Hanoi’s craft villages

Hanoi’s craft villages

Share |

There are 1,350 craft villages in Hanoi, 244 of which are traditional craft villages, according to the statistics of Hanoi Industry and Trade Department. Such villages are mainly distributed in suburban districts, mostly in districts of Chuong My (174 villages), Thuong Tin (125 villages), Phu Xuyen (124 villages), Ung Hoa (113 villages), etc. In terms of the number of handicraft villages, bamboo and rattan weaving craft ranks first, including 83 villages, mainly distributed in districts of Chuong My, Ung Hoa, Phu Xuyen, Thach That, etc. The crafts of embroidery and lace, weaving and sewing, leaf conical hat and hat making, etc. hold the next positions regarding the number of villages, respectively. The outstanding villages that reach high annual turnovers include  La Phu woollen weaving village (in Hoai Duc district) with VND810 billion, Y La weaving and dyeing hamlet (in Duong Noi ward, Ha Dong district) with VND416 billion, Bat Trang pottery village (in Gia Lam district) with VND350 billion, Chang Son car- pentry village (in Thach That district) with VND282 billion, Van Diem carpentry village (in Thuong Tin village) with VND240 billion, Truong Yen bamboo and rattan weaving village (in Chuong My district) with VND75.6 billion, etc. The crafts in the villages mentioned above have provided jobs with the annual average income of nearly VND30 million for 739,630 people.

Hanoi’s traditional handicraft villages can be divided into 14 main categories as below.

Lacquer and oyster encrusting villages: Oyster encrusting craft originated in the Ly dynasty, about 1,000 years ago in Chuon Ngo village (in Chuyen My commune, Phu Xuyen district) and the man who first taught villagers here these handicraft works was Mr. Truong Cong Thanh. There are a total of 39 lacquer and oyster encrusting villages, making up 2.89 percent of Hanoi’s craft villages, concentrating in communes of Duyen Thai (in Thuong Tin district), Chuyen My (in Phu Xuyen district), etc. 11 out of those villages have been recognized to have met the standards of a craft village. This craft has generated jobs and incomes for approximately 35,000 employees, gaining the turnover of VND608.73 billion. It has not only brought Hanoi’s lacquer and oyster encrusting prod- ucts to domestic consumers but also served export to Europe, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the United State, the United Kingdom, etc.

Leaf conical hat and hat making villages: Leaf conical hat and hat making craft appeared in the 15th century in districts such as Thanh Oai, Quoc Oai, Ba Vi, Thanh Tri, etc. This craft flour- ishes in Phuong Trung commune (in Thanh Oai district), providing 10-15 million products for the market an- nually, part of which are exported to the United State, the United Kingdom, Japan, China, the Netherlands, etc. There are 62 leaf conical hat and hat making villages in Hanoi, accounting for 4.59 percent of the city’s crafts. 20 of them have been recognized to have reached the standards of a craft village by Hanoi People Committee, attracting 16,925 households with 52,190 em- ployees.

Bamboo and rattan weaving, flavour toothpick making, bird cage making villages: Bamboo and rattan weaving craft dated back to the 17th century, mainly distributed in communes of Phu Nghia, Truong Yen, Dong Phuong Yen (in Chuong My district), Binh Phu (in Thach That district), Can Huu (in Quoc Oai district), Ninh So (in Thuong Tin district). In Phu Nghia commune only, there are seven villages that maintain and develop this craft with 90 percent of households taking part in the process. Bamboo weaving craft in Ninh So commune (in Thuong Tin dis- trict) originated in the King Le Canh Hung period, about 400 years ago, with Bang So hamlet being an impressive part of the craft village. Paper fan and bird cage making craft appeared in Canh Hoach hamlet, Dan Hoa commune (in Thanh Oai district) in the middle of the 19th century, about 130 to 150 years ago. Bamboo and rattan are the main materials used to weave valuable prod- ucts such as suitcases, table and chairs, cradles, bags, shopping bags, mats, screens, bird cages, incense, closely woven baskets, fans, etc. to provide for domestic and foreign markets. 85 percent of all products are exported to Russia, the United State, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, China, Taiwan, etc. This craft develops in almost all of Hanoi’s districts and 83 out of 365 villages doing this craft have been recognized to have met the standards of a craft village, attracting 159.900 employees.

Forestry products processing, civil carpentry, premium wood- working villages: There are 170 villages to do this craft, making up 12.59 percent of Hanoi’s crafts, ranking second only to bamboo and rattan weaving craft in terms of the number of craft villages. This craft is mainly distributed in districts of Thuong Tin, Dan Phuong, Ung Hoa, Thach That, Ba Vi, Thanh Oai, Phu Xuyen, Phuc Tho, Chuong My,  My Duc, and Dong Anh. Until now,  23   villages have been recognized to have reached the standards of a handicraft village, attracting 73,907 employ- ees. Some villages that generate high revenues include Van Diem woodworking village (in Thuong Tin district); Dinh Quan civil woodworking hamlet (in Thuong Tin district); Ha, Trung, Thuong forestry prod- uct processing hamlets in Lien Trung commune (in Dan Phuong district), Lien Ha and Van Ha communes (in Dong Anh district); Huu Bang, Chang Son, Canh Nau, Di Nau civil carpentry and premium woodwork- ing villages (in Thach That district).