* Alternate names: Xá Cẩu, Mứn Xen, Pu Thênh, Tềnh, Tày Hạy

* Population: The Khơ Mú ethnic group numbers approximately 43,000 individuals.

* Residency: The Khơ Mú predominantly reside in the provinces of Nghệ An, Lai Châu, Sơn La, Thanh Hóa, and Yên Bái.

Illustrative Image

* Language: The Khơ Mú language belongs to the Mon-Khmer language family.

* Economy: The Khơ Mú people primarily engage in shifting cultivation. Their main crops include rice, corn, sweet potatoes, and cassava. In agriculture, they predominantly use tools such as knives, axes, and digging sticks. Foraging and hunting play a crucial role, especially during the lean season. Livestock and poultry are raised mainly for special occasions and hospitality. Basket weaving is a well-developed craft, with the Khơ Mú creating items for transport and food storage. They do not practice weaving, so they commonly purchase clothing from the Thai people.

* Customs and Traditions: In many areas, the Khơ Mú continue to practice a nomadic lifestyle. Their villages are often isolated, small, and sparsely populated.

* Housing: The majority of their homes are rudimentary, and household items are minimal.

Illustrative Image

* Clothing: The distinctive features of Khơ Mú attire have largely faded, though women’s jewelry still retains some unique elements.

* Clan Relations: Khơ Mú clans are typically named after an animal, bird, or plant. Each clan regards these creatures or plants as their ancestral origins and traditionally consumes them. Clans have legends about their common ancestry, and members of the same clan consider each other as close kin.

* Marriage and Family: In Khơ Mú families, spouses are considered equal and faithful. They practice a custom where the groom lives with his bride's family for a year before bringing her to his home. During this period, the husband adopts his wife’s surname, and any children are given the mother’s surname. Upon moving to the husband’s home, the wife adopts his surname, and the children then take the father’s surname. Marriages between individuals of the same clan are prohibited, but a niece can marry a nephew. The role of the maternal uncle is crucial in both arranging marriages and in family life.

Illustrative Image

*Culture: The Khơ Mú people believe in various spirits, including "sky spirits," "thunder spirits," "earth spirits," "forest spirits," "field spirits," "village spirits," "house spirits," and "ancestral spirits." Throughout the year, they conduct major religious rituals such as offerings to village spirits, ancestral worship, and ceremonies related to agricultural work. The Khơ Mú possess a rich and ancient cultural heritage. Despite material poverty, their spiritual life is vibrant and well-developed.

          Translated by Huyen Vu