TL;DR: The Tho are one of Vietnam's 54 recognised ethnic groups, speaking a language of the Việt Mường group (Austroasiatic family) and living mostly in the western districts of Nghệ An (before July 2025) and part of Thanh Hoá. They worship many spirits and deities, especially those tied to warfare and land clearing, alongside ancestor worship, midwife rites for sick children and spirit rites for adults. Life-cycle ceremonies such as marriage, childbirth and funerals, plus festivals, are central cultural practices tied to the lunar calendar and local custom.
Who are the Tho people and what is their origin?
The Tho are one of the 54 ethnic groups recognised in Vietnam, with the self-name Tho. They are also known by other names such as Người Nhà lang, Muong, Con Kha and Xá Lá Vàng. Their local subgroups include Keo, Mon, Cuoi, Ho, Đan Lai, Ly Hà and Tày Poọng.
According to the Survey of 53 Ethnic Minorities of 1 April 2019, the Tho population is 91,430. Earlier, in the 2009 Population and Housing Census, the figure was 74,458.
Historically, the Tho's present homeland was a meeting point of migration flows. Due to historical upheavals in earlier centuries, groups of Muong from western Thanh Hoá moved south and met Viet people from the coastal districts of Diễn Châu, Quỳnh Lưu and Thanh Chương moving up, blending with local residents who may have been of ancient Viet origin. These uprooted people, sharing the same circumstances, gradually merged into one common Tho community.
Where do the Tho live?
The Tho live mainly in the western districts of Nghệ An province. They live in crowded villages, mostly in a compact pattern. Besides Nghệ An, the list of Vietnam's ethnic groups also records Tho residence in Thanh Hoá.
The traditional Tho house is a stilt house walled with bamboo matting or wood. In some areas, houses are built in the cot ngoam style. Today, their housing is shifting from stilt houses to ground houses like those of the Viet in the region.
Which language group does the Tho language belong to?
The Tho language belongs to the Việt Mường group of the Austroasiatic family. The Tho have no writing system of their own; only some know Chinese characters. Today, Vietnamese is widely used and taught in the community.
In folk arts, the Tho repertoire is fairly diverse. Children's songs are still passed down, and folk verses and proverbs are very rich.
What are the Tho's production activities and economic life like?
The Tho live mainly by swidden farming, with a small number practising wet rice cultivation. Whether farming swiddens or wet fields, their cultivation level is quite advanced, shown in skilled soil preparation using the swidden plough called "ca non" and in intensive cropping.
Staple crops are mainly rice, followed by cassava and maize. Among the Keo, Mon and Cuoi groups, hemp is widely grown and holds an important place in economic life. Fishing is also well developed. Hunting and gathering, though only developed in some areas, contribute significantly to easing life's difficulties.
In diet, the Tho once ate mainly glutinous rice, but most now eat ordinary rice. In lean seasons they eat tubers, vegetables and forest fruits. On festivals and Tet they make banh chung, banh giay and banh gai.
For transport, the Tho mainly use two methods. Small items are carried by hand or in baskets on a carrying pole. Heavy loads are pulled by buffalo or ox carts, whose frames and wheels are entirely made of wood.
What is notable about traditional Tho clothing?
Men dress similarly to the Viet, with white trousers with a rolled waistband, a long black tunic and a purple gauze turban.
Women in Lâm La wear black cotton skirts embroidered with two coloured threads from waist to hem, and five-panel brown or white blouses. In Quỳ Hợp, women's skirts are usually bought or exchanged from the Thai. Skirts are of indigo-dyed cotton, woven with horizontal stripes that form parallel rings around the body when worn. Blouses are white with trimmed collars and narrow sleeves like Viet blouses. Women all wear square white scarves like the Muong and mourn with long white scarves like the Viet.
A notable point is that Tho customs are very diverse, sometimes contradictory. In many other groups a white scarf signals mourning, but among the Tho and Muong, white scarves are worn daily to enhance the beauty of the outfit.
Tho social organisation and marriage
The smallest administrative unit among the Tho was formerly the village, headed by a village chief. The chief was re-elected annually and was responsible for urging corvee and tax duties and settling matters within the village.
Small patriarchal families are the norm. Relations within the family and village are mutually supportive and affectionate. Although living intermingled with many ethnic groups, marriage between the Tho and neighbouring groups seems insignificant, while marriages between Tho subgroups have no distinction.
As for marriage, the custom of night courting prevailed among Tho groups in Nghĩa Đàn, Tân Kỳ and Quỳ Hợp but was absent among Tho groups in Tương Dương and Con Cuông. From these nights, couples got to know each other and built families. Tho weddings go through many steps. Usually the groom's family must bring a buffalo, 100 white silver coins, 30 squares of cloth, 6 baskets of glutinous rice and a pig. Many areas also have the custom of uxorilocal residence.
What does Tho worship practice include?
The Tho worship many kinds of spirits and deities, especially those linked to warfare and land clearing. Within the family, besides ancestor worship, they hold rites for the midwife deity when children are sick and spirit rites for adults at festivals, Tet and times of illness.
Wandering souls not worshipped indoors are honoured with shrines outdoors. Places honouring girls who died before adulthood are marked by wooden posts.
The Tho follow the lunar calendar in worship and daily life.
Life-cycle rites: birth, marriage and funerals
For childbirth, three days after birth a midwife rite is held to name the child. The mother must observe taboos for one month, during which strangers may not enter the house.
For funerals, ceremonies are quite elaborate and costly. In the past some families slaughtered up to 12 buffaloes, and the deceased lay in state for weeks. A Tho coffin is a single log, hollowed out like a boat or a rice-pounding trough. When placed, the foot end faces downstream. After burial, rites are held at 30, 50 and 100 days.
Notably, many groups have the custom of making a funeral house for the dead in the afterlife, either burning it or leaving it intact. The Tho do not burn it but place the funeral house right beside the grave.
Tho festivals and folk games
Festivals and Tet are important times in Tho cultural life. On these days they make banh chung, banh giay and banh gai, and perform spirit rites for adults.
Folk games include tug of war, lion dance and Chinese chess. Children enjoy shuttlecock kicking and spinning tops. These are community activities tied to festivals, helping preserve the group's traditional culture.
Summary table of basic facts about the Tho people
| Item | Information |
|---|---|
| Self-name | Tho |
| Other names | Người Nhà lang, Muong, Con Kha, Xá Lá Vàng |
| Local subgroups | Keo, Mon, Cuoi, Ho, Đan Lai, Ly Hà, Tày Poọng |
| Population | 91,430 (Survey of 53 Ethnic Minorities, 1 April 2019) |
| Language | Việt Mường group (Austroasiatic family) |
| Residence | Western districts of Nghệ An, Thanh Hoá |
| Traditional housing | Stilt house walled with bamboo matting or wood; some in cot ngoam style |
| Main production | Swidden farming, some wet rice, fishing |
| Main beliefs | Worship of spirits, deities, ancestors, midwife deity, spirit rites |
| Calendar | Lunar |
| Folk games | Tug of war, lion dance, Chinese chess, shuttlecock kicking, spinning tops |
The Tho's place among Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups
Under Decision No. 121-TCTK/PPCD of 2 March 1979, Vietnam recognises 54 ethnic groups. The Tho are one of these, ranked 21st in the list of Vietnam's ethnic groups.
Ethnic minorities today live across all regions of the country but mainly in high mountains, border areas and remote regions. The Tho, together with other groups in the North Central region, contribute to the cultural diversity of this land.
