VIETNAM NATIONALUNIVERSITY, HANOI

INSTITUTE OF VIETNAMESE STUDIES AND DEVELOPMENT SCIENCES







NGUYEN THI THUY HANG




NOM VILLAGE: TRADITION AND RENOVATION




MASTER THESIS

Major: Vietnamese Studies





Hanoi, 2013

VIETNAM NATIONALUNIVERSITY, HANOI

INSTITUTE OF VIETNAMESE STUDIES AND DEVELOPMENT SCIENCES





NGUYEN THI THUY HANG



NOM VILLAGE: TRADITION AND RENOVATION




SUMMARY OF MASTER THESIS



Major: Vietnamese Studies
Code:60220113



Supervisor: Associate Prof. Dr. VU VAN QUAN



Hanoi, 2013






CONTENT

INTRODUCTION 3
1. Rationale 3
2. Literature 4
3. The purposes of the research 7
4. The subjects and scope of the research 8
5. Sources of materials 8
6. Methodology 9
7. Contributions 10

8. The structure of the research 10
Chapter 1: The natural conditions, the process of formation and development 11
1.1 Natural conditions 11
1.1.1. Geographical location 11
1.1.2Climate 13
1.1.3.Land 15
1.1.4. Hydrology 15
1.1.5. Fauna and flora 16
1.2. The process of formation and development 17
1.2.1. Formation 17
1.2.2.Development 19
1.2.3. Inhabitants 24
Chapter 2: Economic Situation 31
2.1. The economic situation before 1945 31
2.1.1. The issue of land tenure and the economic situation of agriculture . 31
2.1.2. The commercial economic situation 40
2.2. The economic situation from 1945 to 1986 46


2.3. The economic situation since 1986 49
2.3.1. The agricultural situation 49
2.3.2. Handicraft situation 52
2.3.3. Commercial services 53
Chapter 3: Social situations and culturallife 57
3.1. Social situations 57
3.1.1. Social organizations and forms of community connection 57
3.1.2. Education 71
3.1.3. Health, public health care and environmental hygiene 73
3.1.4. Labor and employment 76
3.2. Cultural life 78

3.2.1. Historical and cultural relics 78
3.2.2. Material and cultural life 86
3.2.3. Cultural and spiritual life 92
CONCLUSION 111
1. On economic issues 111
2. On social issues 113
3. On cultural issues 113
References 115



3


INTRODUCTION

1. Rationale
It can be said that, villages - the settlements, social and economic units of the
Vietnamese (Kinh) on the delta of Red, Ma and Lam River have been existed for a
very long time. Throughout the nation's history, through the process of formation,
development as well as natural renovation and resistance against foreign invaders
Vietnamese villages "were as strong and solid as steel but still as flexible as the water
of great rivers" (9, p 9). In the process, each village has both absorbed the changes of
national history and operated according to its own rhythm, creating their own
particular characteristics.
For the majority of Vietnamese people, the village is not only their birthplace
where they grow up, but also a place where they live for their lifetime. Having no
village also means that there is no origin especially for the elderly. Therefore, no
matter how far away they are, the Vietnamese people always look forward to their
hometown, however a poor village it is. Villages and communes not only play

particularly important role in the development of the nation's history, but also have
special significance in the lives of the Vietnamese.
With such huge role and position, Vietnamese villages and communes have
become a special subject of interest to many scholars. In the current context when the
issues of agriculture - farmers - rural areas receive special attention of the Party and
the government, researches on villages become more meaningful than ever. Under the
perspective of different approaches, such as cultural, sociological, historical,
anthropological views many researches on villages were carried out, creating an
important contribution not only to unravel history of villages’ development, but also to
contribute to explain the current life and future problems of the country and
Vietnamese people. Beside the above approaches, recently, scholars also enroll the use
of interdisciplinary methods and area studies on village studies. The comprehensive
study of a village from its tradition to its modernity, on all aspects is an approach
4

which allows the researcher to not only get an overall view to assess the village’s
development in general social context, but also have a practical foundation to explain
as well as to propose development directions for the village in the future. In the present
context, when the industrialization and modernization of rural areas pose urgent
problems, the research and approach to study villages across all sectors and in all
periods is a necessary task.
Derived from the question above, I choose the topic "Nom village: tradition
and renovation" as a master thesis for my major in Vietnamese studies.
2. Literature
For a long time, Vietnamese village theme has attracted the attention of many
domestic and foreign researchers and scientists, and has achieved many
accomplishments. Before the 80s of 20
th
century, there were a number of
representative works written about Vietnamese villages such as “Farmers in the

Northern Delta Region” by Gourou Pierre (Paris, 1936) or “Vietnamese Customs” by
Phan Ke Binh. The first book of Vietnamese village studies from Marxist standpoint
was “Farmers’ Issues” by Truong Chinh and Vo Nguyen Giap published by Duc
Cuong in 1937. After the land reform and collectivization of rural areas, Vietnamese
villages received more attention of researchers with some works created during this
period such as “Vietnamese Villages and Communes” by Nguyen Hong Phong (Hanoi,
1959), or “Vietnamese Rural Area in History” (2 volumes) published by the Institute
of History in the late 70s. The most typical book that must be listed is “Organizational
Structure of Traditional Viet Villages in the North” by Tran Tu (Hanoi, 1984). The
book presents a basic and profound research on Vietnamese villages until before the
renovation in 1986.
The reforms undertaken by the Party and government in all sectors have
significant impacts on the situation of Vietnamese village studies. The researches on
villages appear more and more and become more diverse in approaches as well as
purposes. These include some of representative works such as: “Exploring Vietnamese
Villages” by Diep Dinh Hoa (ed.), (Hanoi, 1990), books by Toan Anh were reprinted
in 1992 such as “Old Customs of Vietnamese villages”, “Festivals and Ceremonies”,
5

