At present, the number of Dao people in Bac Giang is not very large (about 7,000 people), but the cultural features of costumes, beliefs and customs are always preserved and preserved by the people. wishing that beauty would last forever.
* Graceful costume Dao:
Far more than 5 km from the center of Duong Huu commune, Son Dong district, Khe Khuoi village has 34 Dao Thanh Y ethnic households gathered under the green forest canopy. In the solitude of the mountains, the rattle of the woven fabric sounds very pleasant to the ears of the women, the sisters like the harmony of the songs create a dash for that silence. According to the women in the village, from ancient times, tailoring, embroidery and pattern printing was the private work of Dao women; 9 to 10-year-old girls practice sewing, embroidery. Previously, the Dao also planted cotton to get fiber, but now the market sells colorful yarns, so people do not grow cotton anymore but mainly buy new fabrics to dye indigo, and then embellish decorative patterns on it; whose clothes, towels, hats, bibs, leggings are embroidered by that person. The whole Khe Khuoi village only has one or two permanent frames of women, they are still attached to the memories of an eternal time.
Dao women have a unique way of embroidering, not embroidering according to the previous sketch pattern, but embroidery according to their memory and imagination. Particularly in the past, women of Dao Lo Gang group in addition to embroidery technique also have a tradition of wax pattern on fabric. How to print your flower is embedded in triangular, folded, circle or straight frames made of bamboo into melted beeswax then printed on white cloth and then printed with indigo dyed fabric hot water lets wax melt. The wax prints were not affected by indigo water, so it became a beautiful blue color. However, so far people no longer apply this technique; embroidery and flower printing on turban, clothes ... in addition to decoration, showing the skill of the owner also has a greater meaning than the concept and desire of the Dao people. The figures of people and trees printed on costumes symbolize longevity, the cross symbolizes the rich activities of the nation. Eight-pointed star pattern shows distinctive features and symbols of the Dao ethnic group; a bird-shaped pattern perched on a woman's shirt means that a predestined woman is noticed by men, a bird-shaped pattern of a flower indicates that a man and woman learn from each other and agree to build a happy couple .. ..The Dao's men 's clothes are quite simple including clothes, trousers with indigo fabric dyed or dyed black with little embroidery on decorative patterns (except for Dao Lo Gang' s), while Dao women 's clothes are mostly The common feature is to wear only a long shirt with no neck or neck, chest brace and split front to the chest of the shirt. Decorative patterns on costumes are embroidered with multicolor colors, rich in types and motifs including birds, pine trees, swastika,
Dao people, especially women, like silver jewelry such as necklaces, bracelets, bracelets, rings, relics ... Wedding ceremonies, festivals, New Year days and in religious activities here have to wear traditional clothes. Particularly, when worshiping ceremony, there must be separate costumes because they think that the spirit world has many types of ghosts and teachers who communicate with ghosts must change their hats to suit that ghost; This outfit needs the most attention is a hat and a hat called a ghost hat. The priests' costumes of the Dao groups generally differ only in the colors and decorative patterns, the rest are basically the same. The priest's hat of Dao Lo Gang, Thanh Phan is a lotus-leaf hat, made of cardboard and cloth that can be folded and spread; The haters of the Dao Thanh Y group are similar to the ones of the teachers and there are also types of hats like the ones used by soldiers.
* For the beauty of the Dao culture to last forever:
Ms. Nguyen Thi Nga, a member of the Department of Conservation and Museum of Bac Giang province, said that the Dao ethnic group is one of the 7 main ethnic groups in Bac Giang province, living in Son Dong, Luc Ngan and Luc Nam districts. and Yen The with 3 different groups: Dao Lo Gang, Dao Thanh Phan and Dao Thanh Y. Previously, the cultivation practice of the Dao people was shifting cultivation, nomadic, each village only had a few dozen households but came Now they have settled in the sedentary way of settling and building a fixed village (in the dialect of the Dao people called Lang or Giang) established on the slopes of the mountains, in valleys and places near water sources. The nomadic way of life still exists only in the Dao Lo Gang group in Dong Cao village, Thach Son commune (Son Dong district). Although most of the Dao ethnic groups reside in upland and remote areas, they still go to the market.
Typically, the son Dao before getting married 10 years or older must go through the ceremony; if the case when the life is not acute, then when the child dies, the grandchildren give. The Dao people rank according to the family hierarchy; I gave you an identity and then I gave it to you. Compatriots said that only those who are ordained are considered adults. Through the ceremony, each member of the family has the opportunity to remember the ancestors and help each other to strengthen community solidarity. Each year, the Dao in Bac Giang have 4 festivals including: spring festival (held in January of lunar calendar), seasonal festival (also held in January from October 10 to 15), village's worshiping ceremony Dao Thanh Y and the gifting ceremony of the Dao people in Dong Dinh village, Binh Son commune (Luc Nam district). Particularly, the worshiping ceremony will be held at the village head and the position of the village head will change when the village head dies. The villagers will find a new village head. When the village head is not selected, the ceremony will not be conducted.
To preserve the beauty of the Dao culture, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Sector of Bac Giang province has conducted surveys and studies on the Dao ethnic culture in 23 villages and indigenous villages. Dao people reside; distributing 520 questionnaires and saving 230 photos of traditional Dao activities. In addition to preserving traditional festivals, helping ethnic minorities in the province, including Dao people to exchange and learn about the cultural beauty, the provincial Culture, Sports and Tourism branch requires cultural bureaus of districts where the Dao are born. propagandize and encourage Dao people of all ages to wear traditional costumes daily; men and young people try to have 1-2 ethnic costumes on every wedding day and festival. Currently, Bac Giang Culture, Sports and Tourism Industry is also publishing a book of cultural heritage of Bac Giang, including many poems, proverbs, couplets, singing songs of the Dao people, stories and myths about the origin and history of the Dao people. At the same time, the museum focuses on collecting valuable artifacts such as the bibliographies in the bookshelves of the Dao elders passed down by his father.
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