Embroidery is one of the main crafts of Dao Thanh Phan women. (photo:VOV)

90% of the people in Yên Than commune belong to the Dao Thanh Phán ethnic group. The women have been doing embroidery work for generations. 35-year-old Chiu Thi Hoa says that Dao Thanh Phan girls learn tailoring and embroidery to make their own costumes, including their wedding gown, as well as clothes for their mother-in-law and sisters-in-law.

“Embroidery is our traditional craft. Patterns on the hem of pants and shirts are the most difficult to embroider. It takes about 5 months to embroider one set of clothes.”

For the Dao Thanh Phan a set of clothes means a shirt, a pair of pants, a belt, a hat, and a scarf. They prefer to embroider the front and the hem of each shirt. The hem of pantlegs often has dense embroidering. Their belt, a white strip about 5 to 7cm wide, is also colorfully embroidered.

Villager Chiu Thi Hai says embroidery is not simple adornment. It reflects the culture, lifestyle, and belief system of the Dao Thanh Phan. “Embroidered images reflect the fengshui beliefs of the Dao. Each pattern has a spiritual meaning. The traditional images are Sanskrit characters, trees, birds, and animals harmoniously combined. The headscarf is extremely detailed. In the past, a hat was 100 folds of thin fabric fixed by 32 needles. I watched a Dao artisan making one hat for a month. The hat accompanies a Dao Thanh Phan woman her whole life,” said Chiu.

Dao Thanh Phan women wear traditional clothes to a festival. (photo: VOV)

Embroidery is a way to tie Yen Than’s ethnic culture to tourism development, and the communal authority consistently supports people in promoting this traditional craft. Pham Van Hung, Chairman of the People's Council of Yen Than commune, said: “We have two clubs to preserve the cultural identity of the Dao Thanh Phán and Dao Thanh Y groups. For New Year celebrations and festivals, we encourage the Dao, especially the women, to wear their traditional costumes. We are proud to showcase their traditional clothes at festivals.”

Tien Yen district has organized embroidery clubs for the Dao Thanh Phán, the Dao Thanh Y, and the San Chi. Duong Thi Hau, Deputy Head of the Tien Yen district Culture Office, said: “The traditional clothes of the ethnic groups in Tien Yen district are made by hand and require good aesthetic sense and dexterity. In modern society embroidery has become less popular. Tien Yen district has prioritized resources to maintain embroidery clubs, encourage young people to join, and turn embroidery products into tourism products. Not all young people can embroider tourism products, but at least they can make their own clothes.”

The Dao Thanh Phan believe that to promote cultural identity is to preserve and honor all embroidery patterns that reflect their worldview.