or “Traditional Festivals” by Le Trung Vu (Hanoi, 1992), “Traditional Handicraft
Villages in Vietnam” by Bui Van Vuong (Hanoi, 1998), or “Traditional Crafts and the
Trade Founder” by the Tran Quoc Vuong and Do Thi Hao (Hanoi, 2000); “Research
Contributing to an Understanding of Ethnic Culture and Ethnic Groups” (Hanoi,
2006) . In particular, some representative works by Prof. Phan Dai Doan - a leading
expert in the study of Vietnamese villages should be mentioned here, such as
“Vietnamese Villages: Some Economic, Cultural and Social Issues” (Hanoi, 2001);
“Some Cultural Issues of Vietnamese Villages in the History (Hanoi, 2004);
“Vietnamese Villages: Pluralism and Compact” (Hanoi, 2006). His most recent book
necessarily listed is “From Villages to the Nation: a Historical Approach” (Hanoi,
2010). The book is a collection of his research papers since his youth, which

contributes an approach to Vietnam villages during the operation of the nation's
history. The successor to Prof. Phan Dai Doan in the researches on Vietnamese
villages is Prof. Nguyen Quang Ngoc. Despite starting later than many other
researchers when studying villages, his doctoral thesis “Some Trading Villages in the
Northern Delta Region in 18
th
, 19
th
Centuries” published in 1993 by Vietnamese
History Association brought about a general understanding of a type of villages in the
Red River Delta - the trading villages. After 20 years of study, survey and research on
Vietnamese villages, in 2009, Prof. Nguyen Quang Ngoc published the book “Some
Issues of Vietnamese Villages” (Hanoi, 2009). The book "provides an overview which
is general and specific, theoretical and practical, thus, it is easy to identify the key
contents of the Vietnamese villages" (29, p 13). Though started at different angles with
different purposes, these researches highlight the face of Vietnamese villages with
their people, customs, religions, creeds, professions… In addition, some research
projects in the study of villages focused on traditional land ownership and theoretical
issues. There are some works about land ownership issues such as: “Land Registration
Book of Da Dong and “Land Registration Book of Thai Binh” by Phan Huy Le (et al)
published in 1995 and 1997, “The Land Situation and Peasants’ Life under the Nguyen
Dynasty” by Nguyen Huu Quynh (et al) (Hue, 1997), or “Organizational and
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Management Experience of Vietnamese Rural Areas in the History” by Phan Dai Doan
and Nguyen Quang Ngoc (eds.), (Hanoi, 2004)
Apart from the works of domestic scholars, there are some studies of
Vietnamese villages by foreign authors, such as: “The Village in Question” (Le
Village en Questions) by Philippe Papin and Oliver Tessier (eds.), (Hanoi, 2002), or
the collaborative research program “Rural Regions, Agriculture and Villages in the

Red River Delta: a Case Study of Bach Coc Village” (Vu Ban, Nam Dinh) by Japanese
scientists of Vietnamese Research Association of Japan and the international
conference “Vietnamese Peasants’ Activity: an Interaction between Culture and
Nature” hosted by this program at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands in
August, 2002
Moreover, there is a large volume of works in the field of village studies
published in books, newspapers and magazines such as Ethnography Journal, Journal
of Historical Research, Arts and Culture Journal, and Science as well as bachelor
theses, master theses, doctoral dissertations of domestic and foreign scholars. All of
these researches show that Vietnamese village studies has been an object that attracts
long-term care, in-depth and comprehensive interest in the field of social science
research in Vietnam.
Beside the researches on villages in Vietnam in general, there are some works
of villages in Hung Yen province and Nom village where we choose to study in this
thesis. The first one is “Hung Yen Geography Book” by Trinh Nhu Tau, printed by
Ngo Gia Tu Printing House in 1934. The book presents an overview of the geography,
topography, land, natural conditions and administrative systems of Hung Yen province
during the early years of the twentieth century. The second work is “Traditional
Crafts” (2 volumes) by the Council of Historical Research and Compilation published
in 1987 by the Department of Culture and Information of Hai Hung province, which
outlines an overview of the villages in Hai Duong and Hung Yen provinces including
Dai Dong - a former bronze-casting center of the country. Recently, there have been
some works mentioning the villages of Hung Yen and Nom village, such as
“Traditional Handicraft Villagesin Vietnam” by Bui Van Vuong (Hanoi, 1998),
7

presenting an overview of the ancient famous bronze-casting center, De Cau – Dong
Mai in Hung Yen, in which Nom village played the role of a raw materials supplier;
“Hung Yen Celebrities” by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hung
Yen, (2001); “Hung Yen – the Region of Cultural Alluvium” byNguyen Phuc Lai

