Giỗ tổ dòng họ (clan ancestor death anniversary), tế tổ (ancestor sacrifice) at the clan temple
Also called: Chạp họ, Giỗ họ, Hợp kỵ, Hiệp kỵ, Cúng việc lề (Nam Bộ), Giỗ hội (Nam Bộ), Chạp mả (Quảng Bình)
- Ancestors and death anniversaries
Culture and belief A record of custom.
By custom, the clan ancestor death anniversary is a common ceremony of the whole clan at the từ đường (clan temple), led by the clan head, with descendants of each branch contributing offerings and then holding a clan meeting and sharing the lộc (blessed food). Some accounts record that the clan giỗ is for ancestors from the fifth generation upward, while the four recent generations are commemorated at each household.
At a glance
- When it is held
- The death anniversary of the founding ancestor, which is also the joint death anniversary of the forebears; each clan has its own day. In Nam Bộ there is the custom of cúng việc lề (offering for the communal affair) around Tết; in the Quảng Trạch and Ba Đồn areas, chạp mả (grave-tending) is held in the twelfth lunar month
- For whom
- The founding ancestor and the forebears of the clan; the prayer text includes bows to the clan's Bà Cô Tổ (ancestral aunt) and Ông Mãnh (ancestral uncle)
- Where
- Lineage hall, Grave
Each family and each region may do it differently.
The offering tray
Incense, lamps, candles
- Hương (incense sticks)
Flowers
- Hoa cúc (chrysanthemum)
Tea, rice wine, water
- Nước sạch (clean water)
- Rượu trắng (white rice liquor)
Fruit
- Mâm ngũ quả (five-fruit tray)
Xôi (steamed sticky rice) and cakes
- Bánh kẹo (cakes and sweets)
- Oản (molded sticky rice offering cake)
Meat and savoury dishes
- A tray of savory dishes: boiled chicken or roast pork, xôi gấc (red sticky rice)
- The three-animal sacrifice, or an ox or a pig depending on the size of the clan
Betel leaves and areca nuts
- Trầu cau (betel leaf and areca nut)
Votive paper
- Vàng mã (votive paper offerings)
Nationwide
- When
- The clan's ancestor death anniversary day; some clans hold it for two to three days, with the first day for the cáo (announcement) offering
- Where the offerings are set
- The từ đường (clan temple), the clan temple; on the cáo day there is also an offering at the ancestral graves
- Who makes the offering
- The clan head or the clan council; the ceremony is funded by contributions from the households in the clan
| Offering | Vegetarian or not | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Flowers | ||
| Fresh chrysanthemums, a tray of five fruits, incense | Vegetarian | |
| Betel leaves and areca nuts | ||
| Fresh areca nuts, green betel leaves | Vegetarian | |
| Tea, rice wine, water | ||
| Plain water, white rice wine, cakes and sweets, phẩm oản (ceremonial cakes) | Vegetarian | |
| Meat and savoury dishes | ||
| A tray of savory dishes: boiled chicken or roast pork, xôi gấc (red sticky rice) | Meat or fish | Depending on regional custom; Buddhist households make vegetarian offerings |
| The three-animal sacrifice, or an ox or a pig depending on the size of the clan | Meat or fish | Phan Kế Bính records this for the sacrifice to the founding ancestor on the death anniversary |
| Votive paper | ||
| Vàng mã (votive paper) | Burned after the ceremony | |
Central
North Central Coast, Quảng Trạch, Ba Đồn, Quảng Bình, Folk practice
- When
- In the twelfth lunar month, each village has its own day; every village holds it for two days
- Where the offerings are set
- The ancestral graves, the clan temple, then each household
- Who makes the offering
- The men of the clan; in Thanh Bình village, by old custom women were not allowed to touch the arranging of offerings
| Offering | Vegetarian or not | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Meat and savoury dishes | ||
| A pig slaughtered according to each clan | Meat or fish | Thanh Bình village, Quảng Xuân commune |
| Fruit | ||
| Flowers and fruit | Vegetarian | |
South
Southern Vietnam (Nam Bộ, no finer detail in the source), Long An, Tiền Giang, Đồng Tháp Mười, Folk practice
- When
- Each lineage has one day, usually before and after Tết: Long An the 25th of the twelfth lunar month; Tiền Giang the 19th of the first lunar month or the 19th of the third lunar month; Đồng Tháp Mười holds the offering in the flood season
- Where the offerings are set
- Outdoors: on a riverbank or in the yard, laid out on banana leaves or lotus leaves, later on mats and chiếu (woven mats) on the ground; not offered indoors, not set on tables and chairs
- Who makes the offering
- A respected person in the lineage is assigned, much like the trưởng họ, trưởng tộc in the North
| Offering | Vegetarian or not | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Xôi (steamed sticky rice) and cakes | ||
| Cháo ám (snakehead fish porridge with the whole fish) | Meat or fish | Required. The fish is scaled with a bamboo knife |
| Meat and savoury dishes | ||
| Cá nướng trui (fish grilled whole over straw), mắm sống (raw fish sauce) | Meat or fish | |
| Thủ vĩ lợn (pig's head and tail), tam sên (three offerings), a plate of raw meat | Meat or fish | The author saw this at one clan in Bến Lức |
