Livelihood changes of Tay people in Lang Son province border from 1986 renovation to present: case study of Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune, Van Lang district, Lang Son province - 2

a frontier in which the human factor must be given due attention and must be the subject of all development programs in this area.

Up to now, most research works on the Tay people have only focused on studying the ethnic history, traditional social organization, customs, marriage, family, festivals, etc., while contemporary cultural issues in relation to socio-economic changes and international exchange have hardly been mentioned.

Tan Thanh is one of the border communes of Van Lang district, Lang Son province, located in the Tan Thanh - Po Chai border economic zone, bordering China to the east, with an 8 km long border, the population is mainly Tay - Nung people. Located in the border economic zone, with a fairly developed trade - service economy in recent years, Tan Thanh is a place for meeting, exchanging, trading between the Tay people and residents on the other side of the border. These activities are creating great changes in the economy, culture and society of the Tay people in Tan Thanh. That is why I chose the topic " Changes in the livelihoods of the Tay people in the border area of Lang Son province from Doi Moi (1986) to the present - (A case study of Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune, Van Lang district, Lang Son province) " as my master's thesis.

2. Research purpose

- To reveal the traditional livelihoods as well as the changes in the current livelihoods of the Tay people in Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune, Van Lang district, Lang Son province.

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- Research on factors affecting the livelihood activities of the Tay people and the choice of livelihood strategies of the residents here.

- Contribute to finding the best solutions to stabilize life, develop the economy and preserve the cultural values of the Tay people in Tan Thanh.

* The research questions posed for this topic are :

- What is the traditional livelihood of the Tay people in Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune? How has it changed now? What causes such changes in their livelihood?

- What are the main livelihood activities of Tay households in Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune?

- What are the impacts or consequences of livelihood changes on their economic, cultural and social lives? What current situations and difficulties do ethnic groups have to face?

3. Research object and scope

- The research object of the topic is livelihood or ways of making a living.

of the Tay people in Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune, Van Lang district, Lang Son province.

- The scope of the research topic is issues related to livelihoods and livelihood transformation. Within the framework of a master's thesis, the research is limited to the Tay ethnic group in Ban Thau village, Tan Thanh commune, Van Lang district, Lang Son province from the Doi Moi period (1986) to the present. Ban Thau is a border village, located in the Tan Thanh border gate economic zone, so it is strongly affected by economic development and cultural import compared to other villages, and the occupational social groups are also diverse. Therefore, I chose this as the research area.

4. Source of documents

The sources of the thesis include written documents and ethnographic field documents.

- Written documents: Research works, books, newspapers, magazines related to the livelihoods of ethnic minorities in general and the Tay people in particular. In addition, there are secondary sources of documents from the People's Committee of Van Lang district and the People's Committee of Tan Thanh commune.

- Fieldwork documents: The author conducted a survey in 2 phases in the area. Phase 1 (lasting 2 weeks, in October 2011), phase 2 (lasting 2 weeks, in February 2012).

5. Contribution of the thesis

- This is the first study on traditional livelihoods and changes in current livelihoods of the Tay people in a specific locality.

- Based on new sources of information on the livelihoods of the Tay people, the thesis has pointed out the adaptation and dynamism of the ethnic group in the rise to find new livelihoods in the border area, along with the factors affecting this transformation.

- The thesis contributes more scientific basis to help managers and policy makers have effective solutions to stabilize sustainable livelihoods for the Tay people in Tan Thanh.

6. Thesis layout

In addition to the introduction, conclusion, appendix, and list of references, the thesis consists of 4 chapters with the following contents:

Chapter 1: Overview of research situation

Chapter 2: Traditional livelihood of the Tay people in Tan Thanh

Chapter 3: Changes in the livelihood of the Tay people in Tan Thanh from Doi Moi (1986) to present

Chapter 4: Factors affecting the livelihood changes of the Tay people in Tan Thanh.

