Ethnic minorities in 4 communes of Bac Binh celebrate the First Rice Festival

The First Rice Festival contains many unique and lively cultures from the Raglay and K’ho communities.

The First Rice Festival (also known as Tet Nhôbrêhê) is an important Lunar New Year event, containing many unique and lively cultures of the Raglay and K’ho communities in Binh Thuan province.

In the past, “Lua ray” (mother rice) is the main food source of the Raglay and K’ho people. Each harvest lasts 6 months and minorities usually celebrate with their families every harvest season until the end of December (lunar calendar). At present, on the First Rice occasion, the local cultural sector organizes a cultural and sports festival in 4 mountainous communes. Since then, the First Rice Festival has not only been a joyful day for each household but also for the whole community which represents the bonding and connections of these minorities.

Cultural activities contain significant marks of highlanders.

This year, Phan Tien is the host of the 28th Cultural and Sports Festival in 4 mountainous communes. People from 3 communes Phan Son, Phan Lam, and Phan Dien will join here. The festival has some contents such as setting camps, decorating Tet poles (Neu trees), crossbow shooting, men’s volleyball, pounding and cooking bamboo rice contests, etc. Especially, there will be art and national costume performances, and can wine festival at night. All the rituals are aimed at showing the people’s gratefulness, gratitude, and belief in mother rice plants in the fields, praying for the rice plants to be free from disturbances, bad insects, and diseases and bloom prosperity to everyone.

Mr. Huynh Van Vinh - Director of the Culture, Information and Sports Center of Bac Binh district - Deputy festival organizer said: The 28th Cultural and Sports Festival of 4 mountainous communes in 2024 aims to create an atmosphere of joyful, healthy, united, safe, and economical on the occasion of the First Rice Festival of mountainous ethnic people. Thereby introducing and promoting, exploiting, and collecting precious cultural, artistic, and sports traditions of ethnic minorities following Resolution 9 (term XI) on "Building and developing Vietnamese human culture to meet the sustainable development requirements of the country". This year, beside cultural performances with national influences performed by commune performance teams, the festival also has the participation of the Chu Ro ethnic gong team (Long Khanh, Dong Nai) to exchange and create connections and development of provincial tourism for tourists.

Lighting fire ritual in the festival

Celebrating the 2024 First Rice Festival, from every corner of the communes, there is only bustle and joy. Although the weather is not favorable, the rainy season ends early which affects crop productivity, the prices are still affordable, people's lives have improved significantly, and the conversion of crop structure has brought economic efficiency. Thanks to the internal rising will and the support policy of the Party and the Government, new rural criteria are upgraded and security is maintained in order; the poor households rate decreased and decent living standard families increased. Those have created a warm spring and tightened ethnic communities’ solidarity.