The Thổ

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

(also Keo, Mon, Cuoi, Ho, Tay Poong) inhabits the mountainous regions of northern

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, mainly Nghệ An Province southwest of

Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...

. Many Thổ speak the Tho language, which is closely related to

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

. The Thổ population numbered 91,430 in 2019. The Thổ are one of the 4 main groups of Vietic speakers in Vietnam, the others being the Việt, Mường, and Chứt. The name Thổ, which means "autochthonous" was originally applied to the Tày ethnic group, however this usage is obsolete.

History

The Thổ people are a heterogeneous mix of different Vietic peoples. Around the end of the 17th century, Vietnam experienced multiple social upheavals that caused multiple migrations of Viet and

Muong people The Mường (Muong language, Mường Bi dialect: ''mõl Mường''; ) are an ethnic group native to northern Vietnam. The Mường is the country's third largest of 53 minority groups, with an estimated population of 1.45 million (according ...

s into territory of other Vietic speaking ethnic minorities such as the Cuối and intermixed with the local populations. After a period of evolution, were given the name Thổ. Their culture combines elements of Viet and Muong culture, with elements of Thái culture. Their clothing is a mix of Vietnamese, Muong, and Tai traditions from the early modern period. Some women wear clothing similar to the

Áo bà ba ''Áo bà ba'' (, translates to "Grandma's shirt") is a traditional southern Culture of Vietnam, Vietnamese garment. The top part that covers the torso is called the ''áo'' ("shirt" in English). It is mostly associated with rural southern ...

or the

Áo tứ thân The ''áo tứ thân'' (, ''four-piece shirt''), is a traditional Vietnamese dress commonly worn in Northern Vietnam. The dress is related to the áo ngũ thân (''five-piece shirt'') and the áo đối khâm (''parallel-flap robe'').

, but with a

Sarong A sarong or a sarung (, ) is a large tube or length of textile, fabric, often wrapped around the waist, worn in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Western Asia, Northern Africa, East Africa, West Africa, and on many Pacific islands. The fabric often ...

and a

Kerchief A kerchief (from the Old French ''couvre-chef'', "cover head"), also known as a bandana or bandanna, is a triangular or square piece of cloth tied around the Human head, head, face, or neck for protective or decorative purposes. The popularity of ...

. Men wear simple tunics and pants. Just like with the Muong, many clothing items are purchased from the Thái. They mainly grow rice and

ramie Ramie (pronounced: , ; from Malay ), ''Boehmeria nivea'', is a flowering plant in the nettle family Urticaceae, native to eastern Asia. It is an herbaceous perennial growing to tall;

, and use hemp to make bags, hammocks and nets. In the northern communes of Nghệ An, the stilt houses are identical to that of the Muong. In the South, however, they are in the Thái style.

Subdivisions

Thổ consists of various different ethnolinguistic groups. Quán Vi Miên (2013:12) lists the following branches. *Họ (Lao/Thai exonym for the Han Chinese) *Kẹo (Keo) (Lao/Thai exonym for ethnic Kinh or Vietnamese) *Mọn (Mol) (Mường autonym) *Cuối *Đan Lai *Ly Hà *Tày Poọng (Phoọng, Poọng, Phống) (Lao exonym for the "Khạ", or Mon-Khmer hill tribes)

Languages

Thổ is a heterogeneous group; thus, local groups have distinct languages. However, all of Thổ languages belong to Vietic branch . Nguyễn Hữu Hoành (2009) classify Thổ languages into 5 groups base on their position in Vietic branch.“Nguyễn Hữu Hoành. 2009. Tìm hiểu ngôn ngữ các dân tộc ở Việt Nam: Vấn đề dân tộc Thổ xét từ góc độ ngôn ngữ, Hà Nội: NXB Khoa học xã hộ

�� * Tày Poọng ( Poong language, Poong or Phong) and Đan Lai ( Liha) - Lexicostatistical studies have found that Đan Lai and Poọng sharing 85% basic lexicon. Thus, Nguyễn (2009) identify them as dialects of a language. The speakers of this language reside mainly in Con Cuông and

Tương Dương ''Tương'' (, vi-hantu, 醬) is the name applied to a variety of condiments, a kind of fermented bean paste made from soybean and commonly used in Cuisine of Vietnam, Vietnamese cuisine. Originally, the term refers to a Edible salt, salty p ...

districts. It may also have close relation with

Hung language Phong or Tày Poọng is a Vietic dialect cluster spoken in north-central Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a ...

(Toum) in

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

. * Cuối, Nguyễn (2009) pointed out that Cuối is a distinct language with Vietnamese, Muong and Poọng-Đan Lai. This language have two dialects Cuối Chăm in Tân Hợp commune ( Tân Kỳ district) and Cuối Nếp (or Cuối Làng Lỡ) in Thái Hòa town. Because of sharing 66% basic lexicon with Poọng, Nguyễn (2009) proposed to group Cuối with Tày Poọng-Đan Lai to form a subbranch in Vietic, parallel to Việt-Mường branch and Chứt branch. * Mọn and Họ, The two dialects share 98% basic lexicon and have a closer relation with Mường languages than Cuối and Poọng. They share 77%, 79% and 71% core lexicon with Mường Bi language, Mường Ống language and Nghệ An dialect of Vietnamese, respectively. Especially, Mọn and Họ are lexical closest with a Mường language in Như Xuân district (84%). Therefore, Nguyễn (2009) group them into a single language in Việt-Mường branch which have a closer relation with Mường languages. Maspéro (1912) named this language as Southern Mường language * Kẹo share 99% lexicon with Nghệ An dialect of Vietnamese. Thus, Nguyễn(2009) classified Kẹo as a dialect of Vietnamese or even a sub-dialect of Nghệ An dialect * Thổ Lâm La and Thổ Như Xuân share respectively 94% and 95% basic lexicon with Nghệ An dialect. However, Nguyễn (2009) argued that two Thổ languages experienced a different phonological innovation with Vietnamese. Thus, he placed it into a grey area between being dialects of Vietnamese or being member languages of Viet-Muong branch ( Nguồn has a similar status).

Distribution

As of 2009, 80% (59,579 persons) of all ethnic Thổ live in Nghệ An Province, while 13% (9,652 persons) are found in Thanh Hóa Province Quán Vi Miên (2013:11). Quán Vi Miên (2013:12-13) lists ethnic Thổ populations and branches (ethnic subdivisions) for the following districts of Nghệ An Province. *'' Quỳ Hợp District'': 18,394 people; Họ, Kẹo, Mọn branches, in the following communes: **Tam Hợp (5,515 ethnic Thổ) **Nghĩa Xuân (3,855 ethnic Thổ) **Minh Hợp (1,983 ethnic Thổ) **Hạ Sơn (2,652 ethnic Thổ) **Văn Lợi (2,403 ethnic Thổ) **Thọ Hợp (1,730 ethnic Thổ) **Quỳ Hợp city (265 ethnic Thổ) *'' Nghĩa Đàn District'': 28,487 people; Họ, Kẹo, Mọn, Cuối Đếp branches *'' Tân Kỳ District'': 15,695 people; Họ, Kẹo, Mọn, Cuối Chăm branches *'' Con Cuông District'': 3,220 people; Đan Lai, Ly Hà branches *''

Tương Dương District ''Tương'' (, vi-hantu, 醬) is the name applied to a variety of condiments, a kind of fermented bean paste made from soybean and commonly used in Vietnamese cuisine. Originally, the term refers to a salty paste made from fermented soybean ...

'': 436 people; Tày Poọng branch

History

Subdivisions

Languages

Distribution

See also