VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

TRẦN THỊ LAN
TRAN THI LAN

THE HERITAGIZATION IN VIETNAM: THE CASE STUDY OF
HAT MON TEMPLE, PHUC THO DISTRICT, HANOI

Major: Cultural Studies
Code: 9 22 90 40

ABSTRACT OF DOCTORAL DISSERTATION
IN CULTURAL STUDIES

Hanoi, 2019


The work has been implemented at:
GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

Supervisors:
1. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Luong Hong Quang
2. Ph.D. Hoang Cam
Cầm
Review 1: Assoc.Prof.Dr. Tran Duc Ngon
Review 2: Assoc.Prof.Dr. Dang Hoai Thu
Review 3: Assoc.Prof.Dr. Nguyen Thi Yen

The dissertation has been defended at the Academy-level Doctoral

documented on records at different levels. Heritagization is considered
a factor that changes the cultural practices of communities; strengthens
the relationship between the state and cultural bearers, the relations
between heritage and new cultural creations, and also cultural identity,
affirming cultural identity in modern time... On the other hand, during
the process of heritagization, the selection, restoration, heritage
ranking, relations between the community and the state... is a rather
complex issue that reflects multidimensional views, political
evolvements, and power interactions among groups in the society.
Hat Mon Temple (Phuc Tho District, Hanoi), an ancient relic in
the Red River Delta, is a place to glorify Hai Ba Trung- the two
women who are considered as symbol of the nation's unyielding and
indomitable fighting spirit. The worship of Hai Ba Trung for thousands
of years is not only of spiritual significance to the community, but also
of special importance in maintaining and raising the Vietnamese
people's consciousness on their ancestors and national - ethnic history.
Following the trend of heritagization, Hat Mon Temple was selected
by the state and ranked as a National Special Relic in 2013, the

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Festivals of Hat Mon Temple was recognized as the National
Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2016. In fact, the discussions on the
heritagization and the process of establishing cultural heritage in
Vietnam in general and Hat Mon Temple in particular have posed
many urgent problems concerning theory and reality, which needs
more researches conducted. On that basis, I chose to do a research on:
The Heritagization in Vietnam: A Case Study in Hat Mon Temple,
Phuc Tho District, Hanoi, with the desire to share my views on the

heritagization of Hat Mon temple and its festivals.
- To discuss the issues that came out during the process of
heritagization in Vietnam in a transformation period.
3. Objects and Scope of study
3.1. Objects
The thesis aims to study Hat Mon Temple and its festivals, in
Phuc Tho District, Hanoi, and other the parties involved in the
process of honoring this cultural heritage.
3.2. Scope of study
- Scope of the content: The thesis focuses on studying the actual
heritagization of Hat Mon Temple and its festivals; The actions of
parties in the process of the heritagization.
- Scope of time: The thesis focuses on studying Hat Mon temple
and its festival from 1986 to 2013 and since the State has recognized
the Temple as a special national relic till now.
4. Methodology and study method.
Within this thesis, we approach cultural heritage in terms of
culture studies, power. Particularly, Political features of cultural
heritage are a focus of the research. In stead of seeing cultural heritage
as a calm entity using essentialism method, this study focuses on
working state of the heritage, especially, the political features of
heritage in a close relation with its social - political context.

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The thesis uses the study methods of many different scientific
branches to study and fully explain the political features of cultural
heritage in the process of heritagization; they are:
- Observation;


