♦M.A. Phan Thi Phuong

thuongChuong village is located in the former Phuong Trung Commune in the Thanh Oai district and is now part of Dan Hoa Commune, Hanoi. It is not only an ancient craft village nestled by the serene banks of the Day River, but also the cradle of the renowned conical hat (nón lá) craft in Vietnam. The village has long preserved and promoted its unique cultural values, evident in its long-established history, characteristic cultural heritage, and the adaptability of traditional conical hats in the globalised world. 

The conical hats from Chuong village are famous throughout the country for their durability and elegant, graceful appearance

History of Chuong conical hat village 

thuongAccording to historians, the craft of making the Vietnamese traditional hats dates back to the 13th century under the Tran dynasty. During this period, there were famous and flourishing Ma Loi hats made from Thanh Bi bamboo. “At that time, Tran Khanh Du’s consorts traded in this type of hat and earned profits amounting to thousands of bolts of cloth.” [History of Vietnam, Volume 1].  In“Writing in the rain” (“Vũ Trung’s Miscellaneous Essays”), Mr. Pham Dinh Ho described: “By the late 18th century, Vietnam had various types of hats, classified for different groups of people.”

thuongUp to now, even the eldest artisans in Chuong village cannot identify exactly what year the village started making hats. Scholars estimate that the craft has existed and developed in the village for approximately 400 years. According to The Imperially Commissioned Comprehensively Reflected Chronicles of the Viet History“The Imperially Ordered Annotated Text of the Comprehensive Mirror of Vietnamese History.” compiled by the Nguyen dynasty’s National History Bureau, “In the 17th and 19th centuries, Ha Tay Province presented many conical hats as tribute to the royal court.”

thuongThrough a process of formation and development, Chuong village has produced a wide variety of traditional hats in order to meet diverse demands of residents, including round hats with strap tassels (non Muoi), medium-sized hat (non nho), soldiers conical hat (non dau), metal-topped conical hat (non chop), old palm-leaf hat (non la gia), silk hat (non lua), floral hat (non hoa), oversize hat (non khong lo), etc. The craft of making conical hats in the village has flourished with a history spanning over hundreds of years, marked by ups and downs. Hats made by Chuong village are not only well-known locally but have also become widely recognized across Ha Thanh, making the village one of the largest cradles for conical hat making in the country. The hats are highly valued for their variety of designs, affordable prices, and deep cultural essence, which have captivated both domestic and international tourists. It has also epitomised the rustic charm of Vietnamese women and culture. 

Typical cultural heritage of Chuong village

thuongChuong village is not only renowned for its conical hat-making tradition but also boasts a varied array of heritage forms, reflecting a history of formation and development spanning over a millennium. These heritages are a source of pride for the local community, contributing to enriching the cultural identity of Vietnam.

thuongConical hat-making tradition: This is the most important tangible and intangible cultural heritage of Chuong Village. The process of making a conical hat requires meticulousness, from selecting materials to the final touches. All the main materials come from nature, such as green palm leaves, and hat frames made from bamboo, nứa (a wild bamboo species), and bamboo sheaths (mo nứa), etc…Creating a conical hat requires meticulous craftsmanship and involves several key steps, including layering, weaving, and stitching, etc… After completion, the hat is either treated with matchstick smoke fumes to maintain its white color and prevent mold or coated with oil to create a desired sheen. The whole process showcases the ingenuity and artistic finesse of local craftsmen, making the conical hats not only practical items but also works of art. 

“Whom do I tie this hat for?

Inside are couplets, outside is a poem.”

