Minorities People
San Diu Ethnic Group
Culture and Customs of the Sán Dìu People
Key Features:
Cuisine: The Sán Dìu people primarily eat plain rice, often supplemented with cassava. After meals, they commonly enjoy a bowl of thin rice porridge, similar to the Nùng people.
Traditional Attire: Women traditionally wear a black headscarf, a long or double-layered áo dài (with the inner layer white and the outer layer slightly longer in black), a red y?m (a type of vest), and a white, pink, or light blue belt. Their skirts consist of two separate pieces with a shared waistband, extending just below the knees and made of black fabric. They also adorn themselves with silver necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and silver-threaded belts.
Men typically dress similarly to Vietnamese men, with their hair tied up in a scarf or folded headscarf, wearing dark-colored áo dài and white trousers.
Residence: They reside predominantly in the midlands of Northern Vietnam, within the area from the upper reaches of the Red River basin to the east.
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Marriage Customs: Sán Dìu wedding customs involve various rituals. The flower-opening ceremony takes place at the bride's home before she moves to the groom's house. A bottle of wine and a plate are placed on the plate, with two paper flower cutouts—one white underneath and one red on top—accompanied by two boiled eggs strung with red thread and two coins tied to each egg. After the ceremony, the eggs are cracked, and their yolks mixed with wine for everyone to toast to the bride and groom's happiness.
Ancestral Worship: An altar typically holds three incense burners for ancestral worship, the Buddha, and the Kitchen God. If the host hasn't received the rank of a scholar, only two incense burners are used. Newly deceased individuals who haven't turned into spirits yet also have their incense burners placed lower on the altar. Additionally, the Sán Dìu people worship earth gods at local shrines and village temples.
Festivals and Celebrations: They observe various traditional festivals, including the Winter Solstice, which carries additional significance as a time to pray for offspring. Couples who have been married for a long time without children may undergo a re-wedding ceremony after the holiday.
Calendar: The Sán Dìu people follow the lunar calendar.
Music and Dance: They engage in duet singing between men and women, known as "so?ng c?" or night songs.