The Role of Traditional Festivals for Tourism

There is no consensus and no definition that satisfies both qualitative and quantitative aspects. That, in my opinion, has the following reasons:

First, among those who study culture, or, as people often call them, culturalists, in addition to historical prejudices and limitations, many suffer from occupational diseases. They often reduce culture to specific, narrow fields, and often try to divine culture, as well as life in general, like blind men touching an elephant, by examining its individual parts rather than taking a holistic approach.

Second, culture is a vast, rich and complex field, so the concept of culture is also polysemous. When referring to it, it is understandable that each person has a different understanding depending on their approach.

Third, like all other social sciences, cultural studies has a long history of origin and development in human history. During that historical process, the content of the concept of culture has also changed.

Many organizations, countries and cultural experts have proposed concepts of culture and related issues, and currently there is no absolutely unified concept of culture. Some concepts, concepts and definitions of culture can be given as follows:

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The International Conference on Culture in Mexico (1982) to begin the UNESCO Decade of Culture. It was agreed to put forward a concept of culture as follows: “ In its widest sense, culture is the whole complex of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features that characterize a society or social group. It includes arts and literature, modes of life, the fundamental rights of the human being, value systems, traditions and beliefs ”.

In 2002, UNESCO defined culture as follows: “Culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs .”

Former UNESCO General Director Professor Federico Mayor when he gave a definition: " Culture reflects and expresses in a general and vivid way all aspects of life (of each individual and the whole community) that have taken place in the past as well as are taking place in the present, over many centuries, it has constituted a system of values, aesthetic traditions and lifestyles on which each nation affirms its own identity ".

Professor Academician Tran Ngoc Them proposed the concept: " Culture is an organic system of material and spiritual values created and accumulated by humans through practical activities, in the interaction between humans and the natural and social environment ."

In general, all definitions agree that culture has the following characteristics:

Firstly , culture is a human creation, belongs to humans, anything not made by humans does not belong to the concept of culture. Therefore, culture is the fundamental characteristic that distinguishes humans from animals, and is also the fundamental criterion that distinguishes artificial products from natural products. Culture appears due to the active and conscious adaptation of humans to nature, so culture is also the result of that adaptation.

Second , this adaptation is a conscious and proactive adaptation, so it is not a mechanical adaptation but often a creative adaptation, consistent with the values of truth, goodness and beauty.

Third , culture includes both material and spiritual products, not just the spiritual alone.

Fourth, culture does not mean only literature and art as people often say. Literature and art are only the highest part in the cultural field.

Based on the analysis of the above concepts, it can be concluded that: Culture is a product of mankind, culture is created and developed in the relationship between humans and society . However, culture itself participates in creating humans, and maintaining social stability and order. Culture is transmitted from generation to generation through the process of socialization. Culture is recreated and developed in the process of human action and social interaction. Culture is the level of development of humans and society expressed in the types and forms of organizing human life and actions as well as in the material and spiritual values created by humans.

1.2.2. Structure of culture

Humans have two basic needs: material needs and spiritual needs, so humans also have two basic activities: material production and spiritual production. From there, culture as a system is often divided into two forms: material culture (objects) and spiritual culture (intangibles).

- Material culture includes all products created by human material production activities: food, clothing, housing, daily necessities, production tools, means of transport,...

- Spiritual culture includes all products created by human spiritual production activities: ideas, beliefs - religions, arts, festivals, customs, ethics, language, literature,... This division at first glance seems quite clear and obvious, but if you look closely, you will see a series of complicated cases appear.

In reality, material and spiritual culture are always closely linked and can be transformed into each other: it is not by chance that K. Marx said that " Ideas will become material forces when they are understood by the masses ". Therefore, depending on different purposes, the distinction between material culture and spiritual culture will have to be based on different criteria.

1.2.3. Cultural tourism

According to the Vietnam Tourism Law (2005), " Cultural tourism is a form of tourism based on national cultural identity with community participation to preserve and promote traditional cultural values ".

In addition to types of tourism such as eco-tourism, medical tourism, adventure tourism, educational tourism, ... recently cultural tourism is considered a special product of developing countries, attracting many international tourists. Cultural tourism mainly relies on cultural products, traditional festivals, including religious customs ... to attract local tourists and tourists from all over the world. For tourists who are interested in researching and exploring local culture and customs, cultural tourism is an opportunity to satisfy their needs.

Cultural tourism is one of the sustainable tourism forms, attracting tourists, having many conditions and resources for development, and receiving investment attention for development in many countries as well as in Vietnam.

Cultural tourism is a tourism product that uses cultural values imbued with local identity, through attractions or means of expression, providing visitors with the opportunity to admire, experience and experience local culture. Attractions include architectural works of art, historical relics, religious activities, special social rituals, food, drinks, musical and dramatic performances, local dances, traditional handicrafts and craft villages, festivals, customs and practices.

1.3. Traditional festivals and festival tourism

1.3.1. Concept and classification of festivals

1.3.1.1. Concept

It can be said that up to now, researchers have only given viewpoints, perspectives, and assessments of festivals, but have not given a complete concept of festivals.

According to the Vietnamese Encyclopedia, " A festival is a social event with cultural and spiritual significance organized in a communal manner ."

M. Bakhtin's definition of festival is as follows: " The essence of festival is life reproduced in the form of sacrifices and performances, which is the life of labor and struggle of the community. However, life itself cannot become a festival if it is not sublimated, linked and gathered into the world of spirituality, the ideology of symbols that transcend the world of means and necessary conditions; that is the world, the second life that temporarily escapes reality, reaching the ideal reality where everything becomes beautiful, sparkling, transcendent and sublime ."

