Western Nghe An women connect to bring brocade far and wide

Get to “know many people, go many places”

Going to the Western Nghe An, visiting the highland villages, one often encounters familiar images: women diligently working on looms with the clattering of shuttles; others sit in front of the porch of stilt houses, attentively watching each needle and thread. In their hands are colorful brocade products...

Growing up with a loom, following her mother to the fields, crossing streams, climbing mountains to pick mulberries, raise silkworms, and weave, brocade weaving has been very familiar to Ms. Luong Thi May in Nong village, Tri Le commune, Que Phong district.

“I knew how to weave before I went to school; then when I grew up and was strong enough to shuttle and spin, my grandmother and mother taught me. Now, more than half of my life I have followed and maintained the brocade weaving profession of the Thai people. The only difference is that in the past, my grandmother and mother hardly left the village, weaving only to serve the family, now my sisters and I in the village, thanks to brocade, can travel here and there, and meet many people,” Ms. May shared.

Talking more about the “going here, going there”, Ms. May explained: Brocade weaving has become an economic development profession, bringing in an income of 1.5-3 million VND/person/month, considered a good source of income compared to slash-and-burn production here. From the need to sell products, women in new villages and communes have the opportunity to meet and get to know each other through the activities of weaving groups and craft villages in the province, both connecting consumption, learning experiences and sharing the joys and sorrows of life. Thanks to brocade, there are more women who are as close as family!

When we arrived at Buoc village, Bac Ly commune, Ky Son district, Ms. Vi Thi Huong "boasted" that she had just gone to Muong Xen town to deliver brocade goods, combined with shopping for some household items to prepare for Tet. From Ms. Huong's house - the center of Buoc village to Muong Xen town of Ky Son district is about 50 km. Each time they go, women from neighboring villages of Bac Ly and Huoi Tu communes often gather in one place to "collect goods" to import for traders, or for the heads of weaving groups to deliver to customers according to orders.

“Following this weaving profession, many women often go abroad, to other provinces to learn experience, receive training in embroidery and brocade weaving such as Ms. Tinh in Cau Tam village, Ta Ca commune; Ms. Lo Thi Mai in Na village, Huu Lap commune; and the women at the Hoa Ban Xanh Production and Service Cooperative specializing in supporting production and product consumption, training and sharing about brocade weaving…”, Ms. Vi Thi Huong confided.

Connecting to bring brocade far and wide

The Green Ban Flower Production and Service Cooperative is the first organization in Ky Son district established with the aim of helping local women preserve their traditional profession and make a living from it; bringing brocade out of the confines of each family, thereby helping women connect more with the outside world, especially Mong women. Through the cooperative's connection, hundreds of households in Ky Son district have a stable income of 2-4 million VND/month, many households have a high income of 4-6 million VND/month.

Talking about expanding connections and earning income from traditional occupations, Ms. Lau Y Denh in Muong Long 1 village, Muong Long commune (Ky Son) said: "Mong women have changed a lot partly thanks to embroidery, brocade weaving and community tourism, becoming the pillars of the family, meeting many people, going to many places, so they have more social understanding, and absorb many progressive civilizations".

Vice Chairman of Muong Long Commune People's Committee Vu Ba Xu said: The commune now has a lace embroidery craft village, the first craft village of the Mong people in Ky Son district. Ms. Lau Y Denh's household is one of 135 households participating in the Muong Long Lace Embroidery Craft Village, which was recognized by the Provincial People's Committee at the end of 2023. The fact that the sisters "upgrade" the traditional lace embroidery custom into a profession, a source of economic development, opens up opportunities for people to escape poverty and become rich.

Households working in the profession are mainly concentrated in Muong Long 1 village, initially the income from embroidery increased from 5.3 million VND/household/year (2021) to 14.5 million VND/household/year (2022). This is a good source of income for local people, helping women in the highlands become more and more confident in doing business effectively.

Currently, in Nghe An province, there are 15 brocade weaving villages recognized by the Provincial People's Committee, mainly concentrated in mountainous districts such as Tan Ky, Tuong Duong, Con Cuong, Ky Son, Quy Chau and Que Phong. Of which, Ky Son district currently has 10 craft villages recognized by the Provincial People's Committee, some of which have been formed and developed such as Na village, Huu Lap commune; Noong De village, Nam Can commune, recognized since 2010 until now and the lace embroidery village that was just recognized in 2023 in Muong Long.

Tet is coming, Spring is coming, along with the joy of wearing traditional clothes to welcome the New Year, women in the villages of the West have more joy from the job of promoting national identity, becoming more attached to their homeland to work and produce.