Promoting ancient Then singing values of Tay ethnic people in Quang Ninh

In late 2019, UNESCO recognized Then practice heritage by Tay, Nung, Thai ethnic people in Vietnam as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity. The heritage belongs to the Tay, Nung and Thai ethnic communities in 11 Northern provinces, including Tay ethnic people in Quang Ninh.

Then ritual of Tay ethnic people in Binh Lieu district, Quang Ninh province

The ancient Then (Then ritual) of the Tay ethnic people in Quang Ninh is a ceremony of general performing arts including singing, music, dancing, costumes etc), aiming at wishing for a peaceful and good life. Futhermore, it also satisfies locals’ cultural and art demands in daily life.

As a typical form of folklore activities and traditions of the Tay people, which is passed down from generation to generation, Then vividly reflects the Tay social life. Through criticism, advice, and praise performed in the form of singing along with music instrument accompaniment, Then has gained remarkable success in community education. As a festival of Then practice, Then coming-of-age ritual has shown beautiful characteristics of cultural traditions of the Tay ethnic people as the spirit of community, solidarity among family members, lineages and villages.

“Going to the sky” ceremony – one of the important performance in the “Then coming-of-age” ritual

Recognizing the values of this heritage, since 2006, Quang Ninh has taken many solutions to preserve and promote the values of the ancient Then ritual in Binh Lieu, including creating a new space for Then performance while restoring Luc Na Communal House Festival, implementing the proposal of “Researching and proposing solutions to preserve and promote cultural values of the Tay ethnic group in Quang Ninh”, and carrying out the project on “Collecting and preserving Then ancient singing of the Tay ethnic people in Binh Lieu district”, etc.

The Lau Then ritual of the Tay people has been restored in parallel with opening clubs and classes for gourd lute, Then singing and songwriting. In 2012, the Then heritage was honored as the national intangible cultural heritage, creating good opportunities for the Then ancient to be strongly preserved and promoted.

Then singing is favored by locals in Binh Lieu district

The Then ritual of the Tay people in Binh Liêu district has been performed at big stages inside and outside the province. Then singing and gourd lute performance have been shown to serve tourism activities associated with cultural experiential tourism. Along with Then ancient songs, many Then songs have been rewritten to be closer to actual life and performed in festivals, weddings, cultural activities etc., contributing to increasing the national pride as well as a sense of preservation of precious traditions.

Translated by Thu Giang