| Vegetarian dishes | ||
| Wild vegetables boiled or left raw | Vegetarian | Rau choại (a wild vegetable), cải trời (wild mustard greens), rau má (pennywort), bắp chuối (banana blossom)... |
| Other | ||
| Items particular to each clan: straw effigies, pieces of elephant skin, bows and arrows | Optional. Each clan has its own convention, as a sign for recognizing kin | |
| Objects | ||
| Cups made from coconut shells, chopsticks of bamboo sticks | ||
Steps of the rite
Used across Vietnam, Folk practice
- PreparationCáo day: descendants gather at the ancestral temple, arrange the altar, hang lanterns and flags; make offerings at the ancestral graves; prepare a tray of rice for the cáo sacrifice
- Laying out the offeringsArrange the offering tray on the ancestral altar
- Reciting the prayerThe chủ tế (chief officiant, the clan head) sacrifices to the ancestors, reads the clan history and the prayer text; descendants stand behind and listen
- Lighting incenseThe branches of the clan offer incense
- Burning votive paperBurn votive paper, conclude the ceremony, hold the clan meeting: review clan affairs, encourage learning
- Sharing the blessed offeringsShare the lộc (blessed food); each person leaving receives a portion of the ancestral lộc
North Central Coast, Quảng Trạch, Ba Đồn, Quảng Bình, Folk practice
- Reciting the prayerFirst day: chạp mả (grave-tending) of the clan, offerings to the village's founding ancestor and to the lineage; some villages also offer to the Thành hoàng (village tutelary deity) and the khai canh (land-clearing founder)
- Reciting the prayerThe following day: chạp mả (grave-tending) in each family
- PreparationIn Thanh Bình: men rise at 3 a.m. to slaughter a pig and carry in procession the spirits of the 12 khai canh (land-clearing founders) of the 12 clans; afterward the clan branches go to the sea to pray
Southern Vietnam (Nam Bộ, no finer detail in the source), Long An, Tiền Giang, Đồng Tháp Mười, Folk practice
- The offerings are laid out in the open air on leaves
- The person assigned makes the offering and prays to the ancestors who cleared the land
- If the clan has effigies, they are burned after the offering
Good to know
- Phan Kế Bính records that a clan without an ancestral hall builds an open-air altar with a stone stele bearing the ancestors' names and sacrifices there; some clans let descendants take turns keeping the ancestral worship in their own houses
- Phan Kế Bính records that a clan with ritual fields (ruộng kỵ) uses their yield to pay for the sacrifices; a clan without them has each household contribute money and rice for every sacrifice
What is avoided
North Central Coast, Quảng Trạch, Ba Đồn, Quảng Bình, Folk practice
- People taking partOne may not return for Tết, but for chạp mả descendants living far away must arrange to return
Southern Vietnam (Nam Bộ, no finer detail in the source), Long An, Tiền Giang, Đồng Tháp Mười, Folk practice
- No offering inside the house, no laying out on tables and chairs
The custom
Phan Kế Bính (1915) records that the descendants of a clan jointly build a hall for the founding ancestor, called từ đường; every year on the founding ancestor's death anniversary the whole clan gathers there to sacrifice and then share a feast, and branches have their own halls called bản chi từ đường.
Questions
When is the clan anniversary?
The clan anniversary falls on the death anniversary of the founding ancestor, so each clan has its own day (Phan Kế Bính, 1915); he notes another gathering in the twelfth lunar month to sacrifice to all the clan's forebears. For example, Sài Gòn Giải Phóng describes one branch of the Trần clan holding it on the 14th and 15th of the eleventh lunar month.
What is a joint clan anniversary (hợp kỵ)?
Hợp kỵ is the day the whole clan makes offerings together to its forebears: one clan-hall prayer text says the main anniversary of the founding ancestor is also the joint anniversary of the forebears. Phan Kế Bính (1915) records that when sacrificing to the founding ancestor, the ancestors of the various branches are invited to share the offering.
What does the clan ancestor anniversary consist of?
Sài Gòn Giải Phóng describes one clan branch's anniversary over two to three days: on the announcement day descendants return to the hall to decorate it, make offerings at the ancestral graves and prepare a tray for the announcement rite; on the main day the chief officiant performs the sacrifice to the rhythm of the drum, reads the text, each branch offers incense, then the clan meets, and everyone leaves with a share of the ancestral lộc. Phan Kế Bính (1915) records that after the sacrifice the whole clan shares a feast.
Communities and regions
Sources
- Bài văn khấn cúng giỗ tổ dòng họ (docungtamlinh.com.vn)
- Văn khấn nhà thờ họ (hoatieu.vn)
- Giỗ tổ (sggp.org.vn)
- Việt Nam phong tục, Phần I, mục IV. Phụng sự tổ tôn, Phan Kế Bính, 1915 (vi.wikisource.org)
- Sông Gianh mùa chạp mả (sggp.org.vn)
- Gia phả ngầm ở Nam bộ (plo.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