The Lisu are direct descendents of the indigenous semi-nomadic tribes of Tibet. Over the last 300 years or so for political and survival reasons many of the people chose to migrate down through China, Burma, Laos and most recently Thailand. Our Lisu village is called Nong Tong, in Mae Hong Son province, near the town of Bangmapah (also known as Soppong) in the picturesque mountains of North Thailand. The people began settling here only about 80 years ago and the village is now home to about 500 people. Their main livelihood is farming and craftsmanship.
The Lisu can be found all over South East Asia although it is only Thailand and Burma where they dress as colourful as they do known here as the 'Flowery Lisu'. Yunnan in southern China is where their numbers are highest yet there you will find them dressed in the not so vibrant Black costumes. Although most Lisu in Thailand especially younger children speak Thai there first Language is Lisu but many still speak Yunnanese.
The historic Lisu religion is Animism a belief that all things are embodied with "Spirit", ancestor worship, and living in harmony with nature and all beings. Over the years many of them have converted to Buddhism and more recently Christianity. Yet even the converts express their Spirituality with a curious mixture of the old and the new.