Yao people
government classification for various minorities in China
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Vietnamese name Vietnamese alphabetngười Dao Hán-Nôm𠊛猺
The Yao people (simplified Chinese: 瑶族; traditional Chinese: 瑤族; pinyin: Yáozú) or Dao (Vietnamese: người Dao) is a classification for various ethnic minorities in China and Vietnam. Their majority branch is also known as Mien. They originated in the areas around Changsha, which today is the capital of Hunan province. They speak a branch of the Hmong-Mien family of languages and share a strong genetic connection to the Hmong peoples. They are believed to have diverged from the Hmong around 5,800 years ago.