ALL
head fabric
ICH Elements 9
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PIYODAKASHAK
A kind of traditional game played by teenagers and young men. That was held during Navruz holiday and other celebration. They throw a piece of had fabric and each player tries to take out that.
Tajikistan -
Trò Chiềng Festival
The Trò Chiềng Festival is held in Trinh Xa village, Yen Ninh commune, Yen Dinh district, Thanh Hoa province from the 10th to the 12th of the first lunar month, to commemorate the great contributions of Tam Công Trịnh Quốc Bảo - the village's tutelary god - the founder and teacher of Trò Chiềng, and to pray for a peaceful and happy new year. Trò Chiềng was originally an elephant war game (also known as elephant fighting), which later developed into a festival with 12 performances. The founder of Trò Chiềng was Thanh Hoang Tam Cong Trinh Quoc Bao (998 - 1085). Thanh Hoang Tam Cong Trinh Quoc Bao also had the name Trịnh Bạn, a native of Định Xá village (Chiềng village). Trinh Quoc Bao was an official under the Ly dynasty, and had contributed to helping King Ly Thanh Tong defeat the Song army in the North and pacify the Champa invaders in the South, so he was given the title of Dong Phuong Hac Quang Dai Vuong. The Trò Chiềng Festival is organized in 2 parts: The ceremony begins with the Phụng Nghinh worship ceremony, incense offering, and elephant procession from Trinh Xa communal house to the commune stadium to report to the village's tutelary god about a year of labor and production of the local people. The festival takes place with 12 special performances such as: Golden neck procession, chicken neck procession, tutelary god procession, son-in-law selection, horse racing, elephant fighting, dragon fighting, carp transforming into dragon, Phung Hoan procession, fireworks... The toys are made of materials: bamboo, rattan, fabric... In which, elephant fighting is considered special and has become a cultural beauty of the people of Trinh Xa village. The fighting elephants are woven from bamboo and rattan, carried by 4 strong young men on 4 legs and a strong, experienced old farmer holds the stick to control the elephant's head for fighting. When "Thượng Soạn" gives the order, the 2 elephants will charge at each other, fighting with 2 tusks; The old custom stipulates that elephants will fight in 2 rounds, each round has 3 rounds, the one that is pushed back will lose. After the performance ends, all elephants, horses, and dragons will be transformed and announced to heaven and earth, to show gratitude for the merits of their ancestors and predecessors. The festival also takes place enthusiastically with competitions: making longan cakes, and banh la rang bua - traditional products of the locality. After the performance ends, all elephants, horses, and dragons will be transformed and announced to heaven and earth, to show gratitude for the merits of their ancestors and predecessors. The Trò Chiềng Festival reenacts all aspects of life, working, fighting, playing... guiding people back to history, their roots, and a good life. The festival is a cultural activity, meeting the spiritual needs of the people, praying for the people's health, prosperity, and good crops; it is an opportunity for people to express their respect and gratitude to the gods and ancestors who have built and defended the country. This is a typical festival in the cultural life of the residents of the Mã River Delta. With its unique values and historical significance, the Tro Chieng Festival was recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2017.
Viet Nam -
Lệ Mật Village Festival
Lệ Mật village festival dates back to the Lý Dynasty and is held from the 21st to 23rd of the third lunar month every year. The village's Tutelary god is Hoàng Đức Trung who, according to legend, was able to find the body of the Lý Dynasty princess on the Thiên Đức River and was allowed by the king to take people from Lệ Mật across the Red River, to reclaim land, and establish "Thirteen Camps". ” in the west of Thăng Long Citadel. The ritual includes water procession, literary procession, and incense offering ceremony of 13 villages and 19 families. The uniqueness of the festival is reflected in three activities: the first one is Fishing Ceremony (fishing at Ngọc well): village boys get into boats, throw nets to catch fish at Ngọc well. Catching a lot of fish and fish with yellow or red dots on their scales is good luck for the village. The second is Giao Long extermination performance, snake extermination dance. A beautiful girl plays the role of a princess, a young man plays the role of a young man whoes surname is Hoàng, wearing red clothes, a black hat, holding a sword to fight and cut off Giao Long's head (5 young men wearing woven models). bamboo frame, outside covered with fabric decorated with snake patterns) amid the encouragement and applause of the drums, the octagonal orchestra and the cheers of the people. The third is Welcoming ceremony for "Thirteen Camps" - Kinh Quán. At the village gate, an elderly man from Lệ Mật village stood dancing with the flag and villagers lined up to welcome the Kinh Quán delegations returning to their hometown to attend the festival. According to tradition, the celebrant is a Lệ Mật person; Vạn Phúc, read the wishes; Nam Hào is the Western singer; Giảng Võ is Eastern chant; The three camps, Vạn Phúc, Kim Mã, and Thủ Lệ, are offerings.
