Nghia Tru - From the Geographic Perspective to the Historical and Cultural Perspectives

Abstract

This article describes the rich historical and cultural significance of the small Nghia Tru River. The current of this river has carried many important cultural ideas and artifacts throughout several Viet dynasties: going all the way back to the Dong Son period for a thousand years; from the Ly dynasty to the Tran dynasty and from the Le to the Mac dynasties. Finally, the author shows the sacredness of the Nghia Tru River in connection with the northern Hanoi village community ceremonies as follows: cutting off the head and the tail of the pigs, and running as fast as a horse in a festival of Cau Bay village; the snake’s skin shedding dances organized in the communal house of the Truong Lam village. Although the above examples are slowly diminishing over the course of time, they remind us of the value and the beauty of traditional culture of the people living along the Nghia Tru River.