Lung Phin village in Na Khe commune, Yen Minh district (Ha Giang province, Vietnam) has long been the residence of the Red Dao ethnic people. Here, there are a few dozen houses located around the slopes, overlooking the valley below. From Highway 4, through nearly ten kilometers of dirt roads, in rainy months the road becomes muddy, slippery and almost impossible for visitors coming. This makes Lung Phin village almost separate from the modern daily-life. This is why the traditional houses of the Red Dao Ethnic are still fortunate to be kept even though they have deteriorated significantly.
Dao houses here are mainly built from local materials like wood, bamboo, cork, leaves…all can all be utilized. In the village, some houses have 3 compartments, some have 5. The kitchen wares and farm tools are located on both sides of the house. On the first floor is where the Dao live, and the food is stored on the second floor to avoid humidity from the ground. The structure of the house is quite basic, including the truss supporting the roof above, the wall is quite thick, the wood carving details are also very simple.
Words
Pham Ha Thu
Photo
Trieu Chien
Movie
Tran Duc
Time
May 2022
The ancient Dao people originated on Hainan Island (China), consisting of seven groups. In Vietnam, there are three main groups including Dao Tuyen, Dao Nga Hoang and Dao Lan Ten (Dao Cham) with a small population, scattered in the northern mountainous provinces in Vietnam since the Le Dynasty in late 17th century. The customs and rituals of the Dao partly reflect their arduous path for reaching Vietnam, through oceans to mountains and rivers crossing along the way from Hainan (China) to Bac Giang (Vietnam). From there, the Dao followed the Lo River upstream to Ha Giang, forming the Dao Ao Dai people. Another branch followed the Chay River to Lao Cai whose descendant class today is called Dao Tuyen. The remaining group lived in the Nga Hoang area in Yen Lap (Vinh Phuc) for a while, after that they migrated to Van Chan (Yen Bai), Van Ban (Lao Cai); these people are the ancestors of the Dao Quan people today.
