Practice your craft to preserve it.
In the peaceful countryside, the rhythmic sound of needles stitching conical hats echoes daily, a familiar part of the lives of the people in Bo Lieu village. Having existed for over 100 years, the craft of making conical hats not only creates jobs and increases income but also becomes a beautiful traditional cultural feature preserved through generations.
Along the small village paths, the sight of women sitting on porches carefully arranging each leaf, their needlework smooth and delicate, has become familiar. For them, the conical hat is not just a tool to protect from the sun and rain, but also embodies diligence, skill, and love for their homeland's traditional craft.
Ms. Tran Thi Ai Lien, Head of the Women's Association in Bo Lieu village, who has been involved in hat-making for over 40 years, said that completing a hat requires many elaborate steps. The leaves are carefully selected, then dried, heated, flattened, and then placed on the mold. Each layer of leaves is arranged harmoniously to create durability, sturdiness, and an elegant appearance. The hat-making process demands meticulousness, skillful hands, and years of experience to create even, beautiful stitches.
 |
| Villagers in Bo Lieu hamlet organized a conical hat-making activity at Nguyen Trai Primary School ( Quang Tri ward) for students to experience - Photo: TD |
According to Ms. Lien, to preserve the craft from generation to generation, families usually teach their children and grandchildren to make conical hats from the age of 12-13. Thanks to this early exposure, many young people in the village have quite high skills. On average, each person can make two hats a day, earning about 100,000 VND after deducting expenses. Although the income is not high, many households remain committed to the craft because it is not only a means of livelihood but also a source of pride for their hometown.
According to Nguyen Thi Thu Diem, Chairwoman of the Women's Union of Trieu Binh commune, 80 out of 115 households in Bo Lieu village are engaged in the craft of making conical hats. This craft is mainly practiced during the agricultural off-season, lasting about eight months each year. The raw materials are imported from Ba Long commune. The atmosphere of diligent and tireless work to preserve this traditional craft is still present in every home in this rural village.
Not only in Bo Lieu village, but also in the coastal area of Trieu Co, the fish sauce making craft in Gia Dang village is being preserved by many people as a part of their homeland's soul. Mr. Doan Van Luong, owner of Hai Long fish sauce production facility, shared that Gia Dang village's fish sauce has long been a source of pride for the local people. Those from Quang Tri who live far from home often seek it out upon returning because of its rich, distinctive flavor, which is hard to find anywhere else.
According to Mr. Luong, to produce high-quality fish sauce, the fish must be very fresh and carefully selected before salting. Each type of fish, such as anchovies, mackerel, or scad, has its own fermentation process and time, lasting from 8 to 12 months. Each year, his facility produces approximately 13,000 liters of fish sauce, generating revenue of around 500 million VND.
Having graduated from university and worked for a large company, Mr. Luong decided to return to his hometown to continue his family's traditional craft. According to him, making fish sauce isn't overly strenuous, but it requires cleanliness, meticulousness, and perseverance to create a quality product for consumers. For him, preserving and developing Gia Dang fish sauce is not just about making money , but also about preserving the soul of his hometown and promoting the image of Quang Tri to many places.
Over the past years, Gia Dang village's fish sauce products have participated in many major trade fairs nationwide, such as the "Proud of Vietnamese Agricultural Products" fair in Hanoi in 2023 and the Spring Fair held in early 2026 at the National Exhibition Center in Hanoi. Prior to that, in 2015, the Provincial People's Committee recognized Gia Dang as a traditional fish sauce village.
 |
| Gia Dang traditional fish sauce products participated in the "Proud of Vietnamese Agricultural Products" fair in Hanoi in 2023 - Photo: D.VL |
Ms. Duong Thi Ngan, originally from Quang Tri province and currently residing in Dong Nai City, says that every time she returns home, she buys Gia Dang fish sauce and Bo Lieu conical hats as gifts for relatives and friends in the South. According to her, witnessing how people make these traditional products brings back many childhood memories, evoking the beauty of her homeland's culture in the heart of someone living far from home.
Opening up new avenues for development.
The changes brought about by modern life have led to the decline of many traditional crafts. However, in villages like Bo Lieu, known for its conical hats, or Gia Dang, known for its fish sauce production, there are still people quietly finding ways to adapt their old crafts to the new era.
According to Nguyen Thi Thu Diem, Chairwoman of the Women's Union of Trieu Binh commune, the locality has regularly organized agricultural fairs and markets to promote local products. Bo Lieu conical hats are always a popular item and sell well. The craft village also attracts many tourist groups, students, and young people to visit, experience, and purchase products. In 2015, the Provincial People's Committee recognized the conical hat-making craft in Bo Lieu as one of the 14 traditional crafts and traditional craft villages of the province.
Meanwhile, the Gia Dang fish sauce village currently has 31 households participating in production with 58 regular workers, earning an average income of 45-50 million VND per person per year. According to Le Thien Vu, Deputy Head of the Economic Department of Trieu Co Commune, in addition to the achievements, increasing production costs while selling prices are not commensurate are causing difficulties for many households in finding markets for their products.
In the past, the People's Committee of the commune has provided funding for the development of product trademarks and created conditions for businesses to participate in trade fairs to promote the Gia Dang fish sauce brand. For long-term development, the biggest challenge currently is the large investment required for infrastructure such as workshops, three-phase electricity, environmental treatment, and transportation, which exceeds the capacity of many small-scale producers. Therefore, the local authorities are paying special attention to encouraging people to relocate to concentrated production areas.
Furthermore, according to Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Diem, President of the Women's Union of Trieu Binh commune, the hat makers in Bo Lieu village hope to soon have a space to display their products, both to sell to tourists and to attract tourists to the locality.
Despite facing many difficulties, those who make conical hats in Bo Lieu and produce fish sauce in Gia Dang village quietly preserve their crafts with all their love for their homeland. They are like small, persistent flames burning amidst the flow of modernity, contributing to the preservation of the traditional cultural identity of Quang Tri province today and in the future.
Nguyen Vinh
Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/kinh-te/202605/hai-lang-nghemot-diem-chung-7d57e3c/
Comment (0)