Discover about the Muong ethnic group

The Muong people have a population of more than one million people, the fourth largest population after the Vietnamese, Tay, and Thai people. As long-standing indigenous residents, they have the same origin as the ancient Vietnamese people, residing in many northern provinces, most concentrated in Hoa Binh and Thanh Hoa provinces. Let's go togetheriguide.aiFind out information about the Muong ethnic group, Vietnam!

1. Historical origin
Muong people are indigenous people who have lived in our country for a long time and have created a rich culture rich in ethnic identity.
Other names: Mol, Mual, Mul or Mon.…

2. Geographic distribution
The Muong people in our country reside in a fairly large mountainous area, in the valleys at the foot of the mountains, with a favorable geographical environment for farming, located between the Vietnamese area in the east and the Thai area in the west, in the afternoon. about 350km long, about 80-90km wide; concentrated mainly in Hoa Binh province, Thanh Son, Tan Son, Yen Lap, Thanh Thuy districts of Phu Tho province; Ngoc Lac, Thach Thanh, Cam Thuy, Ba Thuoc, Nhu Xuan, Lang Chanh districts of Thanh Hoa province and scattered in Son La, Ninh Binh, Yen Bai provinces...

3. Population, language
- Population: The Muong people are the 4th most populous ethnic group in the Vietnamese ethnic community, only after the Viet, Tay, and Thai people.

According to data from the 2019 Survey of 53 Ethnic Minorities, the Muong people have a total population of 1,452,095 people, concentrated mainly in Hoa Binh province (with a population of 549,026 people), Thanh Hoa (341,359 people); Phu Tho (218,404 people); Son La (84,676 people); Hanoi (62,239 people); Ninh Binh (27,6345 people), Yen Bai (17,401 people)... In addition, Muong people are also present in some southern provinces and cities such as Dak Lak (15,656 people); Binh Duong (9,021 people); Dong Nai (6,257 people); Lam Dong (6,072 people),…

- Language: Muong language, belongs to the Viet-Muong language group, Austroasiatic language family.

4. Main characteristics
- Traditional social institutions: The traditional social organization of the Muong people has many unique features, that is, the society has been divided into the lang (aristocratic) and commoner castes. Social institutions in traditional society of the Muong people are generally hamlets and muongs. There, a management and administration apparatus is formed according to customary law, which all members of the hamlet and muong community must absolutely comply with. The place of residence of the Muong people is called the word quangl or hamlet, meaning village. The village is the basic unit of Muong society consisting of many patriarchal sub-families whose family cells are parents and children, in which power belongs to the eldest son.

- Housing: The majority of Muong people live in stilt houses, a 4-roof house, surrounded by areca and jackfruit trees. The upper part of the floor is for people to live in, the lower part is for livestock and poultry barns, rice mortars, and other production tools. Nowadays, economic conditions are increasingly developing and people's lives are improving, so besides traditional stilt houses, in many areas of the Muong people, tile-roofed houses, flat-roofed houses, and high-rise buildings have appeared. The architecture of these types of houses bears a strong Vietnamese impression.

- Religion and beliefs: Ancestor worship, Tan Vien worship, Earth gong worship.

- Costumes: Women's costumes are more diverse than men's and still retain their unique features. The head scarf is a rectangular piece of white fabric without embroidery, a bib, a blouse (popularly white) with a very short body, usually slit at the chest, and an ankle-length skirt consisting of two main parts: the skirt body and the skirt waistband. . The waistband of the dress is famous for its intricately woven patterns. Jewelry includes bracelets, beads and sets of 2 or 4 silver bars with hanging peach boxes and silver-covered tiger and bear claws.

The traditional male outfit of the Muong people is simpler. Short shirt, round neck, with trim around the edges. Pants are made of white rough fabric, dyed brown or indigo, with wide legs. When wearing pants, the wearer will cross the two edges of the waistband to the inside and tie them with a scarf. Muong men's scarves are black or purple, made from self-woven fabric. Currently, the traditional costumes of Muong men are almost gone; they mainly buy Kinh people's costumes at the market.

- Marriage: Muong people's wedding ceremonies are now carried out according to a new way of life, the phenomenon of buying brides and grooms no longer exists. Boys and girls are free to love, explore, and if they like each other, they will inform their families to prepare for the wedding.

- Cuisine: In the past, sticky rice was the main dish in the daily meals of the Muong people, but now regular rice has gradually replaced it as the main food source, sticky rice is only used during holidays and receptions.

Can wine of the Muong people is famous for its way of processing and the rich flavor of the yeast, which is served to distinguished guests and drunk during group fun. Women as well as men like to smoke waterpipe tobacco using large pipes. In particular, women also have the custom of having many people pass around the same cigarette.

- Education: Previously, only a few people of the Muong ethnic group knew the national language or Chinese characters, while the majority were illiterate. Since peace was restored, the learning movement has developed strongly. Most parents have limited thoughts that inhibit their children's spirit of learning and higher education and instead send their children to school to combine education between family and school to create favorable conditions for their children. have a brighter future.

According to statistics from the General Statistics Office in 2019, the rate of people aged 15 and older who can read and write common words is 95.5%; Primary school attendance rate is 100.8%; The general attendance rate at lower secondary level is 96.3%; The proportion of people attending high school together is 71.5%; The rate of out-of-school children is 6.7%.

5. Economic conditions
The main economic activity of the Muong people is wet-field agriculture. The Muong people combine wet rice agriculture with slash-and-burn agriculture, animal husbandry, hunting, gathering and handicrafts with a strong sense of self-sufficiency and self-sufficiency. Because their residence is in the valleys at the foot of the mountains, where there are dense rivers and streams, the Muong people have long perfected the irrigation system to bring water to irrigate fields and grow crops. They also do handicrafts, typically weaving and knitting.

Since the country implemented the reform process, moving towards industrialization and modernization, the Muong people's economy has had clear changes. According to data from the General Statistics Office in 2019: unemployment rate (1.18%); Proportion of workers working in the non-agricultural sector (36%); poverty rate (14.5%); rate of near-poor households (14.9%); Percentage of households using hygienic water sources (89.9%); Percentage of households using grid electricity for lighting (99.6%).

Above is some interesting information about the Muong ethnic group in Vietnam, let's joiniguide.ai Plan to explore, meet and experience culture with Muong people in the near future!

Source:
- Ethnic groups in Vietnam (Truth National Political Publishing House)
- Basic characteristics of 54 ethnic minorities in 2019 (Committee for Ethnic Minorities and General Statistics Office)
- Website of the Committee for Ethnic Minorities, Website of Nhan Dan Newspaper
- Results of the survey collecting information on the socio-economic status of 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam)