Affiliation: The Yao, together with the Meo, farm two groups of the Yao-Meo-Pateng peoples. whose wider linguistic affiliations yet needs study. Their origin is roughly in Kweichow Province of China, from whence the Meo also came. They are as ancient a people as the hero and the Lo-Lo, or forefathers of the Lisu and Akha, becoming more or less established into their ethnic divisions some 2500 years ago. They are perhaps the same as the Yao-Ren, mentioned in ancient Chinese chronicles, being at that time, a barbaric people called "dog" by the Chinese. They remain in southern China in large numbers, especially in Kwan~sPi rovince, and have becn migrating for centuries into southern Yunnan, Tongking, Laos and Thailand. They have undergone the same strong exposure to Chinese influences as the Men, pahaps having intermarried to great extents with the conquering Chinese soldiers since the times of the carliest kings of the Chow dynasty. The Yao of today has strong 6' Chinese" features, and in Thailand, they represent a single homo- ReneOUS tribe which is well separated linguistically from all other hill tribes.
Location : Earlier reports have placed the main concentrations of Yao in northern Nan Profincc, but they are today mme numerous in eastern and northern C-hiengrai Province. Only about 7% of the
totaI Yao population remain in northern San. They are found only in these two provinces of Thailand in signidcant numbers, with only a few villapps in Amphur Fang, Chiengmai.