The simple beauty of the traditional costumes of the Tay people in Xu Lang

Lang Son is a border land associated with the tradition of defending the country with famous places, landscapes and it is the homeland of many ethnic minorities in the Northeast of Vietnam, typically the Tay ethnic group. According to statistics in the ethnic community of Lang Son, the Tay people are second to Nung people with a total of over 282,000 people, accounting for 36.1% of the total population of the province. The Tay ethnic group is the original ethnic group of Lang Son, residing in almost every commune, ward and town in the province. The area where there is the largest number of Tay people today is Loc Binh district, Bac Son district, Lang Son city… Besides cultural features such as cuisine, folk games, language… Tay ethnic people also have a unique beauty which is their traditional costume. While the costumes of the Dao and Mong people… are quite sophisticated, colorful and detailed, the costumes of the Tay people in Lang Son gain their beauty from simplicity, elegance and grace. It is a pure indigo dyed shirt, without any embroidered patterns. With such simple and unique beauty, the costume has become a cultural symbol representing the simple and kind personality of the Tay ethnic people in Xu Lang.

In the past, Tay people often grew cotton and weaved fabric themselves. Later, because of the development of life, Tay women began to buy white cloth at the market to dye with indigo. The normal dyeing process starts from August (lunar calendar) of the previous year to February (lunar calendar) of the following year.

Indigo dyeing requires a woman’s perseverance and ingenuity. The fabric is dyed over and over again until it is dark, purple-black and the fabric is hard. Using a completely manual method, the Tay people dye fabrics with characteristic colors, fragrant with the indigo scent of the mountains and forests.

Tay women often wear long shirt sewn in a 5-part style, buttoned at the armpit, with a calf-length skirt and a waistline similar to the ao dai of the Kinh people; wide leg pants with ankle length. When wearing their shirt, Tay women use a belt to wrap around their waist, tie it behind their back.

The Tay woman’s head scarf is made into a circle that reaches the top of the head. Outside the scarf is a square scarf. People fold the square scarf diagonally and tie the tip of the scarf backwards like the “crow beak” style of Kinh women.

Jewelry is also an important highlight in the traditional costumes of the Tay people. Jewelry often includes earrings, rings, bracelets, necklaces and key chains all made of silver. In particular, the necklaces of Tay women are made wider than those of some other ethnic groups. The white silver necklace stands out on the black indigo shirt, adding to the elegance of the outfit.

The daily shirt of Tay men is a short shirt, sewn by assembling 4 pieces, two front and two back, chest slit, two sides of the shirt are attached with fabric buttons, round neck, high collar, long and narrow sleeves. Their pants are with wide leg and crotch, large waistband.

In addition, Tay men also wear a 5-piece long shirt with slits in the right armpit, with fabric or copper buttons. Their pants are also made of indigo-dyed cotton fabric like their shirt, made in diagonal crotch style with moderate length to the ankles. An indigo head scarf is wrapped around the head in a 人 – rén style.

Although the Tay ethnic costume is simple, it also creates a unique look. It gives the wearer pure beauty. Currently, Tay ethnic costumes are still preserved and passed down from one generation to another.

Traditional costumes are deeply embedded in the lifestyle and they are the pride of the Tay people. Although life is changing day by day, every child born and raised with Tay ethnic blood in them wants to keep for themselves a traditional costume to wear on special occasions or during the festival season.