Nomination of the art of Xoe dance of Thai ethnic minority people of Vietnam as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity will be discussed at the 16th session of the UNESCO's Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage that is taking place from December 13-18.
Xoe Thai is a unique type of traditional dance that is associated with and plays a significant role in the daily life of Thai ethnic communities in the northwest of Vietnam
As scheduled, the dossiers of the art of Xoe Thai will be put under discussion on December 15.
During the session, members of the committee will consider 48 nominations to the Representative List, 6 nominations to the Urgent Safeguarding List, and 5 proposals to the Register of Good Safeguarding Practices.
Xoe Thai is a unique type of traditional dance that is associated with and plays a significant role in the daily life of Thai ethnic communities in the northwest of Vietnam, especially in the provinces of Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La and Yen Bai.
It is performed in various community activities from festivals to funeral rituals.
There are about 30 Xoe dances, which have been developed, protected and handed down through generations intact over hundreds of years, including xoe quat (xoe dance with a fan), xoe khan (xoe dance with a scarf), xoe non (xoe dance with a conical hat) and many others with contents reflecting community activities and expressing the Thai people’s emotion.
With gentle and alluring rhythms, dancers usually form a circle around a festive flame and move to the sound of melodic traditional music