Hmong DNA
Genetic origins and closest populations · Laos, Vietnam, Thailand · Southeast Asia
The Hmong live in the highlands of northern Laos, Vietnam and Thailand, and since 1975 large communities have also settled in the United States, France and Australia, many as refugees after the war in Laos. Hmong languages belong to the Hmong-Mien family, and Hmong groups moved into Southeast Asia from southern China mostly during the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the wider Miao population. The genetic data keep that link clearly: in our model, the Hmong average is 58.8% East Asian, 25.7% Southern Chinese Neolithic farmer and 15.5% Southeast Asian Neolithic farmer, and the three closest modern averages are all Miao samples from western Guangxi and southwestern Guizhou (0.0129 to 0.0135), regions close to the routes of those migrations. Compared with the Chinese Miao average (69.4% East Asian), the Hmong carry more of both southern components. The nearest ancient matches are Baitaishan and Genggaishan in Guangxi, both Yuan to Ming-era (0.0225 and 0.0228).
- Ancient components in our model: East Asian 58.8%, Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers 25.7%, Southeast Asian Neolithic farmers 15.5%
- Closest modern population in our data: Miao (Guangxi Baise Xilin), distance 0.0129
- Closest ancient group in our data: China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Baitaishan, distance 0.0225
Hmong is one of the 335 modern populations in our population genetics atlas. The numbers on this page describe the average Global25 (G25) genome of the Hmong individuals sampled in Laos, Vietnam, Thailand. Like every population average, it smooths over a lot of variation between individuals.
Ancient make-up of the Hmong average
Modelled as a mix of deep ancestral reference populations, the Hmong average comes out as 58.8% East Asian, 25.7% Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers and 15.5% Southeast Asian Neolithic farmers. The East Asian component reflects ancestry most common today in East Asia. The Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers share (25.7%) reflects the Neolithic rice and millet farmers of southern China, whose descendants spread into Southeast Asia.
The fit is loose (fit distance 0.040), which usually means that none of the available reference populations is a close stand-in for part of this ancestry, so read the percentages as rough. This population was modelled with a global set of reference populations (ancient genomes, plus modern stand-ins where no suitable ancient genome exists), because West Eurasian sources alone cannot describe it.
Fenghuang – Sinosphere Report
Closest modern populations to Hmong
Genetically, the Hmong average sits nearest to Miao (Guangxi Baise Xilin) at 0.013, Miao (Guangxi Baise Longlin) at 0.014 and Miao (Guizhou Qianxinan Ceheng) at 0.014. On our scale, a distance of 0.013 counts as very close. Even the tenth closest, Bunu (Qing Yao), is only 0.022 away: Hmong belongs to a dense cluster of related populations, so small differences inside that cluster should not be over-interpreted.
| # | Population | Distance | Closeness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miao (Guangxi Baise Xilin) | 0.0129 | Very close |
| 2 | Miao (Guangxi Baise Longlin) | 0.0135 | Very close |
| 3 | Miao (Guizhou Qianxinan Ceheng) | 0.0135 | Very close |
| 4 | Dong (Guizhou Tongren) | 0.0195 | Very close |
| 5 | Han (Guangdong Guangzhou) | 0.0197 | Very close |
| 6 | Bunu (Baiku Yao) | 0.0200 | Very close |
| 7 | Dong (Guizhou Congjiang) | 0.0200 | Very close |
| 8 | Han (Guangxi Hechi) | 0.0209 | Very close |
| 9 | Dong (Hunan) | 0.0209 | Very close |
| 10 | Bunu (Qing Yao) | 0.0217 | Very close |
Distances are Euclidean distances between averaged G25 coordinates. On our scale, below 0.025 is very close, below 0.050 close, below 0.080 moderate, and beyond that distant.
Closest ancient populations to Hmong
Looking back in time, the ancient sample that most resembles the Hmong average is China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Baitaishan (Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD), at 0.023. China Guangxi HP Ming Dynasty Genggaishan and China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Huatudong come next. That is a very close match, which suggests strong genetic continuity between those ancient people (or close relatives of theirs) and the modern population. A close ancient match is not proof of direct descent: it means those individuals carried a similar overall mix of ancestry.
