Lễ cúng xóm (village communal offering)
Also called: Tất niên xóm, Cúng tất niên xóm, Cúng xóm đầu năm, Chạp miếu, Cúng Kỳ yên, Chạp miễu, Cúng đáo lệ
- Work and trade
Culture and belief A record of custom.
Cúng xóm is the year-end offering of a xóm, a residential quarter: first the land is offered to, in thanks to the deities and the forebears, then comes the communal meal of the neighbours. The press describes this custom most often in Đà Nẵng, Quảng Nam and reports it as widespread in the central and southern regions.
At a glance
- When it is held
- Late twelfth lunar month (year-end of the xóm); in some places offered at the start of the year
- For whom
- Thổ địa, Thành hoàng, the forebears who opened the land and founded the village; fallen soldiers and the deceased of the xóm
Each family and each region may do it differently.
The offering tray
Region:
Nationwide
- When
- End of the twelfth lunar month, before Tết
- Where the offerings are set
- A convenient place in the xóm, the residential quarter
- Who makes the offering
- The eldest, most respected person in the xóm presides
| Offering | Vegetarian or not |
|---|---|
| Fruit | |
| Mâm ngũ quả (five-fruit tray) | Vegetarian |
| Incense, lamps, candles | |
| Incense, flowers, lamps and candles | |
| Votive paper | |
| Paper money and votive paper | |
| Betel leaves and areca nuts | |
| Betel leaves and areca nuts | Vegetarian |
| Tea, rice wine, water | |
| Wine, tea | Vegetarian |
| Xôi (steamed sticky rice) and cakes | |
| bánh chưng (square sticky rice cake) (northern region) or bánh tét (cylindrical sticky rice cake) (southern region) | Meat or fish |
| Meat and savoury dishes | |
| A tray of savoury dishes or a vegetarian tray | Meat or fish |
Central
South Central Coast, Đà Nẵng, Quảng Nam, Folk practice
- When
- Late twelfth lunar month: Phước Hưng village offers on the 23rd, the Nhỏ shrine of Hòa Mỹ village on the 24th, the Tam vị shrine of Hòa Phú village on the 25th; residential quarters choose Saturday or Sunday to suit every household. Formerly there was a custom not to hold the year-end offering after the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month. In some places the xóm offering is held after the start of spring.
- Where the offerings are set
- In a village: at the village shrine (miếu). In a town: the offering table is placed in the middle of the road or at a junction in the residential area
- Who makes the offering
- The chủ bái (chánh bái) of the xóm, a man in áo dài and khăn đóng; the households contribute money and labour
| Offering | Vegetarian or not | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Meat and savoury dishes | ||
| A pig's head | Meat or fish | Group 7 of Khuê Trung |
| Xôi (steamed sticky rice) and cakes | ||
| Xôi (steamed sticky rice), chè (sweet soup) | Vegetarian | |
| Vegetarian dishes | ||
| Sweet potato, taro | Vegetarian | Produce of the farming household |
| Incense, lamps, candles | ||
| Incense and lamps, fruit, tea | Vegetarian | |
Steps of the rite
Used across Vietnam, Folk practice
- Offering to the land, in thanks to Thổ địa, Thành hoàng and the forebears who opened the land and founded the village
- Remembering fallen soldiers and the deceased
- The presiding person reads the prayer text and bows to pray for the whole xóm
- The year-end feast is laid out, speeches are given, and everyone raises a glass together
South Central Coast, Đà Nẵng, Quảng Nam, Folk practice
- The group leader or village head goes to each household to call for contributions
- The women cook the offering tray and the communal meal
- The offerings are laid out, the chủ bái prays, and in the prayer he names the old land plots of the xóm (such as "Đồng Bé xứ", "Bàu Đưng xứ")
- In a village: people are assigned to tend the incense and lamps at the places of worship during the year
- The whole xóm sits down to the year-end meal
Communities and regions
Sources
- Văn khấn tất niên xóm, tổ dân phố (hoatieu.vn)
- Cúng xóm tất niên (baophapluat.vn)
- Tất niên xóm (baophapluat.vn)
- Cúng xóm cuối năm (daidoanket.vn)
- Tá thổ (baoquangnam.vn)
Part of the open datasets Types of Vietnamese offering rites and Vietnamese offering procedures, licensed CC BY 4.0.
More ritesDeath anniversaries, Tết, the home, business, the life cycle, village and ethnic rites.Open