The Thai ethnic people regard this as a communal cultural and artistic activity in which everyone in the village has the right to participate in and enjoy.

The festival is divided into two parts: The ceremonial part consists of rituals of worshiping the gods, the essential prose told by a shaman about the establishment of the village, praising ancestors and people with meritorious services. The festival part is a system of 26-50 acts performed by a shaman or "guests" such as chopping firewood, farming, sword dancing, sweeping the home, a flute musician... each of them having a god from Muong Troi who come down to attend (played by a shaman).

Furthermore, there is a part of playing traditional musical instruments such as gongs, khua luong, drums, boong bu, and flutes; as well as folk games such as chop singing, bamboo dancing, array playing, tug of war, and cotton ball throwing.

In 2017, Xang Khan festival was recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, contributing to the development of a Vietnamese culture deeply imbued with national identities.

The People’s Army Newspaper would like to introduce some images of the festival.

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The shaman telling the establishment of the village, praising the ancestors in the ritual part
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Khua luong in the festival creates a unique feature of the Xang khan festival.
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Young Thai men and women singing and dancing under the cotton tree
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The festival is a cultural and artistic activity in which both locals and tourists have an opportunity to enjoy

Translated by Ngoc Linh