Phù Khê village has long been famous for its wood carving: "Hanoi embroiders fans and flags; Phù Khê carved a throne to worship the king. The person who is considered the founder of the craft and is credited with teaching the wood carving profession to the people of Phù Khê is Mr. Nguyễn An. Every year on January 7, craftsmen from craft guilds in the village gather to celebrate the death anniversary of the Craft Patriarch. Saws, planers, sharpeners, chisels, and various-sized straight chisels are among the instruments used in wood carving. Wood is a plentiful raw material that is dependent on the needs of the consumer and the product's price. Roughing, or horizontal working (cutting, sawing, and chiseling); rough touch; and fine touch are the three stages of the production process. The unique and trademark technique of the craft village is the dragon carving technique. In Phù Khê, there is a saying that partly shows the difficulty of the carving technique: "One wood, two people, three clouds, four animals" (the most difficult is carving trees, the second is carving human figures, the third is carving touching the cloud, the fourth is touching the beast). Decorative patterns carved according to the motifs of lotus, chrysanthemum, buddha's hand, orchid, and four precious flowers including "pine, chrysanthemum, bamboo, apricot", "dragon, unicorn, turtle, phoenix", "intellectual, farmer, industry and trade", etc. The craft village has two types of products: traditional products (dragons, statues, animals) and fine arts products (tables, cabinets, tables and chairs, incense burners, screens). Famous products of Phù Khê village are statues, horizontal panels, parallel sentences, incense burners, dragon mosaics, dragon pearls, etc.

Ví and Giặm songs are sung by a wide range of communities in Nghệ An and Hà Tĩnh Provinces of north-central Viet Nam. Specific songs are sung without instrumental accompaniment while people cultivate rice in the fields, row boats, make conical hats or lull children to sleep. Ví and Giặm lyrics use the specific dialect and linguistic idioms of the Nghệ Tĩnh region and practitioners sing with the particular singing voice of Nghệ Tĩnh people. Many of the songs focus on key values and virtues including respect for parents, loyalty, care and devotion, the importance of honesty and a good heart in the maintenance of village customs and traditions. Singing provides people with a chance to ease hardship while working, to relieve sorrow in their lives, to express feelings of sentiment between men and women, and to exchange feelings of love between unmarried boys and girls.

Viet Nam 2014

The tradition-bears of the gong culture are the seventeen Austro-Asian and Austronesian ethno-linguistic communities living in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. Gong music is an integral part of the life cycle of each person and important agricultural events of the community, performed in a wide range of ceremonies and rituals, such as ear-blowing for babies, weddings, sacrifice buffalo, abandoning grave, worshipping water troughs, celebrating new rice, closing rice storehouse, celebrating new communal house, so on. It is believed there is a god in each gong, a protecting shield for the family. Having gongs represents wealth and power. Gong ensembles in the Central Highlands are communal, each performer plays one note. Every member in the ensemble must remember the rhythms and melodies so that they can harmonize with other performers. Depending on the ethnic groups, the gongs are played by hand or with wooden sticks wrapped in cloth, leather or rubber strips. Each gong ensemble has between 2 and 13 flat and knobbed gongs with a diameter ranging from 25 to 120 cm, played by both men and women. Peoples in the Central Highlands often buy gongs from Kinh people in Quang Nam, Quang Ngai provinces, or even in Laos and Cambodia. The gongs are re-tuned in order to have the desired sounds. In the past, almost every village had a gong tuner. Today, there are only a few remaining gong tuners in the region. Economic, social and religious transformations have dramatically affected the lives of the local communities here. The safeguarding of gong space in the Central Highlands is thus more challenging. Senior tradition-bearers are passing away, while few people master the traditional rituals. Some major rituals with gong performance are no longer practiced. Younger generations are is less interested in traditional culture. Buffalo sacrifice is banned in many localities. Rice cultivation is altered with industrial crops. The instruments become trade items for other purposes. Nonetheless, the government is doing its best to ensure its practice and transmission.

Viet Nam 2008

The Xa Mã Festival - Wooden Horse and Palanquin Pocessions at Hoàng Châu Communal House is a form of community spiritual and cultural activity that takes place annually from the 9th to the 12th of June (lunar calendar), with the main festival day being the 10th of June. The festival has a long history, associated with the national historical relic of Hoang Chau communal house, built about 300 years ago. The festival commemorates the day the villagers built the communal house, thanking the gods for always protecting and helping fishermen in the area to be safe and have a good fishing season. The festival takes place at the communal house and temples with the following rituals: Water procession, Cao yet, Xa gia - Palanquin procession, and Te an vi. The special feature of the Wooden Horse and Palanquin Pocessions at Hoàng Châu Communal House bears the mark of coastal culture, without the divine flag, tiet mao flag, cap kiem, bat buu, phuong bat am, gongs and drums. Usually, the long dinh palanquin is carried first, followed by the Lieu Hanh mother palanquin and other palanquins. But in the sacred moment, the palanquins and the palanquins also “fly”, drifting with the Saints, the palanquins are no longer arranged in a fixed order. The locals believe that when the palanquin flies, it is the time for the Saint to be present, when the palanquin turns (turns) it is the Saint who is not satisfied with his wandering. On the shoulders of the attendants, the Saint’s palanquin can fly everywhere in the region without any human direction and the time does not know when it will stop. That is the sacredness of the Xa Mã Festival - the procession of the Saint’s palanquin at Hoang Chau communal house. Previously, before each procession of the Saint’s palanquin, there was a “Xa Mã” procession. Currently, there is a slight change: in the morning, the Saint’s palanquin is carried first, then the “Xa Mã” procession. In the afternoon, the xa ma procession is carried first, then the Saint’s palanquin is carried later. The palanquin procession is carried out after the celebrant reads the prayer. The procession involves 6 palanquins including: (1) the Long Dinh palanquin carried by 4 people, who are female officials of the sacrificial team in yellow robes and turbans; (2) The palanquin with the altar and the statue of the Holy Mother Lieu Hanh, carried by 8 young women in red shirts, yellow turbans, and tight pants; (3) and (4) include 2 palanquins with the throne and the royal coffin of the Marshal and Deputy Marshal, carried by 8 young men in traditional costumes; (5) and (6) include 2 palanquins with the throne of the King of Nam Hai and the King of Dong Hai, carried by 8 young women. In addition to the activities: cockfighting, chess, Quan Ho singing, Cheo singing, water-based thum bridge... the "Xa Mã" performance is indispensable. "Xa Mã" or "wooden horse pulling competition" recreates the training and military exercises of soldiers in ancient times. With the participation of 2 teams, a pair of yin and yang, reflecting the people's desire for fertility and development. The two Xa Mã - wooden horses run strongly and fiercely under the skillful and rhythmic control of the commander. Each team must run 3 laps around the field, without touching the line, and without injuring the opponent and team members. The prize given to the winning team is the gift of the communal house. Participating in the competition, both the audience and the contestants feel like they are participating in a real military exercise. The festival bears the cultural imprint of the coastal region, expressing the wish to be blessed by the gods, and has a high educational value on the morality of drinking water and remembering its source, and the love of labor. With its unique and typical values, the Xa Mã Festival - Wooden Horse and Palanquin Pocessions at Hoàng Châu Communal House was included in the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.