(eds.), (Hanoi, 2009). The most recent work is the scientific report of Hung Yen
Department of Culture and Tourism Sports in 2010: “Preservation and Promotion of
Cultural Values of the Villages during the Industrialization and Modernization”. The
report highlighted an overview of some ancient villages in Hung Yen including Nom
village with cultural heritages that need preserving. The most specific research on
Nom village is perhaps the bachelor thesis for Ethnology major of History Faculty in
1990 by Nguyen Hong Phuong: “Cau Nom – a Trading Village in the North”. The
thesis presents an overview of the economic, cultural, and social situation of Nom
village as a trading village before 1945. The paper is a valuable reference for the study
and understanding of Nom village before the August revolution.
Probably speaking, research papers on the villages in Hung Yen in general and
Nom village in particular are really of small numbers. The aforementioned studies
display Nom village from different angles and levels but there have not been any
publications present Nom village with all aspects from natural conditions, formation
history, development, economic - cultural – social life of the village until now.
However, these studies can be considered as a suggestion for a different approach and
create a platform for us to reproduce a fuller and more comprehensive research about
the land and the people here.
3. The purposes of the research
- Firstly, based on an interdisciplinary approach and regional studies, the research
thesis will investigate the entire aspects of natural conditions, economic, cultural and
social life of Nom village from ancient time to the current society.
- Secondly, based on the presented issues, the thesis points out some distinctive
characteristics and development trend of the village over the years, thereby contributes
to clarify the natural and social interaction and isolation of Nom village in comparison
with other villages in the region, under the changes in space and time axis.
8

In addition, the thesis gives a few recommendations to guide sustainable development
for Nom village in the future.

4. The subjects and scope of the research
- The subject of the research: The subject of the thesis is Nom village (now Dai
Dong village, Dai Dong commune, Van Lam district, Hung Yen province), a
traditional village that was famous for bronze and scrap metal trading. Being a small
village, but Nom fully converge the characteristics of a rural village in the northern
delta both in economic activities and in social organization and culture, especially it
still retains the appearance of a traditional Vietnamese village.
- Scope of the study: with the above purposes, the scope of this theme is to study
the complete process of formation and development of Nom village from past to
present, in all aspects of natural conditions, economics, culture and society. Thereby,
the paper gives some comparative views between the past and the present, between the
progress and drawbacks, thus, draws out the general development trend of the village.
5. Sources of materials
The first source is the policies of the Party and government, the official and
legal documents of Hung Yen province related to the issues of modern agriculture,
rural areas and reports of the People’s Committee of Dai Dong Commune, Van Lam
district, Hung Yen province. These materials are essential for our further
understanding of Nom village during the collectivization as well as the current period.
The second material source is collected during our fieldwork in the village. This
is the most important data including written documents, objects and information
archived from the interviews with the villagers. The written documents include ancient
documents found in Nom village with 14 dynastic investiture decrees from different
dynasties such as 2 decrees of Le Canh Hung’s reign (1767 and 1783), 1 decree from
Chieu Thong’s reign (1787), one decree from Quang Trung’s reign (1792), one decree
from Canh Thinh’s reign (1793), one decree from Minh Mang’s reign (1824), 2
decrees from Thieu Tri’ reign (1844), 2 decrees from Tu Duc’s reign (1850 and 1880),
one decree from Dong Khanh’s reign (1887), 3 decrees from Khai Dinh’s reign
(1924). In addition to the royal titles, there are tales about deities copied from the sixth
9


year of Vinh Huu’s reign in 1740 and the seventh year of Khai Dinh’s reign in 1922.
The Academician of the University of East Seminary, Nguyen Binh, transcribed the
originals of these tales in the first year of Hong Phuc’s reign (1572), these tales are
still kept in Nom village. In addition, other documents such as the geography books
stored in the Central Archives Department I and the village’ conventions saved at the
Institute of Social Science and Information. Unfortunately, we could not find the local
geography book and ancient conventions of the village, but we find some parts of the
village’s reformed conventions written in 1938. Though inadequate, these documents
clearly reflect the issues that we set for the research. The documents associated with
the inscriptions on the steles (17 stone steles), antithetical couplets, narratives, lineage
genealogies still existed in the village, have enabled us to sketch a specific picture
of the economic, politic, social and cultural situation of the village in the past as well
as in the village’s transformation process at the specific historical points. The material
data is mainly based on architectural works such as Nom communal house, Nom
pagoda, ancestors worship houses of the clans, approximately 100 ancient statues and
3 bronze bells The data archived from words of mouth includes legends, folk poems
and songs, which are collected during our fieldwork in the village. These materials
complement to the research’s comprehension and enrichment.
Besides, we also made use of the data by processing, assessing the sociological
surveys carried out in the village, and the secondary information published in the
newspapers and on the internet.
6. Methodology
To accomplish this thesis, the researchers have used a variety of research
methods from many different disciplines to develop the thesis such as Regional
Studies, History, Sociology, Ethnology, and Anthropology
The main approach of the thesis is to apply the Regional Studies. We consider
Nom village as a cultural space, thus, making the application of the regional studies
approach to get the general and comprehensive understanding of a rural village
throughout its development along with the nation's history.
10


In addition, the historical approach helps us make use of the historical sources
and commentaries to get the information and materials with high accuracy. The
sociological method of investigation and interview helps us to clarify present issues,
which, as the result, shows a clearer picture of the economic, cultural and social
diversity and abundance of the village.
However, each methodology will be applied in each issue properly and
necessarily. The research results presented in the thesis are also created from these
research methods.
7. Contributions
For this thesis, the writers firstly want to collect and provide additional data to the
materials of Vietnamese villages. Presenting an overview of the formation and
development of a rural village in Vietnam on its all dimensions will help to find out
the general development trend of the village. Accordingly, an overview of Vietnam
village from traditional to modern society will be drawn out. Based on the conclusions
of the village’s characteristics, the paper gives some insights and solutions in the
modest hope of helping authorities to identify additional basis for the development of
Nom village at the present. In addition, the researchers also try to give some comments
and forecasts on the development orientation of the village next years.
8. The structure of the research
Beside the introduction and conclusion, the main content of the thesis consists of
three chapters:
- Chapter 1: The natural conditions, the process of formation and
development
- Chapter 2: The economic situation
- Chapter 3: The situation of social and cultural life.





