(HBO) – In traditional festivals, especially those organised after the lunar New Year, the presence of traditional dishes for display or selling has become a familiar image. It can be said that traditional cuisine has been existing and promoted in local festivals.
At
Muong Bi Khai ha (going down the field) festival, food stalls always draw a
crowd of many visitors.
The
Muong Bi Khai ha (going down the field) festival is an address visitors cannot miss
if wanting to learn about the Muong ethnic group’s culture. At this year’s
festival, each town and commune in Tan Lac district had a booth displaying its
specialties, in which dishes bearing Muong people’s cultural characteristics
always attract a lot of visitors.
On
the path to the festival, bamboo-tube rice, grilled fish and hot vegetable
steamers left strong impressions on visitors. Do Nhan commune brought its
attractive traditional dishes to this year’s festival, including grilled "dam
xanh” fish, steamed vegetables with 18 different kinds, steamed stream fish,
and seven-colour sticky rice. For Muong people, steaming and grilling have long
been the two most typical ways of cooking. They also like eating forest
vegetables with bitter taste or cooking meat with sour bamboo shoots and "la
lom” – a typical kind of leaf of the Muong people. Those typical dishes were
easily found in Muong Bi Khai ha festival. Steamed or grilled fish, chicken
meat fried with sour bamboo shoots, mixed vegetables, and bamboo-tube rice were
seen in almost all booths. In addition, many specialties in the mountainous
region, including frog, squirrel, and mouse, were also sold in the festival.
The
booths were busy at noon. The space under the bamboo canopy was an ideal place
for visitors to relax and enjoy traditional dishes of the Muong people./.
Gongs hold a special place in the cultural and spiritual life of the Muong ethnic people in Hoa Binh province. More than musical instruments, they are an indispensable part of community rituals and collective memory, echoing through generations as a spiritual thread linking the past, present, and future.
Preserving and promoting the cultural values of the Muong ethnic group has become an urgent task in the current context, as many traditional values face the risk of fading away. This effort requires not only protecting the cultural identity but also eliminating outdated customs and developing a modern cultural lifestyle, contributing to sustainable values for the Muong community in Hoa Binh province.
The Muong ethnic culture, deeply rooted in Vietnam’s mountainous north, continues to be preserved and revitalised by dedicated individuals and communities determined to safeguard their ancestral identity.
The Muong group is one of the largest ethnic minorities in Vietnam, primarily found in Hoa Binh province. The Muong people in Hoa Binh boast a rich and diverse cultural treasure that reflects the unique identity of this ethnic group. Accounting for over 63% of the province's population, they have created and preserved numerous distinctive cultural values, contributing to their unique identity. Their cultural heritage is an invaluable asset, at the heart of their national identity, and represents a vibrant spiritual life that must be preserved and promoted in today’s modern world.
For generations, the ethnic communities of Hoa Binh province, particularly the Muong people, have preserved vibrant festivals deeply intertwined with the region’s geography, nature, and social traditions. These celebrations enrich Hoa Binh’s spiritual life and cultural identity, reflecting both folk beliefs and the intermingling of ethnic customs. Many of these festivals have endured the test of time, passed down through generations and continuing to thrive today. Among them, the Khai Ha (Going Down to the Field) festival stands out as one of the most significant events of the Muong ethnic group.
Muong calendar, known as sach doi, is an ancient folk knowledge system developed through observations of the movement of the pleiades star. This unique calendar consists of 12 bamboo sticks, each representing a lunar month. Specific days within each month are marked with distinct symbols, guiding locals in determining auspicious and inauspicious days for important activities.
.jpg)