Chapter 1‌‌

OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH SITUATION

1.1. History of research on the problem

1.1.1. Research by foreign authors

Up to now, foreign authors' research works on the Tay people in Vietnam under the French colonial period include a number of books such as Notes on the Tho people in the upper reaches of the North (1988) by Girard D'Henry; Collection of Tho folk tales on the banks of the Lo River (1905) by A. Bonifacy; Northern mountainous ethnic groups (1908) by E.Dignet; Boundless patience: Tho folk tales (1915) by A. Bonifacy; Tay festival in Bo Lake (1915) by LMAuguste and A. Bonifacy; Funeral rituals of the Tho people by A. Bonifacy... Besides, the research work on the Tay people in Lang Son in particular, to my knowledge, only includes Ethnic issues in the Vietnamese nation-state - Modern history of the Tay - Nung ethnic group on the Vietnam - China border conducted by Japanese author Ito Masako.

The idea of livelihood was introduced in the studies of Robert Chambers in the mid-1980s and later developed by Chambers and Conway in the early 1990s. According to them, a livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (both material and social) and activities required for a means of living. A livelihood is sustainable when it can cope with and overcome stresses and vulnerabilities and maintain or enhance its capabilities and assets both now and in the future while not undermining the natural resource base.

Over the past few decades, environmental issues have emerged as one of the most pressing issues facing humanity. Therefore, in 2003, author Koos Neefjes published Environment and Livelihoods: Strategies for Sustainable Development. Throughout the book are practical recommendations based on case studies drawn from Oxfam’s extensive experience in development and relief work with marginalized communities, both rural and urban. Environment and Livelihoods aims to support the advocacy of local and international development organizations, improve the drafting and implementation of development strategies, and strengthen participatory planning, monitoring, and impact assessment.

In this work, the author has studied the relationship between humans and the environment in a broad sense (including humans and social relations) to propose policies and strategies to protect and develop a sustainable environment, to fight poverty worldwide. Can poverty be attributed to the global environmental crisis or, on the contrary, is the degradation of the global environment the main cause of poverty? That question lies at the heart of the book in which the author conceives of “environment” in the broadest sense: Environment includes both humans and social relations. First, it reflects the relationships between poverty and environmental change, from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Next, the book introduces the action frameworks of development agencies, explores power relations and the idea of stakeholder participation and especially the concept of sustainable livelihoods. Finally, the book discusses the tools and approaches to project management. Finally, it considers how strategies and policies can address the structural causes of environmental degradation and poverty.

1.1.2. Research by domestic authors

The Tay people in Vietnam are one of the ethnic groups with a long history and cultural tradition. Therefore, they have attracted many scientists to research from many different perspectives. Since the Le and Nguyen dynasties, there have been books written about ethnic groups in Vietnam, including the Tay people, such as: Du dia chi by Nguyen Trai; Kien van tieu luc by Le Quy Don; Lich trieu hien chuong loai chi and Hoang Viet dia du chi by Phan Huy Chu; Cao Bang luc by Phan Le Phien; Cao Bang ky luoc by Pham An Phu; Hung Hoa ky luoc by Pham Than Duat; Cao Bang thuc luc by Be Huu Cung; Cao Bang tap chi by Be Huynh; Cao Bang su tich by Nguyen Duc Nha; Hung Hoa xu phong tho luc by Hoang Binh Chinh... Although these works are still sketchy, they have certain significance, helping us to understand to some extent the folk cultural activities of the Tay people in Vietnam.

During the French colonial period, there were also a number of books and articles written about the Tay ethnic group such as Collection of folk songs of weddings of the Tho ethnic group in Lang Son and Cao Bang (1941) and The Tho ethnic group (1943) by Nguyen Van Huyen; Cremation customs of the Tho people by Do Hoang Lac in Tri Tan Magazine No. 97/1943.

After the August Revolution in 1945, especially since the restoration of peace (1954) until now, the study of the culture and society of the Tay people has received special attention to serve the ethnic policies of our Party and State. Research agencies such as the Institute of Ethnology, the Institute of Literature, the Institute of History, the Institute of Cultural Studies, etc. as well as universities (Viet Bac Pedagogical University, Hanoi Pedagogical University I, Hanoi University of Science, etc.) have conducted many field surveys and accumulated a lot of scientific documents to help research the society, history and culture of the Tay people. Specialized magazines such as Study, National Unity, Historical Research, Literature, Ethnology, Folklore, Art and Culture, etc. have published many articles about the Tay people, helping us understand their historical origins, customs and practices.

