Ly Xia Foung was born in 1888 in the village of Ha Klua Lia, Nong Het, Laos. He was a very well respected person in the Hmong community and was one of the first Hmong to gain a prominent position in Lao society.

Ly Xia Foung was a farmer, craftsman and a traveling tradesman. He helped the Hmong minority liaison with the Lao government in relation to the issues of health, well-being, and education. Ly Xia Foung strongly encouraged Hmong children to attend school so they could better their lives. Ly Xia Foung was very skilled in farming, blacksmithing, carpentry, and basket weaving. He was also creatively talented in singing, playing the flute, and qeej instrument playing. He was multilingual and spoke Chinese, Laotian, and a bit of Vietnamese, in addition to Hmong. Ly Xia Foung died of tetanus in 1939, in the village of Phak Khe where he had been the District Administrator of Keng Khuai.

The photo and most of the bio information were derived from Touby Lyfoung: An Authentic Account of the Life of a Hmong Man in the Troubled Land of Laos, Touby Lyfoung Foundation, 1996.