Dien Bien province is currently home to 18 ethnic communities, out of 19 ethnic groups in Vietnam northwest.
Each ethnic group has traditional rituals and ceremonies vividly expressing its own culture and belief system. For examples, Thai ethnic community has Xen hamlet & village ritual and worshipping ceremonies to pray for good weather and thank gods for good harvest, Mong ethnic group has Gau Tao, Nao Pe Chau festival, etc.
However, along with modernization, some of the traditional rituals have the risk of disappearance forever, such as Xen ritual that annually held in Muong Thanh valley in the 3rd lunar month and 4th lunar month in the past has not taken place for many years.
According to Director of the Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism Phạm Việt Dũng, for preserving cultural traditions of ethnic minorities in the province, the department has prioritized the revival of lost traditional ceremonies and festivals. In the implementation of plans for restoration of such festivals, the department has closely collaborated with concerning local authorities and received enthusiastic support of village elders and experts on cultural customs and traditions of ethnic minorities.
So far, since 2008, the department of culture, sport and tourism has successfully revived 20 traditional festivals of Mong, Dao, Thai, Kho Mu, Xinh Mun, Ha Nhi, i.e. with the total investment of 20 VND billion funded by the provincial government. The festive restoration included the rain praying ceremony of Kho Mu people in Dien Bien district and the ceremony celebrating new rice of Xinh Mun group in Dien Bien Dong district.
The fire dancing festival of the Red Dao ethnic group was revived in Huoi Sau village, Pa Tan commune, Nam Po district, in the northern province of Dien Bien in late 2018.
For effective preservation and restoration of traditional rituals and festivals, the provincial government of Dien Bien approved a project for further preservation and development of the culture of ethnic groups in the province. This project set targets for inspection and assessment of all cultural heritages of ethnic groups in the locality in 2020, and restoration of typical rites of 50% of the ethnic groups, creating favorable conditions for promoting cultural identities of ethnic communities in Dien Bien.
PTT