values today. On the other hand, the results will provide an additional
reference for teaching and studying cultural heritage.
7. Outline of the thesis
In addition to the Introduction, Conclusion, References and
Appendix, the thesis consists of 4 chapters:
Chapter 1: Overview of research situation, theoretical basis and
research area.
Chapter 2: The honoring process of Hat Mon temple and its festivals.
Chapter 3: The Post-honoring process of Hat Mon temple and its
festivals.
Chapter 4: Heritagization of Hat Mon Temple and issues to
discuss.
Chapter 1
OVERVIEW ON STUDY SITUATION, THEORETICAL
BASIS AND STUDY AREA
1.1. Overview on study situation
1.1.1. Studies on heritagization
We divided studies into the following groups: Studies on
political and social evolvements of parties involved in the process of
heritagization; Studies on the impact of heritagization: positive
impacts, consequences for the protection and promotion of cultural
heritage values.
1.1.2. The studies on Hat Mon temple and its festivals
We divided the studies into the following groups: The studies on
the temple and its festivals viewed from historical perspective; The
studies on the temple and its festivals viewed from cultural
perspective and cultural management.

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spiritual and material product of historical, of cultural and scientific
value, handed down from generation to generation in the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam” [99, p. 8].
Heritagization: Combined with views of researchers, in this
thesis, heritagization is defined as the process of selecting elements of
a culture (buildings, monuments, relics, gardens, landscapes, objects,
practices, rituals, and traditions ...), and honoring it as a cultural
heritage in contemporary society, with various social - political
changes of participants (State, community, researchers, managers...).
Heritagization includes two successive stages: honoring stage and
post-honoring stage.
1.2.2. Some theoretical points
In this thesis, the reseacher adopted Oscar Salemink's
approaching method to consider the aspects related to the
heritagization of Hat Mon Temple.
Oscar Salemink discusses the political-social actions of the
parties involved in the heritagization process. Oscar argues that
heritagization “is not a one-way street. Many communities and
localities willingly participate in the process of seeking cultural
validation to achieve their own purposes” [168, p. 174].
On the other hand, Oscar believes that, through the process of
heritagization, a state has a deeper and deeper intervention in the
cultural practice of community, leading to the risk of deprivation of
cultural practice which was familiar with the community in the past.
The privilege is then given to tourism, economy, politics.
From Oscar Salemink's fundamental points, we decide to
consider the process of heritagization of Hat Mon Temple in reality.

Hat Mon Temple was built to the north of the ancient village, it
looks in the south-west direction, and is situated on a high ground

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with the disposition of “a curling Dragon and a lying Tiger”. The
temple consists of a complex of architectural structures with
different functions. Seen from the outside, there are such the
architectural structures as Quan Tien, Tam Ngu Temple, Four Pillar
Gate and a Ceremony House constructed on the lake which is on the
right of the path leading to the temple. Moreover, there are Dan
The, Nghi Mon, Ta Mac House, Huu Mac House. The main
structures of the temple includes Great Hall, Tien Te, Hau Cung,
stele house, Giau An mound, memorial house of Mrs. Nguyen Thi
Dinh, guest house and annex.
1.3.2.3. Hat Mon Temple’s Festivals
Hat Mon is a special temple with three major festivals that take
place annually, associated with the important events of Hai Ba
Trung: the festivals on March 6 to celebrate the day when the two
Women passed away; the Festival on September 4 to celebrate the
day the Two Women rose up in arms); the Festival on December 24
to celebrate the Two Women’s victory.
Sub-conclusion
Hat Mon is an outstanding cultural space of Doai region in
particular and the Northern Delta in general. The land has been
famous for its traditional cultural institutions. Hat Mon temple, which
is dedicated to Hai Ba Trung, stands out among many religious
structures in the village and has unique architectural features as well
as various festivals. Hat Mon Temple is recognized by the state as a


management

and

community

applied for cultural heritage before and after the

heritage is honored.
Chapter 2
THE HONORING PROCESS OF HAT MON TEMPLE
AND ITS FESTIVALS
2.1. The process of honoring Hat Mon Temple as a Special
National Relic
In the development history, in 1964, Hat Mon Temple was
ranked as a national cultural and historical relic. From late 2012 to
early 2013, Hat Mon Temple was selected as a part in the plan of
Hanoi City that prepares a profile for the the temple to be honored as
a Special National Relic. unlike before, this time, the selecting of

