Preserving culture through skillful hands

Amid the hustle and bustle of modern life – where the hum of machines has replaced the creak of traditional looms and industrial colours have seeped into every kitchen corner – S’tieng women in Dong Nai still quietly sit by their looms, guiding each thread and twisting each coloured fibre as if weaving strands of memory.

Vice Chairman of the Tan Hung Commune People’s Committee Le Viet Truyen visits and encourages the family of artisan Thi Muong (Bu Dinh hamlet) to preserve and promote the traditional brocade-weaving craft. Photo: Quy Son

Today, that joy is multiplied as the brocade products of the Bu Dinh Hamlet Weaving Group in Tan Hung Commune, Dong Nai Province, have received the 3-star OCOP (One Commune One Product) certification for the first time – an unprecedented achievement for the local traditional brocade-weaving craft.

Preserving the “soul of the people” in every woven thread

In Phu Thuan Hamlet, Phu Rieng Commune, Dong Nai Province, the sight of a woman sitting on her house porch at her loom is no longer unfamiliar to the locals.

Dieu Thi Hong shared that although brocade weaving is not physically demanding, it requires significant time, patience, meticulousness, and above all, skill and creativity. Over the years, the brocade weaving craft has gradually faded; fewer women still know how to weave, and those who do mostly practise it in their spare time or when receiving orders to supplement their income. Most brocade weaving remains for family use during festivals, Tet, or significant events such as weddings.

Brocade weaving demands a high level of dexterity and creativity. Skill is reflected in the arrangement of patterns: simple motifs such as diamonds or squares with pale colours often belong to beginners, while complex, flowing designs with harmonious colours mark the hand of a true craftswoman.

Thi Phuong, a S’tieng woman from Tranh 3 Hamlet in Tan Quan Commune, Dong Nai, who has been attached to her loom since childhood, shared: “Nearly 30 years with the loom, brocade weaving to me is not just about making fabric. It is how I tell stories of the mountains, the fields, and the grains of rice passed down by our ancestors. Each motif is something I want to say. Even when I add new colours or motifs to make the fabric more beautiful, the soul – the grain of rice from our ancestors – must remain. You must weave with heart and love for the product to have spirit. Weaving is also how I remember who I am.”

Dong Nai is a land of cultural convergence, where many ethnic communities live alongside one another while preserving their own identities. The S’tieng and M’nong people live side by side, sharing farmland and sharing the colours of their traditional clothing. The traditional attire of S’tieng men is largely similar to that of M’nong men. The clothing of S’tieng and M’nong women also shares many similarities, most clearly in the skirts. At first glance, the skirts of S’tieng women stand out with their vibrant colours and densely arranged motifs. Over time, artisans have skilfully “localised” and enriched their traditional patterns by incorporating refined influences, such as golden rice-grain motifs intertwined with fresh green rice leaves, which has become a distinctive feature of modern S’tieng textiles.

For S’tieng women, each piece of brocade tells a story woven by calloused hands and hearts that tirelessly cherish their roots. Not only the motifs but also the weaving techniques themselves are precious legacies passed down through generations. Women attach and weave each thread directly on the loom, creating diamond and triangular patterns and elegant zigzag lines. These skills cannot be learned from books; they are passed from mother to daughter, and from grandmother to granddaughter, through patience and love.

A journey of awakening cultural identity

Previously, the brocade-weaving craft of the S’tieng and M’nong peoples was recognised as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage, affirming its historical and cultural value. Recently, the Bu Dinh Hamlet Weaving Group’s brocade products earned the 3-star OCOP certification, as an important milestone and a well-deserved result after sustained efforts. Meeting OCOP standards opens up new doors for traditional brocade, helping it move beyond the village bamboo fences to become a branded economic product in the future.

This achievement demonstrates an important message: preservation does not mean keeping things unchanged, but allowing heritage to live and develop, which sustains the very people who safeguard it. This recognition encourages the younger S’tieng and M’nong generations to take pride in and return to their ancestral looms, while helping future brocade products enter tourism, fashion, and handicraft supply chains, thereby expanding markets and adding value.

To help brocade find its place in modern life, leaders of Tan Hung Commune have recently visited artisans' homes to encourage families to work with local authorities to preserve and promote the craft, while honouring those who maintain the cultural soul of the products. Ensuring the sustainable development of the weaving craft is not the responsibility of any single individual; it requires collective effort to uphold ethnic cultural values.

Amid the hum of machinery in the 4.0 era, the sound of brocade looms continues to echo. That gentle clatter weaves not only fabric, but also pride, hope, and a future for a heritage that has lived alongside Dong Nai’s mountains and forests for generations. And tomorrow, it may kindle new dreams, sending brocade pieces from Bu Dinh (Tan Hung), Tranh 3 (Tan Quan), and Phu Thuan (Phu Rieng) out into the wider world, bringing with it the colours of the mountains and forests and the steadfast, rustic, yet proud spirit of the S’tieng people.

By Phuong Dung – Translated by My Le, Thu Ha