“Passing by the communal house, I take off my hat and look

The more roof tiles the temple has, the more I love you”

“Unsteady like a hat without a strap,

Like a boat without a rudder, like someone without a husband.”

thuongSystem of historical and cultural relics: Chuong Village takes pride in a wide range of heritage forms, including temples, pagodas, communal halls, shrines, clan ancestral houses, parish churches, and old wells. Among these, the most prominent is the Chuong communal house.

thuongChuong village communal houses: Built in the year Giap Ngo 1984 during the reign of King Thanh Thai the 6th, it featured a “noi cong ngoai quoc” structure, which was a typical architectural style of the Nguyen Dynasty. It has still preserved and displays numerous horizontal lacquered panels, book covers, and parallel sentences, along with 25 ancient royal documents through the Vietnamese feudal dynasties, which have been recognized as precious and rare archival documents. The communal house serves as the place to worship the tutelary deity and the ancestor of the craft. It is also the hub of the village’s cultural activities, especially the annual village festival.

The communal house’s yard on the festive day.

thuongTraditional festivals and Chuong Village Market: The largest festival of the village takes place on the third lunar month and lasts for three days (from the 9th to the 11th day of the lunar March). Every 5 years, the village takes a procession from the entrance of the village to its end, attracting large numbers of residents and tourists. 

thuongChuong Village Market: The market of Chuong Village is open daily, with six days held on the 4th, 10th, 14th, 20th, 24th, and 30th of the lunar calendar each month for the conical hat market. Chuong conical hat village mainly sells hats and some hat-making materials. It starts very early in the morning and is bustling with many buyers and sellers, creating a lively scene. The market is not only a place of trade or commerce but also a cultural hub where folk activities occur, as shown by the folk verse: “On the tenth day, visit Chuong market/Watch human chess and the rice-cooking competition”. This illustrates that the market is also a community gathering spot where traditional folk games are preserved and promoted. 

thuongSignature dishes: At Chuong market days, tourists can enjoy typical local dishes of the Red River Delta, including steamed rice roll (banh cuon), deep-fried glutinous rice ball (banh ran), sticky rice cake (banh chung), glutinous rice cake (banh nep), rice cake (banh te), and other traditional food specialties.

thuongAll of these cultural heritage forms together create a colorful portrait of Chuong Village, a community that is not only rich in tradition but also full of profound cultural values that deserve to be explored and preserved.

Chuong village’s conical hat craft in the era of global integration

thuongIn the context of deeper international integration and rapid technological advances, conical hat making in Chuong village faces both significant opportunities and challenges, including pressure from industrial goods, low incomes, and the gradual decline of traditional skills, difficulties in finding markets for products, and a lack of materials.

thuongIn order to preserve and develop the traditional craft, Chuong Village has been making considerable changes and efforts, such as:

 thuongCultural Tourism Development: Chuong Village has taken advantage of its long-standing traditional craft village to boost tourism. Tourists can directly experience the conical hat-making process, the communal house, the pagoda, and the conical hat village, thereby gaining deeper insight into local culture and people. 

thuongProduct and design diversification: To cater to the modern tastes of the market, Chuong Village craftsmen have continuously innovated and diversified the designs and sizes of the hats, ranging from traditional conical hats to hats with modern decorative patterns, even oversized hats used for display. This has helped transform conical hats from practical items into unique decorative products and souvenirs.
thuongModern technology and new distribution channel application: In spite of traditional craft, the use of modern marketing and distribution channels, such as social media,  e-commerce platforms, etc. has helped Chuong Village conical hats reach a large number of clients, particularly the young generation and foreign tourists.

thuongArtisan’s efforts: Artisans like Ms. Ta Thu Huong, Mr. Le Van Tuy, and others in the village have made remarkable contributions to preserving and developing the craft. They not only focus on production and design improvement but also strive to expand the market and open hands-on workshops for tourists. They are also passionate about passing down the craft to younger generations.

thuongGovernment support policies: Supportive policies from local authorities and government play an important role in preserving and advancing the traditional craft of hat-making. These include capital, human resource training, and trade promotion activities. 

thuongChuong Village is not merely a craft village but a living cultural heritage of Hanoi. From a history spanning centuries to its unique cultural values and contemporary appearance, the village still holds a special place, attracting both Vietnamese and international tourists. Preserving and promoting the art of conical hat making means safeguarding a part of the nation’s soul, so that conical hats are not only practical items but also symbols of Vietnamese cultural identity in the era of global integration./.