Their houses that are raised on wooden stilts or poles about six feet off the ground with an entrance veranda. The dwellings are rectangular, divided by shoulder-high bamboo screens into separate rooms. Each has an altar in honor of the ancestors.  

       Until the 1945 revolution, Muong villages were ruled by a headman who had absolute authority. These headmen sometimes abused and took advantage of the people. The last half-century under Socialism has forced the Muong to change nearly every aspect of their society. The once independent Muong farmers now work on "collective (community) farms," sharing equally in production. This has met with no great success, and current trends are to emphasize free markets and a gradual return to independent ownership, with some cooperation. The cooperatives are ruled by a committee selected by the government. Today, peasants pay a tax of between 7 and 10 percent of their produce to the state.

       Muong societies are strongly patriarchal. Young girls do choose their own mates, but allow their parents to find them a husband. This normally works well, but there are songs and poems in the Muong culture that reflect the girl’s sadness at bad marriages that had been arranged by parents against her wishes. Casualties from the series of wars in past decades have created an imbalance of widows in Muong society, which puts stress on families and their traditions.

        A rich collection of Muong songs, poems, stories and legends exists. It includes The Birth of the Earth and Water, telling of the Muong creation legend. Other works celebrate Muong heroes, often with a theme of  love conquering adversity. The vi dum is a song sung alternately in six to eight word verses. Muong popular literature and arts also include dialogue duets, proverbs, lullabies and children's songs. The gong is a peculiar musical instrument of the Muong. Other instruments include the two-stringed violin, flutes, drums and panpipes. The Muong of Vin Phu province create a melody called dam Muong by tapping bamboo pipes on a wooden floor.

        Ceremonies are an important part of Muong life. Weddings are always significant events. The Muong custom of marriage is similar to the Kinh (including a plighting ceremony, betrothal ceremony, wedding and a ceremony of fetching the bride from her parent’s home). When a woman is giving birth, her family ceremonially surrounds the main ladder of her house with a bamboo fence to prevent outsiders from entering. The newborn child is not given a name immediately. The naming usually waits until the baby is one year old. The Muong funerals also involve numerous specific rituals. The Muong hold many ceremonies on an annual cycle, to include: Going to the Fields (khuong mua), Praying for Rain (in the fourth lunar month), Washing Rice Leaves (in the seventh and eight lunar months), and the New Rice Ritual. 

  Livelihood        Agriculture, particularly field crop production, is the foundation of the Muong economy. But gathering, fishing, hunting, breeding livestock, and making handicrafts are also important. The farmers mainly raise wet rice on terraced land, watered by small streams. Dry rice is also grown by using the "slash and burn" method of cultivation.  They breed buffaloes and cattle, but the Muong usually let their buffaloes and cattle roam freely in the forests, feeding themselves. In the past they could not do this because of the danger of predators, but these have now been hunted to extinction in most areas. The animals are only rounded up when needed for food or to sacrifice in a religious ceremony. Pigs and poultry are also raised.

        Foods typically gathered from the forest include mushrooms, honey, cinnamon, lumber, rattan, bamboo and medicinal plants. The Muong take these items and use them to trade with people on the plains. Many of their towns have become trading centers. Fishing is also important and fish is a basic food item.  Handicrafts such as weaving, basketry and silk spinning are often practiced. Muong women are skillful weavers. Other crafts include beekeeping, and furniture making.

08/19/2003