Thousands of local people and visitors have flocked to Tien Du district in the northern province of Bac Ninh to attend the Lim festival, which honours Quan Ho (love duet singing) – the world intangible cultural heritage recognised by UNESCO.
Quan Ho is
performed on boats - Illustrative image (Source: VNA)
The annual festival takes place on February 27-28 or the 12th and
13th days of the Lunar New Year.
The incense-offering rituals were organised at Hong An pagoda (Lim pagoda) on
Lim Hill. The pagoda is dedicated to Nguyen Dinh Dien (Hieu Trung Hau),
who invented Quan Ho.
The Lim festival contributes to preserving the locality’s traditional cultural
values and promoting images and tourism potential of Bac Ninh.
The organising board has arranged six areas and one stage for Quan Ho singing.
Quan Ho is also performed on boats, and at pagodas and communal houses in Noi
Due and Lien Bao communes, and Lim town.
Besides Quan Ho singing, the festival also features various folk games such as
traditional wrestling, earthenware pot breaking, and bamboo swinging.
The art of love duets was inscribed in UNESCO’s representative list of intangible
cultural heritage in September 2009.
Quan Ho is an art form that combines various elements, including music,
lyrics and costumes, and features the distinctive culture of people in the
region formerly called Kinh Bac.
The singing represents different kinds of relationships -- the
relationship between male and female singers as romantic lovers, the
relationship between two friendly villages and the relationship between
performers and the audience. Each element helps define Quan Ho, give it
life and meaning, and the resulting harmony is so much more than just a
beautiful song.
Source: VNA
Hoa Binh province has shown strong performance in family planning by effectively implementing directions and plans in the field, including Directive No. 12/CT-UBND issued by the Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee on August 4, 2021 on rolling out measures to maintain the policy of each couple having two children, which is stated in community rules and the regulations of agencies, organisations, and units across the province of Hoa Binh for the 2021 – 2025 period.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended a hybrid conference on December 18 to review the culture, sport, and tourism sector’s performance in 2024 and launch key tasks for 2025. Standing Deputy Secretary of the Hoa Binh provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the provincial People’s Council Bui Duc Hinh, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Chuong and officials from local departments and sectors also took part in the event.
Hoa Binh’s Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism on December 18, hosted a conference to present the outcomes of a research study on the traditional costumes of the Muong ethnic group.
Along with the activities of Project 6 - the national target programme for socio-economic development in ethnic minority-inhabited and mountainous areas for the 2021 – 2026 period, efforts to preserve and promote the traditional cultural values of ethnic minorities in Lac Son district have received additional momentum.
In the context of globalisation and deeper integration, preserving and promoting the national cultural identity is of utmost importance. Aware of their pioneering and proactive role on all fronts, over the years, the youth organisations at all levels in Hoa Binh province have implemented various concrete and practical activities to preserve and promote the cultural identities of ethnic groups in the locality.