National heritage of Long Tong festival recognised
(VOV) -The northern mountainous province of Tuyen Quang celebrated the Long Tong (going to the field) festival and received a certificate recognising the Tay ethnic ritual as part of the national intangible cultural heritage on February 21.
Long Tong festival, together with Then singing, are traditional cultural features of the Tay ethnic minority group in the north and were both added to the list of national intangible cultural heritage earlier this year.
The festival opened at Pu Bao temple in Lam Binh district with the offering of trays of local specialties to the gods to thank them for good crops and to ask for their blessings to enjoy favourable weather conditions and have a comfortable and happy life in the New Year.
After prayers and rituals performed by a local shaman, Deputy Minister of Culture-Sports and Tourism Dang Thi Bich Lien presented the heritage certificate to provincial officials.
A Tich Dien (going to the field to plough) ceremony followed and then visitors were invited to participate in a range of cultural and sporting activities, including stilt walking, archery, and “con” (cloth ball) throwing.
Long Tong is the biggest agricultural festival in the northern mountainous Viet Bac region, which consists of the Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen, Tuyen Quang, Cao Bang, Lang Son, and Ha Giang provinces.