Jubilant opening of Muong Ham festival (Quy Hop)
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On the morning of February 12, 2008 (the 6th day of the Lunar New Year of the Rat), at Put Pang cave area in Chau Cuong commune (Quy Hop), the Muong Ham Festival took place. This is the first festival of the new year according to the customs of the Thai ethnic people in Western Nghe An.
Previously, Muong Ham festival was called Tham Pun Pang-Nang Ni festival, where there are beautiful caves and charming landscapes with many ethnic cultural activities. The festival takes place mainly in Muong Ham, Chau Cuong commune, so it is called Muong Ham festival. In 2007, the Ministry of Culture and Information recognized the festival as a national festival, on the 6th and 7th of the first lunar month, Quy Hop district hosted the festival for ethnic groups in Western Nghe An to enjoy.
According to legend, Muong Ham was founded by Tao Noi, the only son of Tao Muong Ton, from Que Phong district. Muong Ham was merged from Muong Khun Tinh and Muong Ham, now Chau Cuong and Chau Quang communes, Quy Hop district, Nghe An province.
Here, Chau Cuong commune has restored a temple to commemorate the merits of Tao Noi, which is a branch temple of the Chin Gian temple in Que Phong district (60 kilometers to the west). Therefore, not only the Thai people in Quy Hop but also in Quy Chau and Que Phong also come to celebrate.
The ceremony includes the Opening Ceremony, the Tao procession, the worship, the offering and the thanksgiving ceremony, to review the merits of the Tao gods in establishing the village. Although not as large in scale as the Hang Bua Festival in Quy Chau (held in mid-January), the Muong Ham Festival has a strong local identity with the festival being cultural activities to welcome the new year and spring, and after this festival is the opening day, going to the fields to increase production.
From the 5th day of the Lunar New Year, there will be a mass art performance, and on the 6th day, there will be a procession of Tao Noi to the Temple and the opening ceremony. On the 6th and 7th, there will be competitions in ethnic cuisine, sports competitions and community cultural activities such as throwing con, shooting crossbows, carving beds, dancing and festival beauty contests. Festival-goers will also witness a contest in writing the Thai ethnic script, a type of writing that had been lost but was recently restored by the Party Committee and the government of Chau Cuong commune, attracting hundreds of students to participate.
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News: Lang Quoc Khanh - photo: Le Ba Lieu