TL;DR: In Nghe An, ancestor worship extends to the whole lineage and is performed at the lineage hall, with a yết cáo (announcement rite) the day before and the main offering the next day; lineage halls also hold altars to the Quốc công, the văn chỉ and the village Thành hoàng (survey of five lineages, 2023 to 2024). Kim Lũy village worships three deities in three temples, now carried together to đền Trang on the 12th and 13th days of the second lunar month. đền Cuông worships An Dương Vương, with a festival on the 15th day of the second lunar month. None of the three studies compares Nghe An with another province, so it is not yet possible to say which of these things exists only in Nghe An.
Where and when does ancestor worship in Nghe An take place?
According to a survey by Nguyen Thi Thu Lan (2026) among five family lineages in the districts of Nam Dan, Hung Nguyen, Dien Chau, Nghi Loc and Quynh Luu (administrative units as they stood before July 2025), ancestor worship in Nghe An does not stop at the individual household but extends to the whole lineage, and is usually performed at the lineage hall[1]. The ritual has two main parts. The yết cáo (announcement rite) is held on the afternoon or evening of the day before the main day: the lineage head or a representative offers incense, wine and tea to report to the ancestors, the local Thành hoàng (tutelary deity) and the Thổ công (earth god). The main offering is held on the main day, when descendants living far away also return: incense is offered, the chúc văn (eulogy) is read, and offering trays are presented. The dates mentioned in the article are the 14th day of the first lunar month, the full moon of the tenth lunar month, and the death anniversary of the founding ancestor[1].
Some lineages still keep the custom of carrying or shouldering offering trays, processing with the ancestral tablet, or beating the drum for the ritual; in the evening some places hold cầu an (prayer for peace and safety) and cầu siêu (prayer for the deceased) ceremonies outdoors[1]. The author observes that rituals here are simple and value sincerity over formality. That is an observation drawn from the five lineages surveyed, not a measurement for the whole province.
Who is worshipped in the lineage halls of Nghe An?
Also according to that survey, lineage halls in Nghe An are usually built in the three-bay, two-wing style with âm dương (yin-yang) tiles. Besides the ancestral altar, a lineage hall also has an altar to the Quốc công (those with merit to the country), an altar to the văn chỉ (those with merit in learning) and an altar to the village Thành hoàng[1].
The article states that 85% of the lineages have a lineage hall, and 35% of those halls are ranked historical and cultural relics[1]. The survey sample covers only five lineages and 25 interviewees, and the article does not specify what base these two percentages are calculated on, so they should be read only as indicators.
Which deities does Kim Lũy village in Nghe An worship?
Chu Xuân Giao (2025) studied Kim Lũy village in Dien Kim commune, Dien Chau district (administrative units as they stood before July 2025). The village has three temples: đền Cả, đền Trang and đền Cá Ông at the sea-facing village gate. The đình (communal house) is where meetings and common ceremonies are held, while the deities reside permanently in the three temples, each keeping its own tablet, statue and sắc phong (royal edict)[2].
After 1945 the village's places of worship were gradually dismantled, the thần tích (deity record) was lost, and no archival copy could be found. The village still keeps 18 original sắc phong, but for many decades the names and deeds of the deities could not be identified. Only in early 2020, after a search by three generations of village intellectuals, were the origins of the deities clarified[2].
According to the sắc phong, the deity of đền Cả is called only Bản thổ linh quan and is not tied to the name of any historical figure; the deity of đền Trang bears the title Đô Thái úy Thành Quốc công (edict of the 44th year of Cảnh Hưng, that is 1783); the deity of đền Cá Ông is Đông Hải thái thú Đại Ngư ông (edict of the 2nd year of Khải Định, that is 1917)[2]. The writer Sơn Tùng, who compiled the transcription and translation of the sắc phong, once held that đền Cả worshipped a deity from the time of Lý Nam Đế and đền Trang a deity from the Lam Sơn uprising; the author of the study notes that the sắc phong of đền Cả names no historical figure.
Today đền Trang has been rebuilt and is the common place of worship for the deities of all three former temples. Every year on the 12th and 13th days of the second lunar month, palanquins bearing the deities are carried from the old foundations of đền Cả and đền Cá Ông to đền Trang, and carried back when the festival ends[2].
What is notable about đền Cuông and the worship of An Dương Vương in Nghe An?
Vũ Thị Nhung (2025) conducted field surveys from 2023 to 2025 and recorded at least 17 sites worshipping An Dương Vương in seven provinces and cities, of which Nghe An has two[3]. The most prominent is đền Cuông on the slope of Mount Mộ Dạ (An Chau commune), facing the sea, recognised as a national historical and cultural relic in 1975. Behind the temple a path leads to the summit, where there is a temple to Mỵ Châu and a statue of Cao Lỗ. The đền Cuông festival is held on the 15th day of the second lunar month, with offerings, palanquin processions and folk performances[3].
Legend says Mount Mộ Dạ is where the story of An Dương Vương ends. According to Vũ Thị Nhung, the worship of the king runs from Cổ Loa (Hanoi) through Sầm Sơn (Thanh Hoa) to Mộ Dạ, forming an inter-regional network of worship, whereas many beliefs honouring human deities in Vietnam are tied to only one locality[3].
Table: three worship practices in Nghe An with survey sources
| Practice | Who is worshipped | Festival date (lunar calendar) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancestral offering at the lineage hall | The founding ancestor and forebears of the lineage | yết cáo the day before, main offering on the main day; dates mentioned: 14th of the first month, full moon of the tenth month, death anniversary of the founding ancestor | Nguyen Thi Thu Lan (2026) |
| đền Trang festival, Kim Lũy village | Deities of the three former temples: Bản thổ linh quan, Thành Quốc công, Đại Ngư ông | 12th and 13th of the second month | Chu Xuân Giao (2025) |
| đền Cuông festival | An Dương Vương | 15th of the second month | Vũ Thị Nhung (2025) |
Are these things found only in Nghe An?
There is not enough evidence to say so. Ancestor worship and village deity worship are common foundations among the Vietnamese.
Phan Kế Bính (1915) wrote of the Vietnamese in general that the custom of serving ancestors is very devout, and regarded it as a heart that does not forget its roots[4]. Đinh Khắc Thuân (2014) holds that the worship of the Thành hoàng in Vietnam has its roots in the worship of the Thành hoàng in China.
What the three studies above record in Nghe An is this: lineage halls have additional altars to the Quốc công, the văn chỉ and the village Thành hoàng; one village worships at the same time a local deity, a Quốc công and the whale; đền Cuông is the final point of the network worshipping An Dương Vương. None of these studies compares with another province.
What does this article not yet cover?
The article does not cover the beliefs of the ethnic groups in the mountainous areas of Nghe An, nor does it discuss đền Cờn and many other temples and đình, because no source with the full text was available for those parts.
