Quang Nam to host third Central Ethnic Culture Festival

Rain ritual: The Ê đê people organise a ceremony praying to heaven and earth to endow them with plenty of rain-Photo courtesy of the Culture and Tourism Village of Ethnic Groups

Thirteen provinces in the region will participate in the third Central Ethnic Culture Festival including Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh and Phu Yen and the three south central provinces of Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan.

Themed Central Ethnic Culture Identity Preservation and Development in the Integration Period, the festival will present a wide range of activities, such as an amateur music festival, ethnic costume show, exhibition, sports and tourism promotion. The festival will also offer visitors varieties of cuisine. Each province will set up a booth introducing its tourism potential and destinations.

The highlight will be the performance of traditional rituals such as the Cham festival praying for peace, the E De prayers for rain, the Thai celebration of a new crop and the Co Tu for establishing a new village.

The opening ceremony of the festival will be held at 8pm at 24-3 Square in Tam Ky City and will be aired live on Vietnam National Television and local television stations of the participating provinces.

Other activities will be organised at the Quang Nam Provincial Museum and the Provincial Cultural Centre.

The festival aims to honour the cultural values and diversity of 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam.

It will provide an opportunity for artisans, traditional art performers and athletes to meet and exchange their experiences to preserve the traditional cultural values of ethnic groups in the central region, according to Tran Van Tan, vice chairman of the Quang Nam People’s Committee.

“We aim to promote the rich, diversified culture of the local ethnic groups,” he said.

“Through the festival, we expect to lure more tourists to come to discover the tourism potential and unique culture of the destinations in the central region.”