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Tshuaj Ntsuab (Plant Medicine): A Compendium of Hmong Medicinal Plants
Zongxee Lee, Natalie Hoidal, and Alex Crum
Photography by Lindsey Miller
Medicinal herbs have played important roles for the Hmong people throughout history, but information about these plants traditionally has been passed down orally, with little written documentation. As a result, much of the practical knowledge about how to grow and use these herbs is endangered. Tshuaj Ntsuab helps preserve this legacy through the story of an herbalist family who fled Laos and built a new home and community in Minnesota following the Vietnam War. It is also a recipe book and a botanical compendium of forty-four important medicinal herbs. In Hmong, these herbs are commonly called Tshuaj Hmoob (Hmong medicines) or Tshuaj ntsuab (plant medicines).
Links on this page provide pronunciation guidance in Hmong from May Lee, author Zongxee’s mother, whose wisdom as a niam tshuaj, a plant-based healer and keeper of herbal plants, is gathered and shared in this book. Pronunciation guidance using the International Phonetic Alphabet has been provided by Chia Lor.
