With an important strategic position in terms of socio-economics and national defence and security, Hoa Vang District is considered a "revolutionary museum" and "cultural treasure" of Da Nang. This place still preserves many tangible and intangible cultural heritages and valuable historical and cultural relics. The relics all contain and honour good traditional cultural values. This is a valuable resource, playing an important role in the cultural and spiritual life of the people, and creating an important foundation in building Hoa Vang into an ecological urban area rich in cultural identity.

The rapid urbanization process will have a significant impact on the cultural space of the countryside in Hoa Vang District. In the photo: The Qua Giang communal house in Hoa Phuoc Commune.

Diverse national cultural heritage

According to the Office of Culture and Information of Hoa Vang District, the locality is now home to 35 ranked historical - cultural and architectural relics. Six of them are national relics and 29 are municipal-level relics. The increase in the number of ranked relics is an important basis for preserving cultural spaces in order to preserve intangible cultural values. Many unique intangible cultural heritages with strong traditional nuances are preserved by the people such as beliefs, festivals, performing arts, customs, folk songs, stories, folk poetry, fine arts, traditional crafts, and cuisine. In particular, the system of folk festivals is a typical traditional cultural value, occupying a very important position in the spiritual and cultural life of the people for many generations.

Some festivals have become unique spiritual and cultural symbols of the district such as the Tuy Loan village communal house festival, and "Tat Bep" Festival in Tra Kiem Village. In particular, the "Tat Bep" Festival is the crystallization of the spirit of community solidarity and spreads to many localities inside and outside the district.

Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Hoa Vang District Nguyen Thuc Dung said that in the district, in addition to the beautiful traditional cultures that have been preserved almost intact, many new cultural values ​​have also been formed, contributing to raising people's awareness and creating a civilized lifestyle.

It can be seen that each cultural heritage has its own nuances, clearly showing its own unique identity that is still present in the lives of Hoa Vang people. Typical examples are folk songs, ‘bai choi’, ‘ho khoan’ and specialties such as Tuy Loan Quang noodles, Tuy Loan rice paper, Quang Chau sesame crackers, and Phong Nam gai leaf cakes. These are abundant potential sources and resources for the socio-economic development of the district.

In recent years, Hoa Vang District has focused on preserving and promoting the value of cultural heritage through heritage teaching in schools. At the same time, it has coordinated with the city's functional agencies to conduct research, collect and systematize documents to assess the value of tangible and intangible cultural heritages. On that basis, the locality has proposed solutions to preserve and exploit appropriate values, especially turning the heritage of festivals and folk songs into advantageous tourism products.

In addition to two typical festivals of the Co Tu ethnic group: the New Rice Festival and the Twinning Swearing-in Ceremony, the district has successfully restored the art of ‘gong’ performance and brocade weaving. The abovementioned festivals, customs and traditional occupations have contributed to the preservation and maintenance of the traditional cultural values ​​of the Co Tu people, which are at risk of disappearing.

In particular, in 2021, the district People's Committee issued the project "Building the cultural life of Hoa Vang District until 2025 and the following years". This project is an effective solution to help the culture of Hoa Vang people develop in accordance with the requirements of urban society that the urbanization process is currently posing.

People of Qua Giang Village, Hoa Phuoc Commune, Hoa Vang District join hands to preserve the village communal house culture. Photo: DOAN HAO LUONG

Building “villages in the city, the city in villages”

Developing Hoa Vang District in the direction of an ecological urban area with its own identity is one of the important goals that have been identified in Resolution No. 07-NQ/TU on the construction and development of Hoa Vang District until 2030, with a vision to 2045.

To effectively implement this Resolution, the Hoa Vang District Party Committee has issued Resolution No. 09-NQ/HU on the planning of Hoa Vang District to become an urban area with its own identity until 2023, with a vision to 2025.

Accordingly, the construction and upgrading of infrastructure in existing residential areas need to be preserved in combination with the planning and construction of modern urban areas, creating the appearance of "villages in the city, the city in villages". For works that have been recognised as relics and have not been recognised as relics, it is necessary to set up protective markers and apply protective corridors according to regulations.

Secretary of the Hoa Vang District Party Committee To Van Hung said that aside from focusing on improving the quality of life for people with urban amenities, the urban planning and the organisation of Hoa Vang landscape architecture need guiding principles to aim for sustainable development. In particular, special attention should be paid to preserving natural elements such as mountainous terrain, rivers, and green spaces, plus historical values, and tangible and intangible culture. This will be an important foundation for creating identity values ​​for Hoa Vang urban area.

The development of Hoa Vang towards achieving the criteria of a type IV urban area and striving to become a town in the coming time puts the district in front of challenges of the decline of the natural environment, landscape architecture and traditional identity values, he added.

He informed that, in the time to come, the district will strengthen the preservation and promotion of cultural heritage values ​​in the area, at the same time, to step up propaganda and education on local historical, cultural and revolutionary traditions.

Heed will be on organising “return to roots” activities and programmes at historical relic sites, thereby widely spreading revolutionary traditions, and creating important spiritual resources for the Party Committee, government and people of the district to unite to build an increasingly civilized and beautiful homeland in the direction of an urban area with its own identity, Mr. Hung noted.

Reporting by DOAN HAO LUONG - Translating by M.DUNG