A total of 2,022 people will join a Xoe dance performance of the Thai ethnic people on September 24 night when the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai receives the UNESCO certificate for this art genre.
Yen Bai (VNA) – A total of 2,022 peoplewill join a Xoe dance performance of the Thai ethnic people on September 24night when the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai receives the UNESCOcertificate for this art genre.
The art was listed as an Intangible CulturalHeritage of Humanity at the 16th session of the UNESCO's IntergovernmentalCommittee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which tookplace from December 13-18.
According to the committee, the art meets all of thefive criteria set by UNESCO.
Xoe Thai is a unique type of traditional dance thatis associated with and plays a significant role in the daily life of Thaiethnic communities in the northwest of Vietnam, especially in the provinces ofLai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La and Yen Bai. It is performed in various community activities, from festivals to funeral rituals.
There are about 30 Xoe dances, which have beendeveloped, protected and handed down through generations intact over hundredsof years, including xoe quat (xoe dance with a fan), xoe khan (xoe dance with ascarf), xoe non (xoe dance with a conical hat) and many others with contentsreflecting community activities and expressing the Thai people’s emotion. Withgentle and alluring rhythms, dancers usually form a circle around a festivefire and move to the sound of melodic traditional music.
The September 29 ceremony will also see the involvementof Dien Bien, Son La and Lai Chau provinces.
On this occasion, Yen Bai will kick off the Muong LoCulture and Tourism Week and the Mu Cang Chai Terraced Field Festival.
Do Duc Duy, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee,said the scenario for the events should be completed before September 12, and preparationswill be done no later than September 21.
The programme will feature a parade with the participationof 450 people, including those from Dien Bien, Son La and Lai Chau provinces,he said.
The ceremony will be broadcast live on the nationaltelevision channel and radio and television channels of northwesternprovinces./.
Over 2,000 people will join a Xoe dance performance of Thai ethnic people in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai, which is slated for September this year.
The famous “Xoe” dance in Vietnam is believed to date back at least 10 centuries. It began innocently as the simple movements of holding hands in the hope of bringing people together as night falls in mountainous areas. The dance gradually became a regular performance during community events. It grew and has turned into a famous dance of Thai ethnic people in the northwestern region.
Thai women in Vat village in Son La province’s Moc Chau district are no longer just working in their homes or in the kitchen behind closed doors. They are confident to introduce their cultural identity through the intangible cultural identity of Xoe dancing.
The northern mountainous province of Yen Bai has completed its preparation to host a ceremony to receive the UNESCO's certificate recognising the art of Xoe dance of the Thai ethnic people as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on September 24, according to Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Vu Thi Hien Hanh.
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A Xoe dance performance (Photo: VNA) 