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Hat Mon temple took place in a completely new economic, political
and cultural context.
At the beginning of 2013, implementing the plan of the city;
authorities, the officials of the Management Board of Relics and
Landmarks cooperated with the district authorities, the Department of
Culture and Information and the Department of Natural Resources

of the state.
Profile of Hat Mon temple’s festivals is oriented according to the
criteria of a traditional festival. The criteria are the standards in
producing scientific documents, and are issued by the Ministry of
Culture, Sports and Tourism in Circular No. 04/2010-BVHTT that
stipulate the standards in inventorying and making profile of
intangible cultural heritage. Therefore, the content of the profile is
considered whether it meets 4 criteria: "1. the identity of the
community and locality; 2. the cultural diversity and human
creativity which are handed down from generation to generation; 3.
Ability to recover and survive for a long time; 4. Advocated by the
community, voluntarily nominated and committed to protection
”(Article 10, Section 2, Circular No. 04/2010-BVHTT).
An important point in the background of Hat Mon temple which
is emphasized is the measures taken to protect intangible cultural
heritage in the future - this is one of the conditions that must be
included in the heritage profile. The background of the Hat Mon
festival has introduced a number of measures to protect and promote
the festivals today, especially emphasized the role of the community.
2.3. Role of State and community in the process of honoring
Hat Mon temple and its festivals.
Honoring cultural heritage is an important stage in the process of
heritagization, through which a relic or a cultural practice achieve titles
at different levels. During this process, there were participations from
many different parties, one of the parties that stand out is the state.
The preparation for the honoring profile of Hat Mon Temple (in
2013) and Hat Mon Temple’s Festivals (2016) were made by the

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temple. The granted land is more than 13.000 square meters. After
being honored as a special national relic, Hat Mon Temple is planned
with an expanded area of 13ha. Today, the temple has been added
with such constructions as management area, discovery area, temple
of generals of Hai Ba Trung, temple of Mr. Thi Sach’s mother, and
traditional house for Vietnamese women.

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3.1.2. To recover, create and expand the festival scale
After being honored, the scale of Hat Mon temple’s festival is
increasingly expanded in all of the three festivals. The scale of
festivals are now much greater; not village-scale but national scale,
attracting a lot of visitors from many regions. Many new rituals are
created and expanded such as the procession of Troi cakes, Trong
Quan singing is supplemented and carried out on the day of the
festival. In addition, many new activities

are also added in the

festival: they are commemoration meeting, Saluting the Colours,
National Anthem, Reward ceremony for people who make great
contributions to cultural preservation. Also in the meeting, a Central
company of classical drama was hired to perform the scene of "Hai
Ba Trung rose up in arms" bringing back the indomitable spirit of the
army led by the Two Women- Hai Ba Trung.
3.1.3. Promoting propaganda and cultural heritage
Many propaganda programs/activities are carried out to promote the
value and reputation of the heritage. Hat Mon temple heritage is

protection and preservation of relic, this reflects the active and positive
contribution of the community.
3.2.2.2. Organizing festivals
At Hat Mon temple festival, local authorities can intervene in the
community's heritage after honoring process, but on the other hand,
the community itself takes active actions to maintain and preserve
local traditional identities. Government intervention is mainly in the
festival , expanding the scale and influence of the festivals, but in
fact, the ceremony is still organized by the community. The
community still holds the post of a cultural bearer.
Sub-conclusion
After being ranked, Hat Mon temple and its festivals have
changed in many ways: the relic and its planning have been restored

