Khanh Hoa has two more national intangible cultural heritages.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized the national intangible cultural heritage for the knowledge of exploiting and processing Khanh Hoa Agarwood and the Bird's Nest Festival.

The Khanh Hoa Bird's Nest Festival has just been recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage. Photo: Huu Long

On June 3rd, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung signed a decision announcing the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

According to the signed decision, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has included "Knowledge of exploiting and processing agarwood in Khanh Hoa" in the list of National Intangible Cultural Heritage (Folk knowledge).

One day earlier, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism had also included the Khanh Hoa Bird's Nest Festival in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The consecutive recognition of two distinctive local heritage sites not only affirms the unique cultural value but also contributes to the preservation and promotion of heritage associated with the livelihoods and cultural identity of the people of Khanh Hoa.

Along with agarwood harvesting, bird's nest harvesting in Khanh Hoa has existed since before the 17th century, with local residents collecting nests from caves on coastal islands. At that time, there were rudimentary religious rituals, praying for divine assistance for those who collected the nests.

This image shows the harvesting of swallows' nests at Nha Trang Island, also known as Hon Noi, located in Nha Trang Bay. Photo: Huu Long

From the 17th to the 19th centuries, the swiftlet farming industry received close attention and management from the Nguyen dynasty, and the ritual of worshipping the patron saint of the profession along with other deities became an important tradition. From then on, temples dedicated to the patron saint of swiftlet farming began to be built on swiftlet islands and on the mainland in Nha Trang.

From the beginning of the 20th century until before 1975, the Swiftlet Nest Festival became a traditional custom, closely associated with the lives of swiftlet nest harvesters in Khanh Hoa. The rituals were rich and diverse, including ceremonies honoring the ancestors of the profession, ceremonies to worship the guardian deities of swiftlet nest harvesting, and prayers for a bountiful harvest. Local authorities and swiftlet nest harvesting organizations played a crucial role in maintaining and preserving the festival.

The Khanh Hoa Bird's Nest Festival has gone through many stages of development, from the early beliefs of the communities in Vinh Nguyen, Phuoc Hai, Vinh Truong, Vinh Hai, Vinh Hoa, Phuoc Long, Phuong Son, Phuong Sai wards and Phuoc Dong, Vinh Luong communes – Nha Trang City; to today, it has become an important local festival. Maintaining this festival is not only significant from a spiritual perspective but also contributes to preserving the traditional culture of Khanh Hoa province.

At the end of 2024, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued a decision recognizing the knowledge of exploiting and processing Khánh Hòa's swallow's nests as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Source: https://laodong.vn/van-hoa-giai-tri/khanh-hoa-co-them-hai-di-san-van-hoa-phi-vat-the-quoc-gia-1517371.ldo