Religious beliefs and folk cultural activities of the Tay people. Some typical works include: Tay - Nung poetry (1961) by Vinh Dam ; Brief introduction of the Tay, Nung, Thai ethnic groups in Vietnam by two authors La Van Lo and Dang Nghiem Van (1968); Tay - Nung folk tales (1974) by Hoang Quyet; Ethnic minorities in Vietnam (Northern provinces) (1978) by the Institute of Ethnology ; Sli - luon folk songs of the Tay, Nung (1979) by Vi Hong ; Tay - Nung culture by La Van Lo - Ha Van Thu (1984); Luon coi Tay, Nung (1987) by Cung Van Luoc and Le Bich Ngan; Some issues of ethnic history and main characteristics of the culture of the Tay and Nung ethnic groups (1988) by Be Viet Dang; The Tay - Nung ethnic groups in Vietnam (1992) by the Institute of Ethnology; Traditional culture of the Tay and Nung (1993) by Hoang Quyet, Ma Khanh Bang, Hoang Huy Phach; Marriage and family of the Tay, Nung, Thai ethnic groups in Vietnam (1994) by Do Thuy Binh... The above works have presented general features of the natural conditions and population, ethnic history, traditional economy, material culture, social organization, religious beliefs and literature of the Tay - Nung ethnic groups in Vietnam.

In 1995, the two authors Hoang Quyet and Tuan Dung published the book Customs and Practices of the Tay Ethnic Group in Viet Bac . This is a research work on the customs and practices in childbirth, marriage, funerals, social relations, festivals and New Year of the Tay people.

In 1999, author Tran Van Ha published the book Tay and Nung ethnic groups with scientific and technological advances in agriculture . This is a research work in the field of sociology - ethnicity, deeply studying the process of popularization and reception of technical advances in agriculture as well as the manifestations of cultural nuances of production of the Tay and Nung ethnic groups in the period of Doi Moi since after Contract 10 (1989 - 1995). Originating from the concept of considering technical advances in agriculture as a process that entails socio-economic changes, over a period of 15 years (1981 - 1995) from the beginning of the change.

Regarding the changes in agricultural management mechanisms that have taken place up to the time of the study, the author would like to make assessments and comments on the effectiveness of the Innovation policy on the development of agriculture and mountainous rural areas, and the efforts of the Tay and Nung working people in developing household economy.

The book Tay - Nung Folk Beliefs (2009) by Nguyen Thi Yen and Tay - Nung Folk Culture in Vietnam (2010) by Ha Dinh Thanh... presented the content of folk literature, visual arts, beliefs, religions and festivals of the two ethnic groups. Through this, the authors have raised the current status of cultural and religious life and its role in the life of the Tay and Nung people.

Recently, in 2010, author La Cong Y - a Tay Ethnologist, published the book Coming to the Tay and Tay Culture . The work was completed based on the author's own fieldwork materials and the accumulation of more than 30 years of research. Besides, it is also the inheritance of the knowledge of previous authors in Ethnological research. It can be said that this is an elaborate monograph, systematically mentioning the economic - cultural - social life of the Tay people.

The issue of livelihood has long been the subject of research in many scientific fields such as economics, sociology, anthropology, etc. and is viewed from the perspective of economic activities of ethnic groups.

In 2001, author Tran Binh published the book Economic activities of some ethnic groups in the Northwest of Vietnam and in 2005 published the book Livelihood practices of ethnic minorities in the Northeast of Vietnam . Based on the data collected through fieldwork over many years, the author has outlined the natural and social environment of the two regions, along with the economic activities of the La Hu, Si La, Xinh Mun, Kho Mu, Thai people in the Northwest and the Tay, Dao, San Chay, Ha Nhi, Co Lao people... in the Northeast. Through the two works above, the author has affirmed that economic activities are an important part of the system of ethnic cultural values. At the same time,

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