Nghe An (VNA) – The O Du ethnic people's ceremony to welcome the first thunder of the year has been listed as national intangible cultural heritage, in the ca🗹tegory of social customs and beliefs.

The recognition was recently made by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Decision No. 2192/QD-BVHTTDL. In existence for nearly 100 years, the ceremony of the O Du people in Nga My commune, the central province of Nghe An, is one of the biggest and most important festivals of the ethnic minority. It features a variety of rituals imbued with a unique and distinctive cultural identity. As one of the few persons still able to speak the traditional O Du language in Vang Mon village, village elder Lo Van Cuong said that in the O Du people's belief, the sound of the first thunder marks the beginning of a new year. They hold the ceremony to pray for peace in the village, favourable weather, bountiful harvests, and good health for all. The ceremony is organised at the village's centre and usually lasts for two to three days, drawing the participation of many locals. Shaman Lo Van Cuong from Vang Mon village in Nga My commune said that in the past, when the O Du people lived in isolation in the forest and had no calendar, their ancestors didn’t know when the new year began. They took the first thunderclap as a natural sign to mark the start of a new year. On this occasion, all villagers, even those working from afar, return and gather to honour their roots and ancestral traditions. Currently, O Du is among the ethnic minority groups with the smallest number of people in Vietnam, with nearly 350 people living in more than 100 households in Vang Mon village. In recent years, thanks to all-level authorities' attention and support, the O Du people have enjoyed significant improvements in their cultural and spiritual life. Notably, the community remains deeply committed to preserving and promoting their unique cultural identity and spiritual traditions. With the latest recognition, Nghe An is now home to a total of 14 national intangible cultural heritage elements, including the Vi and Giam folk songs of Nghe Tinh inscribed in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in November 2014. All the heritage hold exceptional historical, cultural, and artistic values, enriching the traditional cultural legacy of Nghe An and affirming the central region’s unique cultural identity within the diverse tapestry of Vietnamese culture. The heritage recognition is expected to create favourable conditions for the locality to preserve and promote the distinctive cultural values of local ethnic groups, in connection with sustainable tourism development./.