Preserving, promoting Muong cultural heritage: Upholding Muong culture into contemporary life

4/12/2025 - 11:16:41 AM

Preserving and promoting the cultural values of the Muong ethnic group has become an urgent task in the current context, as many traditional values face the risk of fading away. This effort requires not only protecting the cultural identity but also eliminating outdated customs and developing a modern cultural lifestyle, contributing to sustainable values for the Muong community in Hoa Binh province.

The Muong culture is included the curriculum of the Do Nhan primary and secondary school (Tan Lac district).

Identifying challenges

Quach Thi Kieu, Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, acknowledged recent progress in preserving the cultural values of the Muong ethnic group. However, she warned that the pressure of a market economy have caused some communities to drift toward materialism, gradually eroding traditional cultural values. Several heritage elements of the Muong culture are now at risk of disappearing.

Despite the richness of the Muong heritage, investment in its preservation and promotion remains insufficient. Many significant cultural assets have yet to be studied, documented, or restored. Efforts to survey intangible cultural heritage are still limited, and the preparation of dossiers to nominate the Muong culture for inclusion in the list of national intangible cultural heritage is still limited.

Efforts to promote and raise awareness of the Muong cultural heritage in Hoa Binh remain ineffective. Exhibitions at the provincial museum lack appeal while facilities for showcasing the Muong heritage are underdeveloped. Social mobilisation and private-sector involvement in heritage conservation is still modest.

Additionally, heritage sites continue to face threats from vandalism and theft. Several sites are deteriorating without proper restoration, and there are a shortage of support policies for Muong artisans—especially those honoured with the titles "People’s Artisan” or "Meritorious Artisan”—who are actively passing down traditional knowledge to younger generations.

Sharing concerns about these challenges, artisan Bui Van Rum in Rom Co hamlet, Thuong Coc commune (Lac Son district), noted that many cultural treasures such as the Mo Muong ritual, are at risk of being lost.

"We remain passionate and committed to preservation, but our biggest worry is the lack of young successors who are willing to learn and carry on this legacy,” he said.

Efforts to keep Muong culture heritage everlasting

Amid challenges to preservation efforts, local authorities have taken proactive steps to safeguard and promote the cultural heritage of the Muong ethnic group. For the first time, the preservation and promotion of the Muong culture and the Hoa Binh Civilisation have been identified as a strategic breakthrough of the province.

The provincial Party Committee's Standing Board has focused on concrete directives and solutions to ensure that the Muong culture is not only preserved but also integrated into community life in meaningful ways.

In 2023, Hoa Binh launched a plan on preservingandpromotingthe values of the Muong ethnic culture and the Hoa Binh Civilisation for the 2023–2030 period. The initiative allocates over 500 billion VND (21 million USD) to support the efforts. A key component of the plan is building a Muongethniccultural conservation space linked to tourism development in Tan Lac district.

The plan outlines other key actions, including researching and collecting Muong cultural heritage elements with historical, scientific, artistic, and aesthetic values for exhibition and promotion activities; and developing contemporary cultural products reflecting the Muong identity to improve tourism experiences for visitors.

It emphasises the urgent need to protect endangered cultural knowledge as many practitioners are elderly; restore and revive traditional festivals, traditional attire, stilt houses, folk songs, the gong art, Mo Muong ritual, and other cultural practices. Additionally, the province also plans to invest in the restoration and preservation of some architectural sites that embody the unique cultural identity of the Muong people but have deteriorated over time.

Attention will be also paid to including the Muong culture in the school curriculum, organising extracurricular activities that help students better understand and treasure their ethnic heritage, issuing policies to support the artisans practicing Mo Muong and the Muong gong art, and developing Muong culture-themed tourism linked with ecological and relaxation tourism.

Building a cultural conservation area for Muong ethnic group in Luy Ai hamlet

Phong Phu commune, Tan Lac district of Hoa Binh province, is widely regarded as the cultural heartland of the Muong ethnic group. Among its many traditional communities, Luy Ai hamlet (formerly Ai hamlet) stands out as a rare location where the customs and way of life of the Muong Bi people remain largely intact.

Truong Kha temple festival celebrates Muong cultural heritage

The Truong Kha temple festival, a distinctive cultural event held every three years in Vu Ban township, Lac Son district, returned recently with vibrant rituals and folk traditions of the Muong people. Located next to the Buoi River in the Muong Trao fields, the Truong Kha Temple is dedicated to the three Kun Dol deities, revered for teaching farming techniques, irrigation, weaving, and protecting the harvest.

Hoa Binh city residents enjoy upgraded cultural houses

The demand for spaces serving community activities of residents in various areas across Hoa Binh city has been satisfied as local cultural houses now feature modern, spacious facilities thanks to the effective implementation of Resolution No. 49/NQ-HDND issued on December 28, 2021 by the city People's Council, which approved the plan for reorganising, converting, and allocating land for the construction, repair, and expansion of cultural houses in Hoa Binh’s villages and residential areas until 2025.

Enhancing cultural and spiritual life in remote and ethnic minority areas

At the end of May, the Hoa Binh Provincial Ethnic Arts Troupe organized a series of performances for residents in Region 2 and Region 3 communes across the province. Bringing art to ethnic communities in remote, isolated, and especially disadvantaged areas has become a meaningful activity. These are not merely artistic performances but also journeys to disseminate cultural values, enrich spiritual life, and contribute to preserving the cultural identity of ethnic minorities.

Preserving the traditional brocade weaving craft of the H’Mong people in Pa Co commune

In recent years, alongside the development of a tourism-oriented economy, the traditional brocade weaving craft of the Mong people in Pa Co Commune, Mai Chau district has been gradually preserved and promoted. It has become a unique indigenous cultural feature, contributing to improving the livelihoods of the ethnic minority community.

Hop Tien commune preserves and promotes the cultural identity of the Muong ethnic group

Hop Tien commune, Kim Boi district, Hoa Binh province is home to nearly 1,260 households with a population of over 5,700 people, 98% of whom are of the Muong ethnic group. Besides economic development, the commune places special emphasis on preserving and promoting the cultural identity of the Muong people.