Ha Giang is the northernmost land area of the country, where living of 23 ethnics. Each of ethnic has unique characteristics. And one of the most unique characteristic is the ethnic people’s traditional costumes.

The traditional costumes of each ethnic has special model in color and the way of decorating. The traditional Tay and Nung people’s costumes is simple in model and color while Lo Lo and Dao’s costumes are very diversity in pattern and model.

Indigo is main color, the costumes of Tay, Nung and Giay people is graceful with local ethnic traditional dress or shirt and trousers. Ethnic women always dress  light belts, necklaces, silver chain to make their costumes is more elegant. Different to these ethnics, other ethnic people’s costumeses are unique with warm color. Red in Pa Then women’s costumeses are similar to fire birds. The red color is repeated in turbans, shirts, skirts and decorative fringes. Dao woman’s costumes make impression to people who have been contemplated at first time with light red patterns in lappet, contours, embroidered figure in rhombic and spiral shape, etc… Warm color in the Lo Lo ethnic’s costumes is darker than anothers with many kinds of unique embroidered figure. Many researchers said that “ It is difficult to compare their dress with other ethnics in our country because our dress is really picky and colorful”.

These dresses are highlights with dense density in patterns and striagle, square shape. Patterns is made by dyeing technic, embroidered by hand, put color cottons together, etc. Instead of dense pattern piece of Lo Lo ethnic’s dress, Mong woman’s dress uses light cotton such as brocade and velvet… On their dress, the patterns focus on collar, sleeve and waist. Mong women use to dress white shirt inside, the dress without buttons is outside with skirt. To this ethnic, variety in shapes and patterns is in each of Mong ethnic. Example: White Mong women ethnic’dress is white while Flower Mong women ethnic wear dress with many various patterns to be put by beeswax and  embroidered sophisticatedly. On the same living area, Pu Peo ethnic poeple’s dress is a unique feature in Dong Van Karst Plateau. Black pleated skirt, right split dress with color flounce across the flank. Collar and fringe of the dress are decorated by ranges of patterns in rhombic alternate geometrical shape. The dress’s pattern of Pu Peo women makes high aesthetic effectivity.

The ethnic people’s traditional dress expresses local condition, climate about living area of ethnic people. So the climate in lowland is hot and wet,  Tay and Nung people’dresses are simple patterns while the dress of Lo Lo, Dao, Mong ethnic is gaudy with many layers because of the cold climate in highland. Patterns on the dress is not only more beautiful but also increasing the thickness of dress. So someone said that ethnic people’s dress is redundant in colour. But it is suitable for their living environment. A Mong girl in bright dress is a beautiful flower in the sky of highland or a Pa Then girl is bright in the green of forest… It is a lively picture about violent vitality of people in highland.

The tradional dress is made of laborious and skillful of ethnic women. Sophistication in each of embroidered line makes the ethnic people’s dress as really art works. Each of dress has private characteristic about way of living of ethnic people. Up to now, all of men is dreaming to be married with laborious and skillful girls.

Now, with purpose is presevering ethnic people’s traditional values, local government gives positive impacts to encourage the brocade making artisans for women, form group for production brocade … With skill and aestheticism, many kinds of diversified patterns, using dyed color from plants which have benefit to health. Brocade products in Ha Giang are well-known and to be favorite by international and national visitors. This helps Ha Giang’s brocade products have position on the market. Developing ethnic people’s brocade products helps local people increase income from their traditional career, so it is nesessary to search the market for traditional village. At that time, it not only help ethnic peopple developing traditional career in emilinating hunger and reducing poverty but also presever traditional cultural values of Ha Giang’s ethnic people.

(Translated by Thien Nga)