Muong villages in the land of Trieu Voi

Việt Nam•12/02/2024

Through engineer Quách Tự Hải, former Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hòa Bình province, we learned about a Mường community from Vietnam that had migrated to Bản Đon, Hủa Phăn province, Laos. Coincidentally, in March 2023, the Provincial Association of Literature and Arts received an invitation from the Department of Information, Culture and Tourism of Hủa Phăn province to help research and clarify the origins and culture of the Mường people in the area. With the province's permission, the Provincial Association of Literature and Arts formed a working group and set off to carry out the mission.

A view of Don village, Hua Phan province (Laos).

There are many land routes to Laos, and the delegation from the Provincial Association of Literature and Arts chose to travel through the Long Sap international border gate in Moc Chau district, Son La province. From the border gate to Sam Neua (the capital of Hua Phan province) is about 130 km. From there, traveling another 27 km southwest, the delegation arrived at Don village. The village has 103 households and over 800 inhabitants, more than 99% of whom are Muong people, with the remainder being Lao women who married into the village. Information from the Department of Information, Culture and Tourism of Hua Phan province indicates that the Muong people in Don village migrated to Laos around the early 18th century; their origin in Vietnam and reasons for coming here remain unknown to this day.

The people here are very friendly but still poor. The village has few well-built houses; most are brick houses with corrugated iron roofs, wooden houses with earthen floors, or wooden stilt houses. Each family has very little valuable property, and many still use outdated appliances. Electricity is available, but there are no modern electrical appliances; refrigerators are few and far between in the entire village. Motorbikes are the primary means of transportation; there are only a few cars in the village, mostly pickup trucks and trucks. There is only one primary and secondary school in the village, funded by a South Korean social organization. To continue to high school, one must go to Sam Neua. Due to the remote location and economic difficulties, few people complete high school or pursue higher education. The Muong people of Don village are proud to have two successful sons in their careers: Mr. Phu Son Tham Ma Vi Say, former Deputy Governor of Hua Phan province, born in 1962, now retired and living in his hometown of Don village; and Mr. Bun Phon But Pha Chan, currently the Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry of Hua Phan province.

The people of Don village, Hua Phan province (Laos) practice playing basic gong pieces.

People from Don village, Hua Phan province (Laos), dressed in traditional Muong ethnic costumes, perform a gong-playing game they learned under the guidance of the Provincial Association of Literature and Arts.

Cultural services in the village are almost non-existent. There's no community center, so all community activities take place at the primary and secondary schools. There are no public recreational areas; wealthier families buy portable speakers to listen to music and sing karaoke. Before night falls, Don village is already silent. The village only has a few grocery stores and motorbike repair shops; there's no market, and nowhere to find meat, fish, or vegetables like anywhere else in Vietnam. Ms. Suc Xi Da, the principal of the primary and secondary school, said: "There's no market here. To go to the market, you have to go to Sam Neua (27 km away). If you want chicken, duck, or fish, you have to ask the villagers directly. If you want pork, you can only find frozen meat brought from Vientiane or Sam Neua; nobody sells fresh pork or beef here."

The daily cuisine of the Muong people here is similar to that of the Laotians; their meals are very simple, with seasonings focusing on three main flavors: spicy, bitter, and salty. They eat sticky rice daily (rarely regular rice) dipped in cham cheo sauce and a small piece of stewed fish that is soft, mushy, salty, and extremely spicy. They dip it in the sauce to enhance the flavor of the sticky rice, not to obtain the protein from the fish.

By 2023, there was still no primary healthcare station for the people. When people got sick, they had to buy medicine themselves, treat themselves with traditional remedies, or invite shamans. Only when the illness was very serious did they go to Sam Neua for examination.

Women wear traditional Lao clothing daily, consisting of a shirt, t-shirt, or regular jacket on top, and a Lao-style wrap skirt on the bottom; men wear shirts and trousers.

Language is a cultural characteristic that distinguishes one ethnic group from another. The Muong people here speak Lao and a mixture of Muong and Lao. They speak Lao outside the home and Muong at home; even their children and daughters-in-law, who are Lao, must learn and speak Muong. Surprisingly, the Muong people here have been displaced from their homeland for hundreds of years, yet they still retain and speak their mother tongue. Perhaps this is the secret to their preservation and their assertion of being Muong, preventing them from being assimilated into the community of other Lao ethnic groups?!

In Laos, the government structure doesn't have commune or ward levels like in Vietnam. The lowest level is village, hamlet, or cluster of villages, then comes the district level, and finally the provincial level. The role, voice, and prestige of the village head and deputy village head are very important; the people have great trust in their village leaders.

During my first trip to Laos, visiting Don village, I witnessed the difficulties and heard many thoughts from the villagers and leaders who wanted to find the origins and restore the Muong culture of their ancestors. Upon returning to Vietnam, with the determination to contribute to the people of Don village in fulfilling their aspirations, the Provincial Association of Literature and Arts organized a fundraising campaign and collected 3 sets of Muong gongs (31 pieces); 20 sets of traditional Muong women's costumes; 2 books, "The Epic of the Creation of the Land and Water" and "Muong Shamanism," along with over 20 million VND in cash.

Exactly five months after our first visit to Don village, we went to Laos for the second time. Besides giving gifts to the villagers, our delegation instructed 30 Muong girls in the village on how to use gongs, wear Muong skirts, and sing Muong folk songs. They learned very quickly; after only three days, they could sing several Muong folk melodies, use the gongs quite skillfully, and play two gong pieces proficiently: "Going on the Road" and "White Flower, Yellow Flower." Seeing the Muong girls wearing their ancestors' traditional clothing for the first time, and observing their movements while playing the Muong gongs, our delegation leader – poet Le Va – couldn't help but exclaim: "Muong culture has been revived in Laos!" The head of Don village promised: "We will maintain this activity and encourage women here to wear Muong skirts to preserve traditional culture through clothing."

There were many interesting things to discover during our visit to Laos, especially the Don village of the Muong people, who had migrated from Vietnam to Laos several hundred years ago. They had lost their homeland, their customs, and the flavors of their motherland, so when they learned that the delegation from the Hoa Binh Provincial Association of Literature and Arts was coming to study Muong culture, everyone was overjoyed. They welcomed the delegation like family, with genuine warmth and openness, as if they were blood relatives. When we said goodbye, they were reluctant to part, and many elderly people silently wept. Moved by this heartfelt hospitality, everyone in the delegation vowed to do something to help their Muong people in Laos alleviate their hardships upon returning home.

Le Quoc Khanh

(Contributor)

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