HA NHI ETHNIC PEOPLE IN LAO CHAI HAMLET

Passing Cong Troi (Heaven Gate) and going upward to Nhu Co San Peak (Sung Trau Mountain) along the road that winds its way through rocky mountains, we arrived at Lao Chai Hamlet inhabited by Ha Nhi Den ethnic people in Bat Xat District’s Y Ty Plateau, 70km away from Lao Cai City.

Seen from above, Lao Chai Hamlet lies amidst an area of rocky mountains and thatch hills, with houses made from earth looking like huge mushrooms scattered on the sides of the mountains at an altitude of 2,660m. It is home to the Ha Nhi Den (Black Ha Nhi) ethnic people, the smallest minority group in Vietnam. They have to live in the harsh climatic conditions in Y Ty Plateau where there is mist and frost all year round. According to old Ha Nhi people, their ancestors, who were the Khuong, migrated from Thanh Tang Plateau to the south in the 3^rd century. They settled in the border area, and together with other ethnic groups reclaimed land and defended the country.

Comprising 76 households, Lao Chai Hamlet has the largest number of Ha Nhi Den ethnic people in Y Ty Commune and all houses are similar in shape, structure, space and decoration. The walls of the house are made from earth, 40-45cm thick and 4.5-5m high and have two layers between which stones of equal size are placed. Each house is 65-80m^² in size and has four thatch roofs without eaves. There is a door in the middle of the house and one or two air-gates on either the left or right side of the path. Behind the wall inside the house is the kitchen and sleeping area. This is the common type of a family’s house in a residential area.

Apart from the unique architecture of the house, the traditional attire of Ha Nhi Den ethnic people also distinguishes them from the Ha Nhi Hoa people. The Ha Nhi Den wear black indigo clothes. Man’s clothes have only one colour with the shirt buttoned in the front. A woman’s blouse has a round collar with the ends of the front and back flaps having the shapes of isosceles triangles. Their cloth cap is adorned with aluminum corns or small and big balls made of coloured thread, for the purpose of embellishment and expelling evil spirits.

Ha Nhi Den women carry a basket with a horse hair-braided strap placed on the forehead to transport firewood and vegetables.

During a meal, food is placed on a tray called “Ha Chi”, a traditional tray woven from bamboo and rattan. Women always eat last.

It is unfortunate for visitors to Lao Chai who do not get an opportunity to enjoy the sounds of the two-chord violin played by young ethnic men and women while courting or witness the custom of a boy and a girl sharing a blanket while singing love duet songs through the night in the kho cha gia Festival. After the festival the boy will carry the girl with a blanket to his home to be his wife.

(Source: VNP)