Vivid colors of intangible culture of ethnic groups in Quang Ninh

Quang Ninh has a diverse, rich, unique and traditional intangible cultural treasure of ethnic minorities.

Tay ethnic women in Binh Lieu district sing Then by the stream.

Intangible cultural heritage is something that cannot be held, is a spiritual product associated with a community or individual, objects and related cultural spaces, has historical, cultural, scientific value, represents the identity of the community, is constantly recreated and passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth, craft, performance and other forms. As an ancient land, there are many ethnic groups, each with its own unique cultural features, creating for Quang Ninh the richness and diversity of a unique cultural region. Quang Ninh currently has 362 intangible cultural heritages belonging to 7 types, including: 76 traditional folk festivals, 25 traditional craft heritages, 22 folk performing arts heritages, 14 folk language heritages, 168 social practice heritages, 7 spoken and written heritages, 50 folk knowledge heritages.

In particular, the folk performance genres are very rich, typically: Then singing of the Tay people, antiphonal singing, love singing on fishermen's boats in Ha Long Bay, dum singing on Ha Nam island (Quang Yen town), soong co singing of the San Chi people (Binh Lieu district and Tien Yen district), Dao folk singing (Ha Long city and Uong Bi city), Nha to singing, singing and dancing at communal houses in Van Ninh (Mong Cai city), Doan Ket commune (Van Don district), Dam Ha commune (Dam Ha district)...

San Chi students in Huc Dong commune (Binh Lieu district) learn to sing "song co" by the stream.

There are nearly 80 large and small festivals taking place every year. Among them, there are large festivals that take place over many days, especially regional festivals, often attracting tourists from many provinces and cities. There is a fusion of regional cultures, a harmony between folk beliefs and the worship of historical figures in festivals in Quang Ninh. Meanwhile, many coastal festivals are influenced by agricultural festivals in the delta.

Up to now, Quang Ninh province has 15 national intangible cultural heritages, including: Then practice of the Tay, Nung, Thai people; hat nha to (hat cua dinh); folk performing art of singing soong co of the San Chi people and singing soong co of the San Diu people; festivals of Cua Ong temple, Tien Cong temple, Tra Co communal house, Quan Lan communal house, Dam Ha communal house, Van Ninh communal house, Bach Dang festival and Xuong dong festival; the wind abstinence custom of the Dao people in Dong Van commune; the cap sac ceremony of the Dao Thanh Y people (Ha Long city, Uong Bi, Cam Pha, Mong Cai, Van Don district, Ba Che, Binh Lieu, Tien Yen, Dam Ha, Hai Ha); new rice celebration of the Tay people (Ha Long city, Cam Pha, Dong Trieu, Binh Lieu, Tien Yen, Ba Che, Hai Ha, Dam Ha districts).

In particular, Quang Ninh also owns two heritages, including the Then of the Tay people, one of 11 provinces with Then of the Tay, Nung, and Thai ethnic groups in Vietnam, and the practice of worshiping the Mother Goddess of the Three Realms of the Vietnamese people, which has been recognized by UNESCO as a representative intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

Representatives of localities possessing the Dao Thanh Y's social customary heritage of the coming-of-age ceremony received the Decision to recognize it as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage at the Song Mun Festival in Hai Ha district in 2025.

In recent years, the cultural sector and localities have actively implemented projects and plans to preserve and promote the cultural values ​​of Quang Ninh ethnic groups. Awakening the potential value of intangible cultural heritage, Quang Ninh province has brought the exploitation of traditional art forms into rural village life, folk games into festivals and even into schools. Many folk singing clubs have been established. Many intangible cultural heritages of Quang Ninh ethnic groups have also been researched, collected and restored by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and localities in coordination with the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts.

Huynh Dang

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/sinh-dong-sac-mau-van-hoa-phi-vat-the-cac-dan-toc-quang-ninh-3353888.html