How do they live? The Sila live in
small villages near the Da River in Lai Chau province. Like many ethnic
minorities, their houses are usually built on slopes and hillsides. In
the past, they usually used stilt houses, but in recent years, most houses
have been built on the ground. Their homes are constructed of wood and
bamboo, with thatch roofs, though sometimes more modern roofing materials
are used.
The life of the Si La is still hard. The remoteness, the lack of food and clothing, the increase of diseases like goiter and malaria, high mortality and lack of access to technology have made the Si La's life exceptionally difficult.
Houses. Sila houses usually
are built on the ground. Houses have an entrance door in the front of the
house, usually on the downhill side. There are two main rooms, with two
more lean-to rooms on the side of the house. The altar to the ancestors is
always placed in an inside room. The central room has the door, which faces the yard. A
fireplace is found in the central room, as well as in the kitchen. The
fireplace in the central room is made of three large stones and is sacred to the
ancestors.
Crafts. Most Sila women are good at spinning,
and weaving. Men work as farmers and carpenters and may hire
themselves out to work in other communities.
Society. Sila society is based upon the nuclear family, which is patriarchal. Only sons can inherit
houses and other assets. Two clans are found, the Hu and Po. The
oldest man in each clan is called the Lulu (judge), and officiates at weddings
and funerals. The cat is a taboo animal for both clans, though only the Hu
(in the past) refrained from eating Tiger meat. Their refusal to eat cats
marks them as strange by the other people groups in the area.
Marriage. Members of the same family
or clan may not intermarry. However, cousins are sometimes allowed to
marry as long as they do not have the same family name. The wedding
is celebrated in two ceremonies, one year apart. At first, the young
couple go to live with the husband's family. After the second and more
important ceremony, the newlyweds customarily live with the
brides's family
At the second rite, the family of the
groom must give wedding presents to the bride's family . Many other customs are similar to those of neighboring
ethnic groups. Pre-marital intimacy is fairly common.
Childbirth. Mothers give birth at home,
usually in a seated position. The
placenta is considered to be important, so it is placed in a bamboo tube with a
covering of ashes, and is kept in a corner of the kitchen until the day that
the child is named. An old woman in the village is given the honor of
naming the child, since a name-giver of advanced age is thought to give the child a long life. The given name of a boy is
always preceded by the word Cha, and girls receive the prefix
Co. The name giver is then allowed to wrap the bamboo tube (containing
the placenta) in banana leaves and bury it. Three days later, a ceremony
is held to pray for the soul of the baby.
Song. The Sila have a well-developed
folklore in the form of epic songs, proverbs, and legends. Like many other
tribal peoples in the area, young people sing alternate songs, with one verse
sung by the boys and an answering verse sung by the girls. These alternate
songs honor the virtue of faithfulness, love, and beauty and are often featured
at weddings. Weddings are also a
time for youngsters to join in the singing and play games to amuse themselves.
Livelihood. The
Sila have, in recent years, adopted the practice of growing wet rice in terraced fields where they practice
typical paddy agriculture by transplanting rice seedlings. They have learned to
raise water buffalo as draft animals. But they
also farm hillside fields. Besides upland rice, and corn
(maize) they grow rye, beans, gourds, sweet potatoes and other
vegetables. They sometimes burn the upland hillside fields and then break up the soil with
small hand tools and plant seeds in a hole made with a digging stick. But
they also use ploughs and harrows to farm other areas. They do raise domestic livestock
such as chickens, other poultry, pigs, and horses. They also
hunt for wild game and gather wild plants (mostly vegetables, tubers, and bamboo
shoots) to supplement their diet. In fact, most of their protein comes from
fishing and hunting. The staple foods of their daily diet are sticky rice and
vegetable soup. They often use burden baskets for transport, and
make use of rafts along the Da river.
09/07/2004