Viet Nam -
Gyalyong Goenchey: The Bhutanese National Costume
The national dress for men is Gho and Kira for women. Gho is a one-piece outfit pulled up to knee-length and fastened with a belt called kera at the waist, leading to formation of an enormous pouch across the belly. Men’s belt is a striped hand woven textile using plain cotton or wool on a card loom. It has fringes at both the ends. Kira is a rectangular ankle-length robe wrapped around the body, tied at the waist with a wide woven belt, and fastened at the shoulders by a pair of shoulder brooches called koma. A necklace-like chain called the jabtha holds together the pair of koma. Jabtha also makes an attractive ornament. Women’s kera is made of cotton woven on card looms with intricate silk designs of varying colours. Elderly women wear the broad kera in three folds. The female kera has also fringes at both the ends. The weft thread used is commonly thicker than the base fabric used. Women also wear a toego (short, loose jacket) over the kira. Toego can be made from any kind of material and be in any colour. Women also wear a garment called wonju under the kira. Commonly made from silk or polyester, the wonju is a loose, wrap-over long-sleeved blouse. The semi-nomadic herders of the high valleys of Merak, Sakten and Laya and some other ethnic communities do not traditionally wear the gho and kira. They have a unique dress, lifestyle and language, and their own weaving specialty. In an effort to preserve and promote cultural heritage, all Bhutanese are required to wear the national dress in government offices, schools and on formal occasions. Necklace: Traditionally, a necklace is also a part of the costume of a Bhutanese woman, and a woman who is not wearing a necklace is considered to be incompletely attired. Therefore, women make it a point to wear necklaces, especially during celebrative occasions. When a woman is dressing, she puts on her necklace at the very end, to complete the outfit. Necklaces of precious stones are passed down from mother to daughter. A traditional Bhutanese necklace consists of a string of beads of various stones such as coral, turquoise, onyx, pearl, agate, and many more. The necklace may reach almost to the waist. If the woman is very rich and possesses many precious stones, she will choose to wear more than one necklace at a time. Since public gatherings and celebrative occasions provide formal platforms for display of wealth and/or position in society, women make it a point to wear as much as they possess. Sword For hundreds of years Bhutan suffered from territorial invasion as well as internal strife and civil war, challenges which were countered by our pazaps (militia), and senior officials. In earlier times, those who performed well in battle were awarded a sword in recognition of their show of courage, valour and success. Once the monarchy was established those officials who served the king and the country with utmost dedication and patriotic zeal were awarded pata (sword) and red scarf (bura marp) in recognition of their selfless service. Awarding kabney along with pata is, therefore, the sole prerogative of the monarch. The awardee is then addressed as a ‘Drasho’, which literally means ‘the best’ as they are exemplary people. Therefore, this award symbolises secular responsibility — the preparedness to fight any enemy harming the interest of the Tsa-wa-sum (the king, the country, and the people) and to safeguard the country and its cultural traditions. Kabney When Gautama Buddha administered vinaya rules at the first sermon, the five chief disciples first wore kabney as a mark of respect to the Buddha. Later, when Guru Rinpoche (Guru Padsambhava) visited Bumthang in the 8th century and sowed the seeds of faith in the dharma, he instructed people not to take the lives of others, and gave ge-nyen vows (vow of lay devotee). He instructed his devotees to wear rezen or kabney as a sign of their having become followers of Buddhism or taking precepts. While dharma practitioners wore red coloured kabney as a mark of following the dharma teachings, ordinary people wore white coloured kabney as a mark of safeguarding the country — their secular duty. Today, we wear kabney as a part of our national dress in accordance with the code of driglam namzha. The smaller scarf worn by women is called rachu. Kabney is a large, fringed scarf (about 90 by 300 cm), which is worn with one half placed over the left shoulder and the other half drawn across the back, below the right arm and across the body, then caught in a loop made by folding the lower part of the left end over it and then throwing the left end over the left shoulder. When the kabney is correctly placed, the right side should loop down at equal level to the hem of the gho, and the two sides should come together at the left breast. There is considerable variation in how the kabney is actually worn, but what is written here describes how it should be worn. Bhutanese at all social levels wear kabney as a part of formal wear along with the national dress, gho. Wearing kabney marks respect for sacred objects and higher authorities, and symbolises the position or rank of officers serving in the government. Scarves worn by women in place of the male kabney are called rachu. These much smaller, colourful, decoratively woven scarves can be worn draped over both shoulders with the two fringed edges falling from the chest, or can be folded in half and placed over the left shoulder with the fringes falling from the