Cultural autonomy and perspective of insiders: Looking the restoration water Buffalo sacrifice Ceremony of the Cor people in Trà Bồng District, Quảng Ngãi Province.

Abstract

CULTURAL AUTONOMY AND PERSPECTIVE OF INSIDERS: LOOKING THE RESTORATION WATER BUFFALO SACRIFICE CEREMONY OF THE COR PEOPLE IN TRÀ BỒNG DISTRICT, QUẢNG NGÃI PROVINCE
The Cor people has about 37.000 inhabitants, residing mainly in Quảng Nam and Quảng Ngãi provinces. In cultural and spiritual practices of the Cor people, water buffalo sacrifice ceremony (xa ố kpiêu) is considered to be the biggest festival, vividly reflecting the worldview and the outlook of life in the ethnic group traditions. For many reasons, during a long time after the national reunification, water buffalo sacrifice ceremony had been delayed and in danger of extinction. After 1986, as well as most traditional festivals in Vietnam, the Cor’s water buffalo sacrifice ceremony was planned to restore by some localities. However, the process of restoring it causes a number of problems that need to be resolved from the perspective of the insiders; meanwhile, the pressures of the media and the public on sacrifice ceremonies are increasing, which requires scientists to speak out in order to protect cultural values and the right of cultural expression of ethnic communities. Those are the problems that this article aims to solve through the research on the restoration of the Cor’s water buffalo sacrifice ceremony in Trà Bồng District, Quảng Ngãi Province.