Preserving the colors of the Tay ethnic group
Over the time, in Van Ban district, the Tay people have still maintained and preserved the traditional professions of cotton growing, cloth weaving, and brocade weaving. |
| Brocade products of the group of women with similar interests in Vo Lao commune have become the commodity product |
In the past, on the hills of Duong Quy, there were white cotton fields everywhere. This is the raw material for making fabrics and traditional costumes as well as daily-life items of the Tay people such as blankets, sheets, pillows, cushions, bags, towels... Nowadays, no family has grown cotton, but the stage of weaving, indigo dyeing, brocade weaving have still been preserved.
To weave into a cloth, it has to go through a lot of time and stages, especially putting the thread on the loom requires the most meticulous, it needs the help of many people. On leisure days, women often gather in a family to help each other do this work. Mrs. La Thi La, from Tong Hoc village, Duong Quy commune, said: The Tay people use house pillars to put thread into weaving molds. We choose stilt houses with large, smooth pillars as molds. The threads are pulled evenly around the 3 pillars. This stage needs 5-6 women to help and must work at full capacity from early morning to late evening to complete. Therefore, stitching thread on the mold not only shows the ingenuity of the Tay women, but also the spirit of solidarity, attaching village love and neighborhood. After stitching thread, from rudimentary self-made tools, through manual operations and skillful hands of women, the threads are woven into soft fabric cloth.
Not only in Duong Quy, in many other communes such as Lang Giang and Vo Lao, grandmothers and mothers have also established groups and clubs with the women who share the same passion for weaving and brocade weaving. For nearly 30 years, a group of 5 women in Chieng 4 village, Vo Lao commune have sewn and embroided brocade products and traditional costumes of the Tay ethnic group. Various indigo shirts and brocade products both serve the needs of women and become goods and create income for the people during their leisure time.
For the same purpose of preserving the traditional craft, just over busy days of harvesting season, the group of women with the same interests of Women Union of Lang Giang commune gather in a family, then together weave cloth, weave brocade or embroider. Products woven from skillful hands of women contribute to preserving the traditional cultural identity of the Tay people and serving the development of local community tourism. Mrs. Tran Thi Tuoi, Chairwoman of the Women Union of Lang Giang commune affirmed: Maintaining and preserving the weaving profession is one of the important tasks of the Women Union of the commune. The members' brocade products not only meet the needs of use and tourism, but also contribute to educating the young generation in preserving the traditional values of the nation.
Although there are still many difficulties in the journey to restore, preserve and maintain the traditional cotton cultivation, weaving and brocade weaving of the Tay people, but with the love and enthusiasm of many women, the traditional profession of the Tay people is gradually being handed down, and at the same time opening a new direction in economic development, increasing income for the people.