11

Chapter 1: The natural conditions, the process of formation and development
1.1 Natural conditions
1.1.1. Geographical location
Nom village is about 30 to 35 km to the east of Hanoi. If you follow Chuong
Duong or Long Bien Bridge, down the national highway No. 5 to Nhu Quynh town
(Van Lam district, Hung Yen province), where you go along the railroad Hanoi - Hai
Phong to Lac Dao station, then go on about 5km to turn left and go straight about 2km,
you will reach the territory of Nom village - one of the ancient villages of the northern
delta.
Nom village, or Cau Nom in the past, whose written name was Dong Cau, is now
called Dai Dong village in Dai Dong commune, Van Lam district, Hung Yen
province
1
.The village borders Dai Bi village to the north, Long Thuong village to the
west, Dong Xa village to the south and Viet Hung commune to the east. With such a
location, the village located in the area of important systems of road traffic and
waterways. Dai Dong commune is located about 1km from the Hanoi - Hai Phong route
of railway, which passes the village about 3.5 km in length. The advent of Ha Noi - Hai
Phong railway, especially the emergence of Dong Xa station played a very important role
on the prosperity of the bronze trading industry in the village in the past. Running parallel
to the railway down to Cam Giang District of Hai Duong Province is the national highway
No. 19 – an arterial road ensuring smooth traffic from the national highway No. 5 to Dai
Dong commune and its villages. In addition to the railway and the national highway No.
19, there is national highway No. 196 running through the western part of the commune in
the west, which connects Hung Yen and Bac Ninh provinces. In fact, Nom village is only
less than 1 km away from Nguyet Duc Commune, Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh
province if bypassing through the village of Dai Bi. In the northern is a river, which flows
through the village to Van O village (about 5 km) and stops. Villagers call it Nguyet Duc



1
In thethesis, weagreedto call it Nomvillage-the namewasmarkedindelibly onthememories of the local
peopleandthe country.
12

River
2
.According to an investigation by Nguyen Hong Phuong in "Cau Nom - a Trading
Village in the North", the river is the old Dau River, which down-streamed to Dai La (now
Hanoi), up-streamed to the Luy Lau ( Buddhist capital – Dau center at the time). Legend
has it that on this river King Ly Thanh Tong had repeatedly come to Dau pagoda to make
offerings to deities for his wishes to be fulfilled, thus, it was also called Nghia River
(Integrity River). Professor Tran Quoc Vuong had claimed that Nguyet Duc River was
probably Ri River when he said that the famous old Nguyet Duc once located here and
was at an important position when the river was still wide. We agree with Professor Tran
Quoc Vuong’s opinion (as in the far past, the names of the rivers were often associated
with the places where they flew through, hence, a river could have multiple names
corresponding to those places, and depending on the fame and popularity of the places
that the rivers were repeatedly mentioned by the people or historians).Under time and
natural creation, the remains of this river are determined by the landmarks in the area such
as: Da Bridge (Stone Bridge) (the bridge over river, which flows through the territory of
the village and connects the village to Nom pagoda and Nom market), Cau Gay River (in
the past the river was so broad and deep that the people could not build the bridge, then
they made offerings to the deity and suddenly one night, they heard a rooster crowing and
in the next early morning a bridge was coming out, thereupon called Gay Bridge or
Crowing Bridge), or Ben Quan (now located in Van O village). It can be seen that, the
ancient village of Nom was located along the vital waterway linking Thang Long capital
with the largest Buddhist center – Dau pagoda. Today, Nom village is about 7 km from

Thanh Khuong commune (Thuan Thanh district, Bac Ninh province). Thanh Khuong was
the ancient center of Dau, where if you go from Nom village, you have to pass through Bi
village (Dai Bi village), Di village (Dao Vien Village, Nguyet Duc commune), Dien
village and Thap Village, then through Quan Tranh to reach it. With such a favorable
geographical position, it is easy for Nom village to exchange and communicate for
economic and cultural development, not only in the history but also in this period.


2
When annotatingandeditingthebook “Geography Book” by NguyenTrai, ProfessorHaVanTan,based on the
book: “Records of the Unification under the Great South” and “Phuong Dinh Geography Book”, said that
NguyetDucRiver was Cau River(also known asNhu Nghuyet).
13

Previously, the village was located in the area of agricultural and industrial
prosperity. Among 9 villages of Dai Dong commune, there are 4 villages specializing
in agriculture, 4 villages specializing in agriculture and bronze casting (Long Thuong,
Bung Dong, Van O and Xuan Phao), only Nom village both has its own copper and
junk trading industry and specializes in agriculture. Farther north are De Cau, Di, Dai
Bai villages (about 14 km), which are the centers of a once-famous-for-bronze-casting
in the past. To the west are Rong (Dragon), (Long Thuong), He (Summer) Village
(Dong Mai), Bung (Bung Dong) villages, adjacent to the village of Tong Chuong
which had bronze-casting industry with high techniques but then abolished by the Le
rulers because of making fake coins. Dong Mai, Long Dinh, De Cau, Cau Nom and
Dai Bai villages combined a center of bronze casting that was commonly known
among the local folk by the name of Ngu Xa. In that bronze-casting center, the village
of Nom played the role of a supplier providing materials for the other villages and
bringing the bronze products to the locals. Today, Ngu Xa center of bronze-casting is
no longer existed, bronze-casting craft villages around the area are also languished.
The completely prosperous and busy region of industry is now replaced with

specialized agricultural villages with a vast sea of paddy fields. Even in Dai Dong
commune, Van O, Xuan Phao, Bung Dong, Long Thuong once had a traditional
bronze-casting trade, but then just a few dozens of households sustain this trade but
only on a seasonal basis and mainly make fine crafts for exports.
Thus, in terms of geographic location, Nom village is situated in the area with
favorable road and water transportation system for agricultural economic development
and old famous traditional bronze casting trade.
1.1.2Climate
Nom village is located in the area with humid tropical monsoon; the weather
during the year is divided into two distinctive seasons:
- A hot, humid and rainy summer that lasts from April to October
- A cold and dry winter season that lasts from November to the end of March next year
14

According to the survey data of meteorology and hydrology of Hung Yen
meteorological center, Nom village is located in the area of climate characteristics as
follows:
* Temperature: The average annual temperature is 23.2
o
C. The average temperature
in the summer is between 30
o
C and 32
o
C; the highest temperatures ranging from 36
o
C
to 38
o
C are in June and July. The average winter temperatures are between 15

o
C and
17
o
C and the lowest is in January and February, between 8
o
C - 10
o
C. Total average
annual accumulation temperature is 8503
o
C.
* Sunny hours: The total average annual number of sunny hours is 1750 hours, the
average number of sunny days in a month is 24 days, the average number of sunny
hours in the summer is from 6 to7 hours per day, in the winter it is from 3 to 4 hours
per day.
* Rainfall: the average annual rainfall is from 1450 to 1650 mm, which differentiated
and concentrated seasonally. Heavy rains and severe storms often happen in the
summer disturbing the villagers’ life, production activities and the living environment.
The prolonged dry weather with low rainfall in the winter makes the water level in the
channels, ditches or lakes shallow, which is not enough for agricultural production,
daily activities of the villagers.
* Winds: Nom village is influenced by the two wind directions:
- The northeast wind in the winter
- The southeast wind in the summer
In every May, June and July desiccating winds (west winds) usually appear, affecting
directly or indirectly the productivity and quality of agricultural products.
* Air Humidity: the average annual humidity is 85%. The month of the highest
humidity is March with the average humidity of 88.4%, the driest month is November,
with the average humidity of 74%.

Thus, the highlights of Nom village’s climate are hot, humid and rainy in the
summer, crisp in the winter, which is suitable for the growth and development of many
crops.
15

1.1.3.Land
In comparison with many other villages of Dai Dong commune, Nom village is
small with an area of approximately 74 mẫu (about 26.64 ha) and residential area of
arable land is 88 mẫu 7 sào (about 31.932 ha). Due to the geographical location of the
village, which is located on the crucial waterways connecting Thang Long capital with
the old center of Dau, probably speaking, the land is mostly alluvial soil left by Dau
River. According to the results of agro soil investigation in 1993 Hai Hung
Department of Cadastre, the soils of Nom village is alluvial without accretion, yellow
brown or light brown, acidic with gley phenomenon of Thai Binh river system. The
soil properties range mainly of sandy loam to loam. The majority of land is in lowland
and low terrains, which is difficult for drainage in the rainy season, thus the crop is
mainly rice.
1.1.4. Hydrology
- Rivers
Currently, there is a river flowing through the northern of the village to Van O
village (about 5 km). It flows through the territory of Nom village around 1 kilometer
long, 20 meters wide, supplying effective irrigation for the paddy fields, water for the
ponds and lakes in the village.
Beside Nguyet Duc River, just inside Nom village’s paddy fields, the villagers
also build dense canal systems to retrieve proactively water for their fields or for
drainage when prolonged and concentrated rainfalls happen.
- Ponds, Lakes, Swamps
The largest lake is located in the village’s center with an area of around 2 mẫu
(about 0.72 ha) and 300 meters long. This lake is in front of the communal house, so
it is also called ao đình (meaning communal house’s pond) or ao làng (meaning the

village’s pond) with evergreen water year round. Apart from the lake, there are small
ponds interspersed with the households in the village, with the average area, which is
not large, of about 150 to 200 square meters. These ponds are largely handmade due
to residents’ digging to get land for building their houses’ floor or making gardens
and to make use of the water sources around the house for daily activities. Besides,
16

the old ponds also work as a farm for fish farming, water hyacinth and pistia
growing, geese and ducks raising to provide additional food sources for villagers.
Today, some of the family ponds have been filled up, partly because of pollution,
partly due to the families’ increased demand for residential land However, due to
economic growth, a number of families have moved to VAC (GPB: garden, pond,
barn) projects in recent years, the old ponds were renovated and some new ponds was
formed with a much larger area. Initially, some ponds for fish or shrimp farming have
brought high economic efficiency.
1.1.5. Fauna and flora
- Flora:
When study about the plant groups in Nom village, we divide them into specific
types as follows:
+ Crops: This is the major crop in Nom villages, including mainly ordinary rice,
or corn, potatoes, cassava, groundnuts, sesame, etc
+ Vegetables: Vegetables in Nom village are plentiful and seasonal. In the
winter, there are kohlrabies, cabbages, broccolis, lettuces, cauliflowers, tomatoes,
beans, peas, while in the summer there are spinach, jute vegetables, okras, Malabar
nightshades, assorted pumpkins, gourd and eggplants, etc.
+ Fruits: Most of them are grown in the families’ gardens such as star fruits,
grapefruits, sweet oranges, lemons, limes, longans, dracontomelums, sapodilla,
sweetsops
+ Bamboos: they are used for making fences surrounding the village, however,
in recent years, the number of bamboos are reduced significantly due to the villagers’

replacing them with brick-built walls around their houses.
- Fauna
Located in the middle of the fertile plains without any primitive forests or hills
and mountains, Nom village has no wild animals. The animals here are mostly
livestock with high economic values and associated with the daily life and production
of the villagers. Specifically as follows:
17

- The terrestrial animals: cattle, pigs, dogs, cats, geese, chickens, ducks, pigeons

- Aquatic animals: turtles, tortoises, snakes. Particularly, species of freshwater
fish are the most abundant due to the dense system for rivers, canals, lakes, and even
some fishponds of the households with VAC economic models. Freshwater fish
includes carps, snakehead fish, catfish, perches, crucians, chubs Fish raised in the
ponds are grass carps, black carps, major carps, tilapia There are also freshwater
crustaceans such as prawns, crayfish and mollusks such as clams, snails, mussels
- Insects: Some households in the village are honey producers. Beside bees as
beneficial insects, some insects are harmful to crops and affect human health such as
bugs, grasshoppers, locusts, yellow snails, woodborers, brown plant hoppers,
leafhoppers
1.2. The process of formation and development
1.2.1. Formation
As As is the case of many other Vietnamese villages, the history of Nom
village’s origins is associated with legends of spirits, among them are many that
contain fabulous mythical elements. According to hagiographies (which were copied
in the sixth year of Vinh Huu’s reign, 1740, and the seventh year of Khai Dinh’s reign
,1922, from the original transcribed by Academician of the University of East
Seminary Nguyen Binh in the first year of Hong Phuc’s reign, 1572) extant in Nom
village’s communal house, during the Western Han Dynasty, a girl named Pham Tinh
came from a noble family at Van Mau commune, Vu Ninh district. At the age of 18,

she was famed for her beauty but refused to marry since she was enchanted by
Buddhism. One day, she went to Phap Van (Dharma Cloud) pagoda and found it
tranquil and picturesque, which is suitable to her spiritual desire, so she asked for
residence. Once, when she went out to bath in Nguyet Duc River, the sky suddenly
turned dark and a tempest broke out. A river serpent jumped out and coiled around her.
Terrified, she ran off to the pagoda and fainted. In her delirium, she dreamed that she
swallowed the moon down into her belly. She became pregnant and on 10
th
, Lunar
February of Mau Thin year (?), she gave birth to a son of uncanny ability and
18

countenance, whom she named Tam Giang. Tam Giang grew up to be a brave man
skilled in both literature and martial arts. At the time, seeing the country under the
domination of the Han Dynasty and antagonized for the family loss, the Trung sisters
rose up for a rebellion against them. Once, when taking his troops through the area of
Dong Cau camp, Dong Xa commune, Sieu Loai district, he saw a large butte that
looked like a dragon and a tiger cuddling together in a favorable feng-shui terrain.
Immediately, he ordered his men to build a defense fort and made an announcing
ceremony to heaven and earth before going to the front to fight the Han invaders. After
the winning of 65 citadels and the country’s restoration, Tam Giang asked for Trung
Vuong’s permission to return to Dong Cau camp, Dong Xa commune, where he had
garrisoned and established a livelihood. Living in peace, the people in the camp asked
Tam Giang to replace the troop station with a worship place and he agreed. Three
years later, when the Han army invaded, Tam Giang gathered an army again and went
to battle, but since the invader troop was strong, he was defeated and retreated back to
Dong Cau camp. As the enemy pursued him, Tam Giang committed suicide along with
his mother and wife at Nguyet Duc River. Learning that Tam Giang had died, the
villagers built a shrine for him and venerated him as the village tutelary spirit.
Though the tale above contains some mythical elements, it implicates historical

facts. Author Nguyen Hong Phuong said: "His name might be called by the later
generations of the people. Tam Giang is probably the water god of the rivers: Dau,
Duong, and Luc Dau. The cult of river gods is one of the most ancient religious
practices of Viet people. Moreover, the hagiographic taleabout Tam Giang deity
following Trung sisters to expel the invadersis not only existed in Nom village but also
in many other communities around the region. In addition to other generals, these
communities also worship Tam Giang deity such as Phu Luu or other villages on the
banks of Cau River…”.(31; p 7) Thus, in case that scientific evidences have not been
found, the hagiographic tale about Nom village and Tam Giang deity recruiting
soldiers and assisting Trung sisters to expel the invaders is an indication which proved
that Nom village came to existence and played a certain historical role from the
beginning of the Christian era.
19

In 2002, at the area of Dai Dong, scientists conducted an investigation and
discovered tombs dated from the first century BC under the Western Han Dynasty in
Doc Hong village, Dai Dong commune, tombs of Han Dynasty AD at Ma Dung area
of the commune, and many others were still extant at the neighboring Luong Tai
village and the paddy fields of Dien and Ri villages on the other side of the river. In
addition, the scientists also found bricks of Han Dynasty at the area of Ao Chai
(located between the territory of Nom village and the secondary school of Dai Dong
commune), Dai Dong commune. These are historical relics of scientific values,
confirming that Nom village was formed at the beginning of the nation’s establishment
era.
1.2.2.Development
The The old village of Nom whose written name was Dong Cau, is one of 9
villages of Dai Dong commune: Dong Cau (Nom village), Bung Dong (Bung village),
Dai Tu (Tu village), Van O (O Nghe village), Xuan Phao (O Pheo village), Long
Thuong (Rong (Dragon) village), Dai Bi (Bi village), Dinh To (To village), Uy Nghi
(Ngui village), which now belongs to Van Lam district, Hung Yen province.