| # | Ancient sample or group | Period | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Baitaishan | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0225 |
| 2 | China Guangxi HP Ming Dynasty Genggaishan | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0228 |
| 3 | China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Huatudong | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0241 |
| 4 | China Guangxi HP Ming Dynasty Huaqiao | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0262 |
| 5 | China Guangxi HP Ming Dynasty Huatuyan | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0311 |
| 6 | China Huatuyan 400BP | c. 1550 AD | 0.0362 |
| 7 | China Guizhou HP Song-Ming Dynasty Songshan | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0377 |
| 8 | China Guizhou HP Ming Dynasty Songshan | Ming dynasty, 1368-1644 AD | 0.0382 |
| 9 | China Guizhou HP Song Dynasty Songshan | Historical period | 0.0400 |
| 10 | China Henan HP Ming-Qing Dynasty Lusixi | Qing dynasty, 1644-1912 AD | 0.0413 |
Ancient DNA from Thailand, Vietnam and Laos
Our ancient DNA database holds 105 individuals excavated in present-day Thailand, Vietnam and Laos, dated from about 5,922 BC to 1731 AD. The most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups among them are O2a (10), O1b (9) and N1b (6), and the most frequent mtDNA haplogroups are F1 (43), M7 (10) and G2 (7). These are people who lived on the same land in the past, not necessarily ancestors of today's Hmong population.
Most frequent Y-DNA haplogroups
Ancient DNA studies on Thailand, Vietnam and Laos
- VN1K is a pangenome-informed multi-omics and phenomics resource for the Vietnamese population (2026)
- TBH1: 12 000-year-old human skeleton and projectile point shed light on demographics and mortality in Terminal Pleistocene Southeast Asia (2025)
- Paternal genetic landscape of contemporary Thai populations in the borderland provinces of Thailand and Myanmar (2025)
- Natural selection and adaptive traits in the Maniq, a nomadic hunter-gatherer society from Mainland Southeast Asia (2025)
- A study of genetic variants associated with skin traits in the Vietnamese population (2024)
Browse them in our ancient DNA database: 77 from Thailand, 24 from Vietnam, 4 from Laos.
Compare yourself with Hmong
Paste your G25 coordinates (scaled, one line, with or without a name in front) and we compute your genetic distance to the Hmong average and to its closest neighbours, right in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
| # | Population | Your distance | Closeness |
|---|
This list only covers Hmong and its neighbours. To find out which of our reports actually fits your DNA, run the free Report Finder: it runs the same fit test that every report uses before an order.
No G25 coordinates yet? Get a free simulated G25 from your raw DNA file, or order G25 coordinates.
About these numbers
Keep in mind that a population average is a statistical summary of a limited number of sampled individuals. Real people inside any group vary, some carry more of one ancestry and some less, and no genetic profile decides who is or is not Hmong. Use these numbers as a map of deep ancestry, not as a label.
Method: averaged G25 coordinates, Euclidean distances to other modern and ancient averages, and a non-negative least-squares model against deep ancestral reference populations (data generated 2026-10-01). Read the full method.
Go deeper than the average
This page describes the Hmong average. Your own DNA has its own story: Fenghuang – Sinosphere Report (15€) models your genome against the ancient sources and modern communities of the region, era by era, in a personal PDF report.
A report built for people of Sinosphere / East Asian ancestry: ancient regional core (Yellow & Yangtze River Neolithic, Erlitou/Shang/Zhou dynasties, Han Dynasty, Yayoi migration, Tang Dynasty, Manchu/Qing era) versus non-regional outside...
More populations from Southeast Asia
Frequently asked questions
What is the ancient genetic make-up of Hmong?
Modelled with deep ancestral reference populations, the Hmong average is about 58.8% East Asian, 25.7% Southern Chinese Neolithic farmers and 15.5% Southeast Asian Neolithic farmers. These proportions are model estimates for a group average, not exact values for any one person.
Which populations are genetically closest to Hmong?
In the G25 data, the closest modern populations to the Hmong average are Miao (Guangxi Baise Xilin), Miao (Guangxi Baise Longlin) and Miao (Guizhou Qianxinan Ceheng). The closest ancient matches are China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Baitaishan, China Guangxi HP Ming Dynasty Genggaishan and China Guangxi HP Late Yuan-Ming Dynasty Huatudong.
Can a DNA test tell me if I am Hmong?
No DNA test can confirm an ethnicity or a nationality. What DNA can show is how similar your genome is to the sampled Hmong average and to its neighbours. If you have G25 coordinates, paste them in the comparison box on this page to check that for free.
Which ExploreYourDNA report suits Hmong ancestry?
For the Hmong average, the regional report to choose is Fenghuang – Sinosphere Report, which our fit test rates as a good match. Your own DNA may differ from the average, so the free Report Finder checks every report against your file before you buy.
Where does the data on this page come from?
From the averaged Global25 (G25) coordinates of the sampled individuals: genetic distances to other modern and ancient population averages, and a non-negative least-squares model against deep ancestral reference populations. The full method is described at https://www.exploreyourdna.com/populations#method.