Moken Tribe in Thailand
The search for food is the same importance today as
it has ever been, but it is made more difficult because they are a
minority group with no nationality. The Moken are largely uneducated,
with little knowledge of the outside, land-based world, which creates
further difficulties when communicating with others.
The Moken have an annual ceremony to celebrate the
ancestor's pole (Hnear-En-Hlor-Bong), with tribe members coming together
to worship to the spirits to protection them. During this time, Moken
people stop work. The ceremony includes casting lots, playing music,
singing and dancing, and also have leeway the models to pensive and
distress as illness from families, community. Moreover, the Moken have
traditional beliefs that emphasize the spirits, including the spirits of
their ancestors, and those found in natures, which have the power to
protect individuals or cause illness. Therefore, they make sacrifices
and offerings to the spirits. The Moken are also adept at using herbs
for treating disease. In society, weddings often occur when the couples
are teenagers, and are monogamous for life. They will not separate or
change partners unless the wife or husband dies or have severe marital
problems. Having children is an important part of life, so generally
Moken families have 2-5 children - because they usually live in remote
areas, or on the sea, they are far from basic services leading to a
higher mortality rate which makes the Moken population a fairly constant
number.
The name, Moken, derives from "La-Mor" and " Kan "
which is the name of the Queen's sister in an old legend of the Moken
people. The younger sister stole the boyfriend of the Queen, who then
cursed her and her friends promising them a life in which they could
never settle in one place.
Some of the Moken, traditionally a seafaring tribe, have settled
on the islands in southern Thailand . They have their own way of life:
with a unique culture; traditions; values and beliefs; a nomadic
lifestyle; and making their livelihood from the Andaman Sea . Most Moken
live on boats called “Gam-Bang”, roaming the sea in search of food -
such as shellfish, fish, crabs and other marine creatures. The main food
is Taro, a root vegetable considered as a staple in oceanic cultures.
The lifestyle is influenced by the seasons - in the northwest during
monsoon season (May-November) when there are many storms, the Moken move
onto the islands, building houses, or moor in sheltered bays, protected
from the waves and storms.
The search for food is the same importance today as
it has ever been, but it is made more difficult because they are a
minority group with no nationality. The Moken are largely uneducated,
with little knowledge of the outside, land-based world, which creates
further difficulties when communicating with others. 
The Moken have an annual ceremony to celebrate the
ancestor's pole (Hnear-En-Hlor-Bong), with tribe members coming together
to worship to the spirits to protection them. During this time, Moken
people stop work. The ceremony includes casting lots, playing music,
singing and dancing, and also have leeway the models to pensive and
distress as illness from families, community. Moreover, the Moken have
traditional beliefs that emphasize the spirits, including the spirits of
their ancestors, and those found in natures, which have the power to
protect individuals or cause illness. Therefore, they make sacrifices
and offerings to the spirits. The Moken are also adept at using herbs
for treating disease. In society, weddings often occur when the couples
are teenagers, and are monogamous for life. They will not separate or
change partners unless the wife or husband dies or have severe marital
problems. Having children is an important part of life, so generally
Moken families have 2-5 children - because they usually live in remote
areas, or on the sea, they are far from basic services leading to a
higher mortality rate which makes the Moken population a fairly constant
number. 
The name, Moken, derives from "La-Mor" and " Kan "
which is the name of the Queen's sister in an old legend of the Moken
people. The younger sister stole the boyfriend of the Queen, who then
cursed her and her friends promising them a life in which they could
never settle in one place.
Moken are also known as the Sea Gypsies -
Descendents of the Porto-Malaysians who wandered the Andaman Sea for
more than 100 years, living on islands and off the coast of the Mergui
Islands in Myanmar, as far south and east as the islands of the Zulu sea
in the Philippines, and including the coast of Malaysia and Indonesia.
In the Mergui islands in Myanmar, the Moken population runs into the
thousands. The Burmese people call the Moken, ‘Selon', which is believed
to have come from the word ‘Cha-Lang' or ‘Tha-Lang', an ancient name of
Phuket province (Junk Selon) - the place that many fishermen lived
before moving to live on the sea. This is the legendary tale of the
Moken people.
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