chest. Women in general wear rachu by making a fold in the centre and placing the rachu over the left shoulder. Besides kabney and rachu, there are other variants used by religious practitioners. Those worn by lams and monks are called zen or rezen and the one worn over their rezen is called choe-gho. The rezen is worn all the time over the robe but the choe-gho is worn only during special religious occasions. Similarly, the one worn by ngagpas (tantric practitioners) is called ber or dagam; and the one used by togdenpas (adepts) is called rey or rekar and khamar. Kabney and rachu are worn to pay respect to sublime masters or leaders, and to sacred objects enshrined in the dzongs, monasteries and temples. They are also worn as a symbol of official position. The colour of the kabney determines the official rank of the bearer. Traditional Boot Bhutan’s traditional footwear is a kind of boot worn as high as the knee, the upper, cloth part of which is then held and tied by a narrow strap below the knee. Dra-lham, thru-lham karchung and tshoglham are three different types of traditional footwear and form an important part of Bhutanese national costume. Dra-lham are worn by the senior monks in the monasteries. They are similar to tshoglham but red in colour. Thru-lham karchung derives its name from the white colour of the ben (section just above the ankle) which is highly visible from a distance. The traditional boot worn by the general public is called tshoglham. The thil or sole of the boot used to be made from hard leather, but these days tshoglham usually have rubber soles. Above the sole, two layers of red and white leather (or rubber) make the drilden. Above the drilden is the ri karchu, on which comes the ben in different colours. The ben, is yellow, orange, red, blue or green according to the official position of the wearer. Yellow ben is reserved only for the king and the head abbot (the Je Khenpo); orange is for ministers, red is for senior officials, blue is for members of parliament (both houses) and green is for the general public. The cloth part above the ben is generally black or blue silk brocade. It is mandatory to wear thru-lham or tshoglham as a part of formal national dress during any formal occasions.
Bhutan -
Lồng tồng Festival of the Tày
The Long Tong Festival (Going to the Fields Festival) of the Tay people in Dinh Hoa district, Thai Nguyen province is held in the early days of spring to pray for favorable weather, good crops, bountiful harvests, and a prosperous life. The festival is held in the largest and most beautiful fields. The Long Tong Festival includes a ceremony and a festival. The festival will feature many traditional rituals that have existed for a long time, such as: the Tay people's harvest praying ceremony, San Chay, Tich Dien ceremony; the Dao people's blessing praying ceremony, with traditional rituals imbued with the beliefs of the ethnic groups in Dinh Hoa district. During the ceremony, each family prepares a tray of offerings including chicken, pork, boiled eggs, Chung cake, sticky rice, various types of sticky rice cakes, Khao cakes, Lam tea... to offer to the gods. On each tray of offerings, there is a colorful flower-shaped cake and two pairs of cones made of fabric with many colorful tassels and seeds of all kinds. The offering trays of the village are carefully selected, must be larger, more numerous, more beautifully decorated than the offering trays of the families and must include a pig's head. The offering trays are arranged in a straight line, the master of ceremonies (usually a Taoist or Mo master), is called "Pú mo". "Pú mo" stands in front of the offering trays of the village to thank heaven and earth, the gods for blessing the villagers, at the same time the villagers light incense, pour wine. After the prayer of thanks, "Pú mo" continues to pray for rain, an assistant carries a basin of water standing next to it, many others hold palm leaves walking from the worship place to the end of the field. After praying, "Pú mo" sprinkles water around, implying that heaven is sending rain, the villagers gather around, everyone wants to catch those drops of water symbolizing luck. After sprinkling water, "Pú mo" takes seeds from the offering trays and sprinkles them around, the villagers mix those seeds with the seeds they choose to plant. Next, the men will plow the first furrows, while the women will show off their planting skills. After the ceremonies, the villagers will celebrate together, wishing each other good health, good luck, full barns of rice, full yards of pigs and chickens, etc. During the festival, there will be a Tich Dien ceremony, a planting competition, dry puppetry, folk games: throwing cones, lion dances, martial arts, tug of war, stilt walking, tug of war, stick pushing, singing and responding between men and women, etc. The Long Tong Festival (going to the fields) is one of the festivals held annually by the Tay ethnic group in Thai Nguyen, associated with agricultural beliefs, to express respect and gratitude to the gods of the forest, the gods of the mountains, the gods of the sky and the gods of the earth, and the wishes for a prosperous life imbued with the identity of the indigenous Tay people. Through this, the festival activities also contribute to promoting valuable landscapes and historical relics to boost local tourism development. This is a long-standing traditional festival of the Tay people in the Viet Bac region, recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2017.
