Focusing on preserving community-based cultural heritage

Lang Son is a land with a rich history and many unique cultural values of different ethnic groups. In recent years, with the management of the government, cultural development based on community strength has always received attention and from the province.

People visit traditional costume booths at Lang Son City Ethnic Cultural Festival 2023 – Photo: LA MAI

Cultural heritage is a spiritual and material product with historical, cultural and scientific value that is passed down from one generation to another, in which the community plays the role of a creative subject creating cultural heritages. Therefore, the active participation of the community in preserving and promoting cultural heritage is important. Recognizing this, in recent years, all levels and sectors in the province have carried out many solutions to promote the role of the community.

Abundant cultural resources

First of all, mentioning Lang Son’s culture is mentioning the culture of 7 main ethnic groups currently living here including Nung, Tay, Kinh, Dao, Hoa, San Chay, H’Mong. Each of them is concentrated in certain areas, creating its own cultural identities, expressing through customs, practices, folk songs and dances… This is also the community creating Lang Son’s cultural heritage and plays a key role in preserving and promoting it.

According to statistics from the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Lang Son currently has 8 intangible cultural heritages recognized as national intangible cultural heritages by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, one has been officially inscribed on the UNESCO representative list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity (Then practice of the Tay and Nung people).

Along with that, the province’s tangible heritage system is extremely diverse. Specifically, in the province, there are currently 335 relics on the provincial inventory list, including 112 historical relics, 163 architectural and artistic relics, 37 archaeological relics, 23 scenic relics. In particular, the province currently has 280 festivals, 247 of them are traditional festivals, over 90% of them are long tong (down to the fields) festivals.

Mr. Hoang Van Pao, Chairman of the Provincial Cultural Heritage Association, said: “Lang Son is a convergence of abundant cultural resources. They not only serve tourism development, but more importantly and sacredly also national pride and self-esteem in the history of formation and development of Xu Lang area. This is an endogenous source of strength containing great values that Lang Son province possesses. If it is well promoted, it will greatly contribute to the local socio-economic development. And in order to well preserve this heritage, it is necessary to thoroughly promote the role of the community, the creator and holder of heritage.”

At the 2021 National Cultural Conference, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong emphasized: “To continue to build, preserve, revive and develop the national culture, we need to focus on well implementing a number of key tasks, including promoting the role of cultural creative subjects and beneficiaries who are the people, to respect and protect the diverse expressions of culture, people, ethnic groups, regions, etc.”

Together with other localities across the country, all levels and sectors in the province have been making efforts to awaken and promote cultural heritage values, with special emphasis on the role of the community. In 2016, the Standing Committee of Lang Son Provincial Party Committee issued Resolution No. 25/NQ/TU on preserving and promoting the value of cultural heritage of Lang Son province in the period of 2016-2020 and the following years. On December 31, 2020, the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee issued Conclusion No. 28-KL/TU on continuing to implement Resolution No. 25-NQ/TU.

Accordingly, all levels and sectors have focused on well implementing propaganda, raising awareness of officials, party members and the people about the importance, significance and necessity of conserving and promoting the value of cultural heritage in the period of innovation and international integration.

Mr. Phan Van Hoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said: “Every year, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism issues documents asking specialized division and instructing districts and Lang Son city to strengthen education and popularization of legal documents such as Law on Vietnamese Cultural Heritage in 2001 and its amendments and supplements in 2009, Resolution on preserving and promoting the province’s cultural heritage and many other related documents to the community so that people clearly understand their roles and responsibilities in preserving cultural heritage as well as establishing community monument management models and boards managed by the people themselves or combining the self-management role of the community with the support of the State.

People of Thien Thuat commune, Binh Gia district perform folk songs at Hang Po festival in 2023

Preservation and promotion of identity

From 2017 up to now, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism has chaired and coordinated with People’s Committees of districts and Lang Son city to inventory, synthesize, evaluate and classify 1,117 relics; coordinated to organize training courses to popularize the Law on Cultural Heritage and documents related to all districts and Lang Son city to thousands of people.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong Van, Vice Chairwoman of Lang Son City People’s Committee, said: “From 2017 up to now, the City People’s Committee has directed the People’s Committees of wards and communes to strengthen propaganda and encourage people to participate in conservation and promotion activities of cultural heritage values through village and residential block meetings, training sessions, festivals, cultural and tourism events, to link the preservation of cultural heritage with the implementation of the Movement “All people unite to build a cultural life”… Specifically, the city has focused on creating space for people to perform the beauty of cultural heritage at Ky Lua Walking Street, forming 5 folk music and singing clubs in the area with more than 100 members and over 80 booths introducing handicraft products and traditional cuisine of the people… These are positive factors in performing and introducing heritage to tourists.”

Together with Lang Son city, in districts in the province, the establishment and replication of folk culture teams and clubs are strengthened. This is a model managed and maintained by the people, promoting the role of the community. From 2022 up to now, there have been more than 20 folk culture teams and clubs established, adding the total number to nearly 200 folk culture teams and clubs with more than 2,000 members, typically Cat-lion dance team of Coc Lao village (Hoi Hoan commune, Van Lang district); Cao Lan Sinh Ca Club (Thien Tan commune, Huu Lung district); Club for Preserving Black Mong Ethnic Culture (Cao Minh commune, Trang Dinh district); Diep Sli Then Club (Thuy Hung commune, Cao Loc district)…

People’s Artist Ha Mai Ven, Chairman of Diep Sli Then Club, Thuy Hung commune, Cao Loc district, said: “The club was established in 2017. After more than 5 years, the number of club members increased from 18 to 24 people. . 13 members of them aged 10 – 15. In addition to classes for older members in the evenings, the club also opens folk singing classes for younger members on weekends. The club’s activities have helped children increasingly understand and love ethnic folk songs.”

Along with preserving intangible cultural heritage, in recent times, tangible cultural heritage in the province has also been effectively preserved and promoted by the community itself – the cultural subjects who directly own the heritage. It is known that currently all relics in the province have a protocol committee or representative who is a resident of the heritage area. Thanks to that, the relics have been repaired and restored from socialization funds contributed by the people with a total investment from 2016 to present of over 261 billion VND, the province has 79 relics repaired, embellished, restored.

In addition, annual activities to organize and restore traditional festivals of ethnic groups living in the province are still maintained regularly, 90% of them in the province receive the support from social socialization. On average, each festival has an organization budget of from 30 million VND to 400 million VND, with a particular festival costing up to 2 billion VND (Bac Le temple festival).

In addition, in recent years, the development of the community tourism model associated with preserving cultural identity in Huu Lung, Binh Gia, and Bac Son districts has contributed to protecting ecological and environmental resources, preserving and promoting the unique cultural features of ethnic groups, creating jobs for local workers and promoting sustainable socio-economic development.

In the coming time, the Culture, Sports and Tourism sector will continue to well implement well the work of preserving and promoting tangible and intangible cultural heritages, including the participation of the community and society. Additionally, it will focus on preserving the language, restoring games, performances, folk songs and organizing festivals…