(VOVworld) – The Mong are one of the most populous ethnic groups in Vietnam. They live mostly in the mountains, 1,000 meters above sea level, in the northern region, in Thanh Hoa and Nghe An province, and in the central highlands. The Mong are part of the unity of the 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam.

There various Mong groups: White Mong, Black Mong, Flowery Mong, Red Mong, Blue Mong, Man Mong and Na Meo. They are differentiated by their costumes and languages.

A H'Mong pan-pipe performance in Sapa

Previously, the Mong were called Meo (Mieu), meaning residents who are engaged in cultivation. The Mong are skilled farmers, specializing in growing wet rice. The mountains where they live are flattened to make terraced rice fields. Tran Thu Thuy of the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology told VOV:“The Mong migrated to Vietnam about 300-500 years ago. At that time, the Kinh majority lived in the delta and other ethnic groups like the Thai and Tay lived in the mountain valleys. So the Mong had almost no flat land to live on. They reclaimed mountain sides and turned them into terraced rice fields for wet rice cultivation. The Mong are a special ethnic group, who are adaptable to all living conditions”.

The Mong are scattered in many provinces across Vietnam and rarely intermingle with other ethnic groups. Their houses are built on mountain sides with streams in the front and mountains at the back for protection. The houses are built from a special kind of timber called Pomu. But the Mong in Ha Giang build their houses with clay. To cope with cold weather, their houses are short and have no windows.

The Mong believe that everything has a soul, even a house. Their houses have the door, pillar and kitchen gods to protect owners from evil forces. Outside of their house, a person is no longer protected by the gods and is vulnerable to misfortunes or death due to evil spirits. That’s why they always carry a charm to chase away ghosts.

The Mong follow a patriarchal system. Men decide everything in the family and are the inheritors. A girl, who moves into her husband’s house after their wedding, can only bring with her some silver jewelry and some clothes.

The Mong usually marry within the group, rarely to people of other ethnic groups. They believe that the more children they have, the stronger their clans become. Each clan has its own rules, which everybody must follow. Thuy said: “Clans are very important to the Mong. People of the same clan can die in each other’s house and are recognized by the way they are worshipped. A married woman is believed to belong to her husband’s clan. She is neither allowed to give birth nor die in her parents’ house”.

Among Vietnam’s 54 ethnic groups, the Mong’s culture is one of the most distinctive and best preserved.