4 National Intangible Cultural Heritages Just Recognized in Lai Chau

On July 14, at Khong Lao commune, the Department of Cultural Heritage (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) coordinated with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lai Chau province and the People's Committee of Khong Lao commune to organize the Ceremony to announce the Decision and award the certificate of National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2025 to Lai Chau province.

At the ceremony, the Organizing Committee announced decisions and awarded certificates to four intangible cultural heritages including: Then Kin Pang Festival of the Thai people; Folk healing knowledge of the Dao people; Traditional cuisine of the Thai people; Cap sac ceremony of the Tuyen Dao people.

Immediately after the announcement ceremony, at Nha Then, delegates and guests attended the performance of Then worship rituals in the Then Kin Pang Festival of the Thai people, and were introduced to folk knowledge in traditional Thai cuisine .

The Then Kin Pang Festival of the White Thai people in the Muong So - Khong Lao area is held annually in early April of the Gregorian calendar. This is a unique cultural feature, a unique form of folk performance that has been preserved by the community for many generations.

The festival includes many activities and rituals such as offering incense at Nha Then, reenacting the hair washing custom, performing traditional costumes, performing six ancient xoe dances, displaying Thai ethnic cultural space and contests to preserve traditional culture such as spinning and net weaving...

People's Artisan Nong Van Nao in Phong Tho commune, 84 years old, who has made many contributions to the study of Thai culture in the Muong So-Khong Lao area, commented: For the Then Kin Pang Festival to be recognized as it is today is a great effort of the community, of artisans and authorities at all levels to preserve and promote the cultural values of the White Thai people.

He proposed that there should be stronger investment to turn heritage into a livelihood, combined with tourism to attract visitors, not just stopping at traditional values.

Deputy Director of the Department of Cultural Heritage Nong Quoc Thanh affirmed that the recognition of heritages is not only a recognition of unique cultural values passed down by the community but also an important milestone affirming the role of the community as a subject in practicing and promoting heritage in modern life.

There needs to be specific solutions and directions to truly "empower" the community, helping people directly participate in preserving, teaching and creating heritage effectively and sustainably.

In 2025, Lai Chau province will have 8 more heritages recognized as National Intangible Cultural Heritage, bringing the total number of heritages registered in the province to 13. Of which, the remaining 3 heritages including: Xoe art of the Ha Nhi people, Xa Nha Ca performance of the Ha Nhi people and Weaving craft of the Lu people will be awarded certificates in the coming time.

Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lai Chau province Tran Manh Hung said: The registration of heritages is not only a source of pride for ethnic communities, but also a great responsibility in protecting, teaching and promoting values. Bringing heritage into contemporary life is an important direction, associated with sustainable tourism development, educating the young generation and creating livelihoods for people.

Lai Chau is a border province with 20 ethnic groups living there such as: Thai, Giay, Lao, Lu, Muong, Kho Mu, Mang, Khang, Ha Nhi, Cong, La Hu, Si La, Mong, Dao... with rich and diverse cultural identities.

The recognition of heritages not only contributes to enriching the national cultural identity but also opens up opportunities for the province to exploit cultural values to serve socio-economic development, especially developing community tourism, traditional education and strengthening national unity./.

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/4-cultural-historical-recognized-cultural-historical-historical-historical-recognized-monuments-of-the-nation-and-recognized-cua-lai-chau-post1049553.vnp