The Mien have many, many myths about the origin of their people. One of the best-known stories comes from the time of the Chinese Emperor Pien Hung. While facing defeat under attack from another Emperor, Pien Hung sent his dog, Phan Hu, to find his way through the battle lines and kill the enemy. As a reward for his success, the dog was given one of the Emperor’s own daughters as a wife, and together they bore twelve children, from whom came the twelve Mien clans.

Another story tells of a time of a great flood that covered the entire world, killing everyone except for two people, a brother and a sister. God gave these siblings a pumpkin and asked one to throw the seeds of the pumpkin along the lowlands, and the other to throw the flash of the pumpkin in the mountains. Mien people came from the seeds of the pumpkin, and other people came from the flesh. However, the brother and sister accidentally mixed up God’s instructions, explaining why the Mien live in the mountains.