Preserving local culture
The Bru-Van Kieu community possesses a unique and vast cultural treasure, encompassing a rich spiritual life that has been preserved and nurtured through many generations. However, due to war, difficult living conditions, and especially the "foreign-worshiping" trend among young people, the indigenous cultural treasure of the Bru-Van Kieu people has been somewhat eroded and diminished.
In recent years, with the support of local authorities and relevant agencies, the Bru-Van Kieu people have learned to incorporate their traditional cultural values into tourism . This not only contributes to attracting tourists and increasing income but is also the most effective way to transmit and sustainably preserve valuable indigenous cultural values.
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| Ms. Ho Thi Mom regularly practices playing the Ta Lu instrument to entertain tourists - Photo: PP |
Ms. Ho Thi Mom (67 years old) from Cay Sung village (Kim Ngan commune) is a very skilled Ta Lu player and singer of many folk songs of the Bru-Van Kieu people. While previously the Ta Lu instrument and Ms. Mom's singing were only seen during village festivals, now they appear more frequently and help her "earn money" by entertaining tourists.
Ms. Mom stated that, starting in 2018, Netin Travel Co., Ltd. began offering tours exploring nature and learning about the culture of the Bru-Van Kieu community in Khe Sung and Da Coi villages, formerly Ngan Thuy commune, now Kim Ngan commune. At that time, in addition to collaborating with other locals to guide, carry luggage, and cook, Netin Travel commissioned Ms. Mom to play the Ta Lu instrument and perform folk songs of the ethnic minority for tourists.
“Tourists who come to my village, after visiting the caves and exploring the natural scenery, camp out at night and enjoy the special dishes of the Bru-Van Kieu people. Then, by the crackling fire, I will play the Ta Lu instrument and sing Bru-Van Kieu folk songs for them. Many tourists, including foreigners, are so captivated by the melodious ‘ting ting tang tang’ sound of the Ta Lu instrument that they return a second time,” Mrs. Mom shared.
The Bru-Van Kieu community currently possesses three national intangible cultural heritage sites: the drum-beating festival, the rice planting festival, and the new rice harvest festival. In addition, they have many folk songs and customs that have been preserved and nurtured through generations.
Previously, the intangible cultural heritage, folk songs, customs, and crafts of the Bru-Van Kieu people were only preserved and showcased in community festivals. Today, with the support of specialized agencies, localities where Bru-Van Kieu communities live have incorporated these cultural values into tourism development. This is also a way for these localities to improve the economic and cultural lives of their people.
Developing tourism to preserve forests.
The Ho Rum village (Kim Ngan commune) is home to over 100 Bru-Van Kieu households. For generations, their lives have depended on small-scale farming, livestock raising, and forest resource exploitation, leading to many difficulties.
Like other villagers, after more than 10 years of marriage, the lives of Mr. Ho Van Huynh and Ms. Ho Thi Son remain difficult. To make a living, the couple relies solely on the forest. And in their struggle for survival, the two have violated forestry laws on numerous occasions…
However, since 2022, Mr. Huynh and Mrs. Son, along with the Bru-Van Kieu people in Ho Rum village, have participated in the training course "Tourism skills for communities dependent on forests in the buffer zone of the Dong Chau-Khe Nuoc Trong Nature Reserve" organized by Helvetas Vietnam, Netin Travel Company, and local partners.
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| The indigenous cultural values of the Bru-Van Kieu people are being incorporated into tourism services - Photo: PP |
After receiving training, Mr. Huynh and Ms. Son invested in and renovated their traditional stilt house into a homestay to serve tourists. To date, after 3 years of operation, despite many difficulties, their homestay has become a resting place for many tourists visiting and experiencing the area. The Bru-Van Kieu people in Ho Rum village have also gained additional income through selling local products and providing food and accommodation for tourists.
According to Mr. Huynh, after years of making a living from the forest, he and his wife don't remember exactly how many trees they cut down or how many animals they caught. Since starting tourism and participating in training courses, the two of them still go into the forest regularly, but they no longer "harm" the forest.
While Ms. Son goes into the forest to gather wild vegetables, bamboo shoots, banana blossoms, etc., to prepare dishes for tourists, Mr. Huynh regularly participates in patrols and forest protection with the protection force of the Dong Chau-Khe Nuoc Trong Nature Reserve. Now, not only Mr. Huynh and Ms. Son's family but also many Bru-Van Kieu people here understand that the forest has brought tourists to the village, helping to develop the economy, so they must not destroy it anymore. Protecting the forest is protecting the prosperous lives of the Bru-Van Kieu people.
The Resolution of the Kim Ngan Commune Party Congress for the 2025-2030 term identifies tourism as a key economic sector of the locality. In addition to calling on investors to "awaken" and effectively exploit the potential and advantages of the natural landscape in the area, such as the Dong Chau-Kue Trong Nature Reserve, Bang Onsen, Khe Nuoc Lanh, and various caves, Kim Ngan commune focuses on developing community tourism and preserving and promoting the indigenous cultural values of the Bru-Van Kieu ethnic group.
Dr. Bach Thanh Hai, Director of the Dong Chau-Khe Nuoc Trong Nature Reserve, said: The Dong Chau-Khe Nuoc Trong Nature Reserve covers an area of more than 22,000 hectares of evergreen tropical primary forest, with diverse and abundant flora and fauna, and is considered by the World Wildlife Fund as one of the 200 centers with high biodiversity resources globally. Living around the reserve is the Bru-Van Kieu community of villages in Kim Ngan commune, who have been closely associated with the forest for generations.
“Forests cannot remain green forever if the people living around them are still poor. Creating livelihoods that allow people to participate in forest conservation is the goal towards sustainability. Therefore, in recent times, we have actively coordinated with local authorities and partners to support the Bru-Van Kieu people in developing tourism and raising awareness of sustainable forest protection,” Mr. Hai shared.
Phan Phuong
Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/du-lich/202512/khi-nguoi-bru-van-kieu-lam-du-lich-d354b91/
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