The Mienic or Yao languages are spoken by the Yao people of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand.
Some of the Yao peoples speak Hmongic languages (Miao); these are called Bunu. A small population of Yao people in Jinxiu Yao Autonomous County (金秀瑶族自治县) in eastern Guangxi speak a Tai-Kadai language called Lakkia. Other Yao peoples speak various Sinitic (Chinese) language varieties.
The Hmongic languages, also known as Miao languages (simplified Chinese: 苗语; traditional Chinese: 苗語; pinyin: Miáoyǔ), include the various languages spoken by the Miao people (such as Hmong, Hmu, and Xong). Hmongic languages also include various languages spoken by non-Mienic-speaking Yao people, such as Pa-Hng, Bunu, Jiongnai, Younuo, and others, while She is spoken by ethnic She people.