Culture and Customs of the Khmer Ethnic Group:
Ethnic minorities often reside in remote areas or high mountains, sustaining themselves through hunting or slash-and-burn agriculture. Introducing tourism to these communities can boost their income, mitigate environmental damage, and provide a refreshing climate for visitors. Let's join hands to protect our environment and make our Earth greener, cleaner, and more beautiful.
Traditional Social Institutions: The Khmer people in the Mekong Delta live in clusters known as "phum" (a small area comprising 3-8 related families) and "soc" (a traditional self-governing social unit similar to a Vietnamese village). Blood relations and marriage are the two basic relationships in the phum, while neighborly and territorial relations are blended with kinship in the soc.
Religion and Beliefs: Most Khmer in Vietnam are followers of Theravada Buddhism, which plays a crucial role in their spiritual life. Buddhist teachings and precepts have become standards in the relationships among the Khmer in the soc. Additionally, the Khmer have folk beliefs and festivals that contain many Hindu elements but are integrated into Buddhism.
Housing: Previously, the Khmer lived in stilt houses or earthen houses. However, nowadays, they almost no longer live in stilt houses. Over the past few decades, they have transitioned to living in earthen houses.
Attire: In the past, both Khmer men and women wore silk sarongs woven by themselves. Nowadays, young people prefer wearing trousers and shirts, while middle-aged and elderly people often wear black "ba ba" clothes. Affluent men sometimes wear white ba ba clothes with a scarf wrapped around their head or slung over their shoulder. Traditional clothes are worn only during weddings.
Cuisine: The staple food of the Khmer in the Mekong Delta is sticky rice. The special dish "tứksamlo" (rice noodle soup) is a favorite and indispensable on the first day of the Lunar New Year in the pagoda.
Education: Since the liberation (in 1975), especially in recent years, the development of education for the Khmer ethnic group has received special attention from the state and local authorities. According to the April 1, 2019, survey of 53 ethnic minorities: 76.7% of Khmer people aged 15 and above are literate in common script; the primary school attendance rate is 100.5%; the lower secondary school attendance rate is 72.3%; the upper secondary school attendance rate is 35%; and the rate of out-of-school children is 23.4%.
Festivals: The cultural and spiritual life of the Khmer is very rich. In their festival system, many unique festivals stand out, especially the two major ones in the year: Chol Chnam Thmay, the New Year festival, and Ok-ang Bok, the Moon Worship Festival, featuring the Ngo boat race among the phum - soc.
