Benefitting country(ies): Viet Nam

Overview:

The Dzao in Lao Cai and Lai Chau Provinces live mainly near the northern border with China. With only one or two villagers in each village who can still sing folk songs and speak the traditional language, the oral traditions and expressions of the Dzao people are severely endangered. Folk songs, tales, lullabies, proverbs and riddles are also disappearing due to the advanced age of those who recite them and to the working and school environment of young Dzao where Vietnamese language prevails. The proposed project aims at establishing an overview of the current use of the Dzao language and its associated oral traditions, elaborating written and audiovisual materials and teaching children, young people and women about this intangible cultural heritage. Undertaken by several specialized departments of the Vietnam Association of Folklorists, the project will actively involve village chiefs, elders and craftspeople in all its components from a survey conducted in thirty villages and the elaboration of training curricula and programmes to training courses and the recording of oral traditions associated with different times of life of Dzao people.

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