Viet Nam -
Chakan, embroidery art in the Republic of Tajikistan
The art of chakan embroidery is a kind of sewing ornaments, image of flowers and symbolic drawings with colorful threads on cotton or silk fabrics. Chakan embroidery is used to decorate women’s shirts, pillows, bed spreads, head scarves, towels, curtains and coverlets for cradles. In the chakan embroidery art, there are symbolic depictions and mythological images related to the surrounded nature and cosmos, which express people’s wishes and hopes. Each ornament has special name and meaning, for example, pomegranate flower, willow leaves, almond, tulip, cockscomb, nightingale, peacock’s tail, moon, star, sun, cloud and so on. Process of chakan embroidery consists of selection of textile and threads, drawing ornaments, doing the needlepoint images, and sewing clothes. The threads were prepared in the past from cotton and silk fibers, and colored them with natural paints prepared with some kinds of plants and minerals. Now, chakan dress makers use fabric threads for needlework. In the Khatlon region chakan shirt is an important dress of brides. Every bride should have chakan embroidered curtain and pillows as well. Grooms during wedding ceremony will put on tāqi – the national skulp-cap with chakan embroidery. In houses of the Khatlon are hang chakan embroidered needlework curtains. During the traditional festival and holy days Tajik women and girls wear chakan dress. Musical folklore groups and dancing ensembles of Tajikistan widely use chakan embroidered dress in the scene. Annualy in Tajikistan are held festivals and competitions of traditional costumes titled "Jilvai chakan".
Tajikistan 2018 -
Lion Dancing of the Tày and Nùng
The Lion Dancing of the Tày and Nùng people in Lang Son takes place during the Lunar New Year and some special occasions such as the rice-growing festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, groundbreaking ceremony, moving into a new house... The Lion Dancing has many meanings, not only expressing the spirit of martial arts, but also to ward off evil spirits and pray for a prosperous and happy life. The Lion Dancing in Lang Son has many different names suitable for the language and tone of each region such as: Ky Lan, Phu, Loong Phu, Phu Meo... The common name that is still used quite commonly today is the lion-cat dance. This is a unique folk art form of the Tay and Nung people (two ethnic groups accounting for over 80% of Lang Son's population) in the districts of Cao Loc, Loc Binh, Van Lang, Van Quan... According to the concept of the Tay and Nung people, the lion-cat is a sacred animal with both the characteristics of being strong like the king of the jungle and gentle and tame like a cat. To make a cat lion prop or head, from an available mold, the craftsman needs to skillfully apply glue to 2-3 layers of paper, then press it tightly into the mold. The dough is made from cassava so it is very durable and more durable than other types of glue. The round lion head, about 50cm in radius, is made of clay and then baked. Then, it is painted and decorated colorfully with fabric with the main colors being blue, red, black, yellow, white to make it stand out and create flexibility when dancing. Cat Lion Dance is a synthetic art form containing many elements: music, fine arts, dance... in which dance is the main one, but it is not separate from music and performance. The lion welcoming and returning ceremony takes place before and after the teams go dancing. A Lion Dance team has about 12 to 14 people, dancing lions and performing martial arts, acrobatics, high jumps... Props include: colorfully decorated lions, masks; drums, gongs or cymbals, cymbals; weapons: sticks, rulers, clubs, tridents, machetes... When dancing, the person wearing the lion head must perform "pounce" moves, undulating to the beat. The martial arts dance movements are both fast and flexible, combined with the bustling sound of drums and gongs, making the audience extremely excited and enthusiastic. Depending on the space, location, purpose, and requirements of the lion dance, there are many suitable dances such as: dance to greet the gods, worship ancestors, pray for luck, dance at the festival to go down to the fields, somersault through the ring of fire... The rituals, performances, and props in the Lion Dance express the feelings, aspirations, and talents of the indigenous Tay and Nung people, bringing profound aesthetic and humanistic values towards community cohesion to build a good life. With those characteristics and values, the Lion Dancing of the Tay and Nung ethnic groups in Lang Son province was included in the list of national intangible cultural heritage in 2017 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Viet Nam -
Costume Decoration Art of the Xá Phó
Costume Decoration Art is associated with Xá Phó women's costumes such as square head scarves, shirts, and skirts. According to traditional beliefs, Xá Phó women must know how to grow cotton, weave fabric, dye indigo, cut, piece, sew, and embroider costumes. The patterns shown on the costumes are mainly embroidered and beaded. The main color of Xá Phó's clothes is black indigo. They use red, blue, yellow, and white colors to dye thread to embroider patterns on costumes and accessories. In the overall indigo color of the entire outfit, Xá Phó women have chosen and coordinated the following colors: white, red, green, and bright yellow are the main colors of the square head scarf; The upper part of the shirt is white, red and has vertical patterns; The middle shirt is mainly red, mixed with a little white with horizontal patterns; The hem of the shirt is darker red than the middle part of the shirt; The sleeves are indigo, indigo mixed with white, and light red; indigo skirt waistband; The skirt body is structured with red, white - indigo - red, white - indigo patterned strips and the skirt part is a brilliant red patterned strip. Thus, it can be seen that symmetry is an important and dominant principle in the art of color mixing of the Xá Phó people. Creating patterns of the Xá Phó people includes realistic patterns (geometric-filled shapes, skewed U shapes, rectangles, triangles, etc) and stylized patterns (sun, pine trees, mountain fruits, flowers, leaves, birds, water flow). A highlight in the decorative art of the Xá Phó people is beading. The front of the shirt has 5 vertical rows of beads attached and around it is a rosette pattern (four-petaled flower).
Viet Nam -
Art of making costume decorative patterns of the Mong Hoa ethnic group
The Art of making costume decorative patterns of the Mong Hoa ethnic group in Sa Long commune (Muong Cha-Dien Bien) is expressed through the technique of drawing patterns with beeswax, embroidery, fabric patching and color matching. The Mong Hoa ethnic group believe that patterns on costumes and household items will help them communicate with the gods, invite the gods to their homes, bestow good luck, and ward off evil. To create patterns, the craftsman must prepare the beeswax, use a pen to dip into the wax to draw patterns on the fabric, let it dry, dye it, and then boil it in boiling water. The beeswax melts completely at high temperatures, revealing the patterns. The main patterns are: flowers, diagonal lines, rectangles, squares, snails, diamonds, etc., giving the traditional costumes of the Mong people in Sa Long a unique beauty. The technique of creating patterns on fabric shows that the Mong Hoa ethnic group reflect the personality and aspirations of people throughout their history of development. The patterns are created on traditional costumes: dresses, belts, head scarves, leggings... with their own secrets reflecting the creativity, artistic level, and ingenuity of the Mong Hoa ethnic group. Not only painted on dresses, belts, and costumes, the typical patterns of the Mong Hoa ethnic group are also shown on daily living items such as: field baskets, cross-body bags... Each pattern represents the noble aspirations of the people. It is a valuable folk knowledge reflecting the economic, cultural, social, historical level, the mark of the times, and the cultural identity of the Mong Hoa ethnic group artisans. This is a unique folk art form in the way of creating patterns and color combinations on fabric products to create beautiful, unique, delicate, and skillful costumes that are distinct to Mong women. The Mong Hoa ethnic group in Sa Long commune always protect and promote the value of this heritage with strong aesthetic value, demonstrating their talent, delicacy, and ingenuity. Because of its unique historical and cultural values, the Art of making costume decorative patterns of the Mong people (Mong Hoa ethnic group) in Sa Long commune was included in the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2017.
Viet Nam