According to the scientific reports of the Department of Culture, Sports and
Tourism of Hung Yen, “Under Hung King Dynasty, the area of Van Lam belonged to
Vu Ninh district. Under the northern domination, this area belonged to Giao Chi
district, under Ly Dynast to the district of Gia Lam, under Tran Dynasty to Bac Giang
Town, under Le Quang Thuan’s reign (1460 -1469), it belonged to Thuan An district,
dependent on Bac Giang province. By 1469, when the map of the country was
redrawn, Bac Giang province was renamed Kinh Bac. By the 21
st
year of Hong Duc’s
reign (1490) it was called Kinh Bac Canton, then changed to Kinh Bac Town. Under
Mac Dynasty, Thuan An district belonged to Hai Duong province, and under Le
Quang Hung’s reign (1578 - 1599), Thuan An district belonged to Kinh Bac town
again". (33, p. 61).
In comparison to many other areas, this was an affluence region, where
ownership disputes of many feudal forces occurred. “When the rebellions of 12
warlords happened, the area of Sieu Loai was under Ly Khue (i.e. Ly Lang Cong)
20

occupation. According to the hagiographies of Dai Tu village extant in Dai Tu
village’s communal house, while quelling the revolt of 12 warlords, Dinh Bo Linh
appointed his ministry general Lu Co (Lu Ky) to suppressing the troop of a warlord
surnamed Ly in the area of Sieu Loai. He was then venerated as the village tutelary
spirit."(33, p. 61). To Ly – Tran Dynasties, the land had many connections with the
rulers, which is proven by the popularity of the ancient pagoda dating from Ly
Dynasty still present here. In addition to the system of Dau pagoda, the largest
Buddhist center of Vietnam at the time, the region is also famous for the temple of Y
Lan Queen (at Phu Thi), Lang pagoda (at Minh Hai) or Ghenh pagoda (at Nhu Quynh)
or quite a lot of potteries and even bronze artifacts dated from Ly – Tran Dynasty,
which were discovered by scientists at Ao Chai site of Dai Dong commune
3

.
Born from the beginning of the nation’s establishment era, but probably not
until the second Le Dynasty, Nom village truly became crowded. The legends of the
village and surrounding areas said: In the second Le Dynasty, Tong Chuong village
was a famous bronze casting village, but because of casting fake coins, it was
abolished by the king’s order. After the abolishment of Tong Chuong village, the
villagers had to take refuge at different places. Among them, some excellent bronze-
casting artisans ran into Nom village for shelter. They changed their surname into
Phung to make livelihood at the village, using their knowledge of copper, lead, tin,
zinc to re-establish a new handicraft industry, which was related to their old trade:
welding pots or bronze objects and especially trading bronze products. In the book
“Traditional Handicrafts”, volume II, page 60 – 61, the Research and Compilation
Council of Hai Hung’s History said: “Under Le Dynasty, Tong Chuong village casted
counterfeit coins, uncovered and abolished, hence the villagers had to flee to the
neighboring villages and gradually rebuilt foundries in the new shelters. The old
wealthy village was now only a large fallow mound, located between the two villages


3
WhiledredgingUncle Ho ponds atNghe and Tu hamlets of Tu village (Dai Dong commune, VanLamDistrict,
HungYenProvince), the people discovered thetraces of residents underLy–Tran dynasties. Frompottery
shardsfoundin the area behind the communal house of Tu village, we can confirm theactual
existenceofavillagefromthe Ly-Tran with large areafromChaipond (Dai DongSecondary School) to the area of
the communal house.
21

Long Thuong and Dai Dong, where many pieces of pottery and copper slag from an
ancient bronze-casting village were found.”
Currently, the most authentic evidence of old Tong Chuong village is the
horizontal lacquer hanging in the communal house of Long Thuong village with the

words: "“Long Đình thất ấp, Tòng Chương thôn cung tiến” (The seven hamlets of
Long Dinh, Tong Chuong village respectfully offer it). Next to the villages of Nom and
Long Thuong is still a deserted mound that is believed to be the remains of Tong
Chuong village. “It is called Rong (Dragon) ground by Nom’s villagers, Thong (Pine)
ground by Long Thuong’s villagers, but both villages do not want to claim its
ownership though both need land for cultivation”.(31, p12). On the other hand, the
villagers have also circulated a rumor that long ago, the land was luxuriant with pine
trees where stood a small worship shrine which was believed to have supernatural
power. Over time, the shrine was badly damaged; the people contributed to build a
temple and named it "Linh Thong Cổ Tự", colloquially called Thong (Pine) Pagoda.
Hence, Nom village also has another name: Thong (Pine) village. Accordingly, folk
memories allow us to speculate: Nom village is probably the old village of Tong
Chuong? And the existing Rong (Dragon) or Thong (Pine) lot is the vestige of an
ancient village famous for bronze casting in the Le Dynasty?
In the stele carved in the 26
th
year of Chinh Hoa’s reign (1706), which is still
kept in Nom pagoda, said that the pagoda was renovated since Chinh Hoa’s reign of
Le Dynasty. Thus, the pagoda must have been built at least several decades before
being restored because of its "degradation". In combination with the legend above,
Nom village becomes crowded at least since the first Le Dynasty.
In the inscription of “Sùng tạo Linh Thung tự bi kí (Linh Thung Stele
ofVeneration)stele still extant in Nom pagoda said that: the old village of Nom used to
be Kieu Tung village, Tung Xa commune, Sieu Loai District, Thuan An Canton, Kinh
Bac Town. At the beginning of Le – Trinh dynasty, due to the taboo of Trinh Tung’s
name, the village’s name was changed to Dong Cau village of Dong Xa commune
with the same district’s, canton’s and town’s names. Over the course of history, by the
beginning of Nguyen Dynasty, in the first year of Gia Long’s reign (1802), Dong Cau
22


