mutated and suburban ghosts cried.”
After their defeat, the Miao divided into three branches. One branch migrated toward the northwest to the area of today’s Gansu province, and then to the south, passing the western Sichuan province, to the Wumeng Mountain in the west of Guizhou province.Another branch migrated to Jinzhou at Dongting Lake and spread into the Wuling Mountain. Still another branch migrated to the Moon Mountain and the Leigong Mountain in the southeast of Guizhou province. The earliest time when Miao migrated into Guizhou province could be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Warring States period. Miao’s Yalu King lead the people, who developed a city of Geluogesang at the center of Guizhou province, which is the ancient city for today’s Guiyang. Because of this, Guiyang was also known as “Lao Miao Cheng” which means “the ancient Miao city”. On the other hand, the Miao people who migrated to Jingzhou were derogatively called “Jing Man” which means “the uncivilized people”. During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, “Jing Man” was crusaded by a Zhou officer, Fangshu, which was recorded in the book of《Today’s Bamboo Booklet of The Year of Chronicles》(《今本⽵书纪年
》, “⽅叔帅师伐荆蛮。”)

During the Spring and Autumn Warring States period, Chu and Miao built the Chu
Kingdom together, which was recorded in the book of 《Nation Words-Jin Words》(《国语.晋语》), “昔成王盟诸侯于岐阳，楚为荆蛮。”. It stated that Chu was built by the “Jing Man” Miao people. Through the dynasties from Qin to Han, Yuan, Ming, and Qing, Miao residents had spread widely far and near around the Wuling Five Creeks,which were the regions of today’s west of Hubei, south of Chongqing, northeast of Guizhou, southeast of Guizhou and the majority of northwest of Guizhou.


The migrating Miao people formed two large residential areas; one was in the Laer Mountain of western Hunan, the other was in the Leigong Mountain of southeast Guizhou. The two mountainous areas had been always independent and autonomous and were known as the area for “Original Miao” by the feudal dynasties. In the Qing Dynasty, the government launched three major wars toward the two regions. The first war that occurred during time of Emperor Yongzheng & Qianlong at the Leigong region resulted in 300,000 deaths of Miao people. The second war that occurred during the time of Emperor Qianlong & Jiaqing at the Laer Mountain resulted in 400,000 deaths of Miao people. The third war occurred during the time of Emperor Xianfeng & Tongzhi,During this time, the battles that Zhang Xiumei led at the southeast of Guizhou lasted eighteen years and led to 1,000,000 deaths of Miao people, the battles that Tao Xinchun led at northwest Guizhou lasted twelve years and led to the deaths of 1,500,000 Miao people.
Miao was involved in establishing The Republic of China during the late Qing Dynasty.During the Anti-Japan War, a large number of Miao people participated and three divisions lost soldiers in the total sacrifice at several major battles. Miao people set up a lot of underground guerrillas under the leadership of the Communist Party during the war of liberation, looking forward to meeting the People's Liberation Army and the establishment of New China.