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and expanded. ; New elements as well as cutural practices have been
added to the festival. In fact, it is undeniable that honoring is an
important agent, leading to the change of the appearance of the relic
and its festivals.
Along with that, after the relic is honored, there is state
intervention in the management of local cultural heritage. The
government plays a role in advising and directing in the protection,
repairing, renovation, and organization of Hat Mon temple’s festivals
every year. However, the local community still plays an important
role as the organizer of the festival. As an organizer, the community
actively selected the participants and performers of

the rituals


sovereignty, national identity, etc. And after all, heritage is a way for
the state to establish the legal ownership and management role with
cultural heritage. On the other hand, honoring heritage is a way to
serve different political purposes/tasks of each locality.
4.1.2. Community and process of heritage
Not only the state, but the heritagization also appeals to
stakeholders, including the community and many different groups such
as the village's people, the intellectuals or part of the new population
living in the local area. They actively participate in the process of
heritagization, but the purpose of each party is different.
The original people and intellectuals desire the relics and festivals
of the village to be honored, thereby, affirming their traditional cultural
values. Honoring heritage is also an opportunity to demonstrate and be
proud of the world outside the village. On the other hand, participation
in protection and promotion activities of cultural heritage also
facilitates individuals/groups to assert their position. The various sociopolitical moves in the process have clearly shown the social relations,
complex interactions in the context of the current transition.
4.2. The impacts of heritagization
4.2.1. Change in government and community awareness
The process of honouring and ranking relics and festivals in Hat
Mon temple has had certain impacts on the awareness of the
authorities and the community in many different ways, contributing
to the protection and promotion of the cultural heritage values.
4.2.2. The issue of marginalization after honoring
As stated in the rationale, when discussing the process of
heritagization, Oscar Salemink emphasized the issue of marginalization
as an unexpected consequence after the cultural heritage is honored.

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At present, the issue of "stateization" takes place in many cultural
relics and practices, such as the Hung Vuong historical relics complex,
Soc Temple, etc. The negotiation, compromise to be able to balance
and harmonize the role of the state and the community is necessary to
protect and promote the cultural heritage values after honoring.
Sub-conclusion
Studying the heritagization of Hat Mon temple shows that
heritagization is a process associated with complex socio-political
moves of parties. The state and the community all want a title of
heritage, but the purpose of each party is different. From this fact, it
helps to clarify Oscar Salemink's view of the heritagization: many
communities and localities are ready to participate in the process of
heritagization to serve their own purposes.
Heritagization has had impacts that change the awareness of
the community and the state, thereby leading to a change in the status
of relics and cultural practices. The reality cannot deny the role of the
current administration in managing relics and organizing festivals.
However, the local owners of relics and festivals also has different
strategies, demonstrating their own initiative and role of "selfdetermination". It is also the process that the Hat Mon village
community creates and affirms the local cultural identity in the
contemporary society.
CONCLUSIONS
1. In the globalization trend, heritagiation is considered an
activity not only to promote and honor but also to support and protect
the values of cultural creations of ethnic groups or a specific
community. This activity is very much concerned by the countries


discourse ... The State uses cultural heritage to legalize, strengthen

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and affirm its political power. The State needs "title", needs
"righteousness" to serve different purposes.
On the community side, it is the proactive approach, efforts to
seek recognition, as well as to change the festival in the direction of
new creation, or to expand and proactively store and preserve ... The
community itself it also needs a title to serve its purposes, which is
not the same as the purpose of the state. The community of Hat Mon
commune has been flexible and proactive in participating in the
process of heritagization as a way of expressing their voices,
affirming membership in the community, affirming heritage values.
In other words, the process of heritagization has created a
playground, a forum, a tool for many parties to participate in, take
advantage of in many different ways. The process of heritagization assigned to places, relics and cultural practices of "cultural heritage"
at all levels is a process based on the wishes and desires of parties.
The selection and recognition of cultural heritage, in a way,
positively contributes to national identity - ethnicity, community
identity or group identity, creating a difference with the concept "We
are us, we are not friends". However, the inheritance/recognition of
cultural heritage is not merely stories about the protection of the
country's cultural heritage, but also the result of political and
economic relations - society and culture. In fact, the different sociopolitical moves, the purposes of participating in different cultural
processes reflect a complex, multi-dimensional cultural world with
the operation of relations between the state and the community in the
contemporary society.
4. Overall, after the relics and Hat Mon temple festival were