village still belonged to Dong Xa commune, Sieu Loai District, Thuan An canton,
Kinh Bac town (later renamed Kinh Bac region). By the twelfth year of Minh Mang’s
reign (1831), along with the remaking the maps and unifying the names of the
administrative units, Dong Xa commune belonged to Sieu Loai district, Thuan An
Canton, Bac Ninh province. According to the book “Vietnamese Villages’ Names in
the Early Nineteenth century”, at that time, Dong Xa commune had 4 communes:
Dong Xa, Do Xa, Thuc Cau, Sam Khuc.
In 1858, the French colonialists invaded Vietnam, the resistance movement
against the French quickly spread throughout the country. Specifically, in 1885, after
King Ham Nghi delivered Cần Vương (The king’s needs) royal proclamation, calling
for the people to help him save the country, the uprising movement of the people
against the French boomed in many localities throughout the country. Many major
uprising broke out in the long run, causing heavy losses to the invaders, among which
was the Bai Say uprising led by Nguyen Thien Thuat. With an extensive area
(including the today’s districts of Van Lam, Van Giang, Yen My, Khoai Chau), the
locals responded the revolt enthusiastically. Situated in the locality of the uprising,
Nom villagers were also the insurgents of the rebellion. To cope with the Bai Say
uprising of Nguyen Thien Thuat, in 1890 (the second year of Thanh Thai’s reign), the
General Governor of Indochina issued a decree to establish Bai Say province including
4 districts of Yen My, My Hao, Van Lam, Cam Luong. Van Lam district includes the
land of Van Giang, Gia Lam, Sieu Loai districts of Bac Ninh province. Shortly later, in
1891, the General Governor of Indochina delivered a decree to dissolve Bai Say
province, merging the districts of Yen My, My Hao, Van Lam to Hung Yen,
seperating Cam Luong district to its old province and returning Luong Tai commune
to Van Lam district. According to the book “The Archived Materials and Villages’
Names in the North”, before the August revolution in 1945, Nom village Nom (Dong
Cau) belonged to Dai Dong commune, Dong Xa canton, Van Lam District. At that
time, Dong Xa canton had five villages: Dong Xa, My Xa, Thuc Cau, Sam Khuc and
23


Dai Dong
4
. Dai Dong commune consisted of two villages, Dong Cau and Dai Bi,
Dong Xa commune had two villages, Uy Nghi and Dinh To.
The successful revolution in August 1945 created a big change in the people's
lives. The revolutionary government replaced the old counties, districts with new
communes by merging some formerly communes (or villages) in to one commune.
The mall communes consisted of only one village in each commune; the large
communes consisted of two to three, or even nine or ten villages. By May 1948, the
district had merged nine villages of Dong Xa, Dai Dong (which belonged to Dong Xa
canton formerly), Dai Tu, Long Dinh (which belonged to Dai Tu canton before)
communes into a Commune named Dai Dong (which consisted of ten villages: Dai Tu,
Van O, Xuan Phao, Bung Dong, Long Thuong, Dinh To, Cu Dinh, Uy Nghi, Dong
Cau and Dai Bi.) By 1950, the district moved Dinh Cu village to Viet Hung commune,
so Dai Dong commune had the remaining nine villages.
From 1968 to 1996, the two provinces of Hai Duong and Hung Yen were
merged into Hai Hung province. Nom Village (or Dong Cau village) belonged to Dai
Dong commune of Hai Hung Province.
On 11
th
, March 1977, the Government Councils issued the decision No.58/CP
to consolidate Van Lam and My Hao districts into one district named Van My. On
24
th
, February 1979, the Government Council issued the decision No.70/CP to merge
Van My and Van Yen District (except 14 communes moved into Chau Giang District)
into My Van district. Nom village of Dai Dong commune belonged to a new district
called My Van.
On January 1, 1997, Hung Yen province was formally re-established. Nom
village belonged to Dai Dong commune, My Van District, Hung Yen province.

On 24
th
, July, 1999, Vietnamese Government delivered the Decree No. 60 - ND / CP
to separate Chau Giang and My Van into 5 districts: Van Giang, Khoai Chau, Yen My,
My Hao and Van Lam. Nom Village (or Dong Cau village) belonged to Dai Dong
commune, Van Lam district, Hung Yen province since then.
In 2001, Dong Cau village was officially renamed Dai Dong village.


4
In our opinion, before 1945,DongXacommunewasdivided into2communes, which were DongXa and Dai Dong,
Do Xabecame My Xa.