Japanese Professor Kurahayashi's additional definition of festival for M. Bakhtin's definition of festival is as follows: " In terms of the social nature of festival, festival is the square of the soul; in terms of the cultural nature, festival is the cradle that produces and nurtures art, fine arts, entertainment arts, performances and with that meaning, festival exists and is closely related to the development of culture ".

Obviously, the above definition and addition clearly show that a festival includes two components: ritual and festival, entertainment, and neither of which can be missing.

Thus, it can be seen that a festival is a form of community cultural activity that takes place in a residential area at a specific time and period.

1.3.1.2. Festival classification

Currently in our country festivals are divided into two types: traditional festivals and modern festivals.

- Traditional festivals have the largest number (about 7,000 festivals out of a total of nearly 9,000 festivals), a wide distribution range (including rural, urban, mountainous areas of ethnic groups), and the longest history. Traditional festivals can be classified according to the time of the seasons of the year, the most important of which are spring and autumn (spring and autumn two periods); divided by large and small scope: Village festivals, regional festivals, national festivals; classified by the nature of the festival: Professional festivals (agriculture, fishing, trade...), festivals honoring national heroes, people with great achievements.

merit to homeland, country, festivals associated with specific religious beliefs such as festivals of Buddhism, Christianity, folk beliefs,...

- Modern festivals associated with modern historical events, revolutions, festivals and events associated with tourism promotion, festivals to celebrate even-numbered years of the founding of cities, provinces, districts, etc.

1.3.2. Traditional festivals

Traditional festivals are a popular form of community cultural activities imbued with national identity, a priceless asset in the treasure trove of intangible cultural heritage, a spiritual product of the people formed and developed throughout history; have special value in the increasingly strong cohesion of the community; at the same time, are a bridge between the past and the present, a form of education, transferring to the next generations an understanding of the merits of ancestors, expressing gratitude to the merits of national heroes, predecessors who have contributed to building the country, defending the country and fighting for national liberation. Organizing traditional festivals also contributes positively to the exchange with world cultures, creating a solid foundation for Vietnamese culture to have the strength to resist the negative influence of foreign cultures.

1.3.2.1. General characteristics of traditional festivals

 Sacred

To form a festival, one must always find a “sacred” reason. That is, a hero who fought the enemy and was killed, fell on that land, and was immediately pushed up by termites to form a tomb. That is where a hero suddenly became a saint, flew to heaven. Sometimes it is just a riverbank, where a drowned body, floating, suddenly stopped, no longer floating; people picked it up, buried it, worshiped it,... Sometimes the festival is only formed on the birthday or death day of a person who contributed to the village and the country, in this field or that field (some people cured diseases, some taught crafts, some dug ditches, some controlled water, some fought the enemy,...). However, those people are always “sacred” and have become “divine” in the minds of the people.

People believe that those people have become Gods, not only can they bless them in the aspects that they did during their lifetime: healing, working, producing, fighting,... but can also help them overcome more diverse and complex difficulties in life. It is this "sacredness" that has become a spiritual support for the people in difficult times, as well as giving them hope for good things to come.

 Community

Festivals are only born, exist and develop when they become a voluntary need of a community. The larger the community, the larger the scope of the festival. That is why there are festivals of a clan, a village, a district, a region or the whole country.

 Locality

Festivals are born and exist in a certain land. Therefore, festivals in each region have the characteristics of that region. The locality of festivals is what proves that festivals are closely linked to people's lives, they meet the spiritual and cultural needs of people, not only in the content of the festival but also in the style of the festival. That style is expressed in the funeral oration, in the costumes, the style of the umbrellas, the style of the palanquins, the style of the flags, the offerings,...

 Royal character

Most of the characters who are honored as Gods in Vietnamese festivals are people who held positions in the royal court in the past. Therefore, the rituals taking place in the festival, from the sacrifice, incense offering, to the palanquin procession,... all simulate the activities of the royal court. That simulation is shown in the decoration, costumes, walking movements,... This makes the festival more solemn and splendid. On the other hand, the royal rituals also make the participants feel elevated to a different position than usual, responding to the psychology, desires and wishes of the people.

 Contemporary

Although still imbued with traditional nuances, the festival, in the course of history, has gradually absorbed contemporary elements. New games, new arrangements, new technical means such as radio, cassette, video, amplifier, microphone, etc. have joined the festival, helping to make the organization of the festival more convenient, meeting new needs.

However, these acceptances must gradually go through voluntary screening by the people and be accepted by the community. They cannot be an arbitrary, unreasonable combination...

 Traditional festivals have the following three basic characteristics:

- Traditional festivals are associated with spiritual life, religious beliefs and are sacred , so they belong to the divine, sacred world, in contrast to earthly, mundane life. There are many activities and performances in festivals that appear to be mundane on the surface, such as entertainment, competitions, fertility performances, so they are "profane", but they are mundane customs, so they still belong to the sacred.

- Traditional festivals are complex cultural activities , a comprehensive folk cultural phenomenon, including almost all different aspects of human social life: religious activities, rituals, customs, communication and social cohesion, folk performing activities (singing, dancing, games, theater...), competitions, entertainment, cuisine, trading,... No other traditional cultural activity of our country can compare with traditional festivals, which contain both diverse and integrated characteristics.

- The subject of traditional festivals is the community , which is the village community, the professional community, the religious community, the urban community and the larger one is the national community. In other words, there is no festival that does not belong to a type of community, to a certain community. The community is the subject that creates, operates and enjoys the cultural values of the festival.

The above three characteristics determine the nature, cultural nuances, organization methods, attitudes and behaviors, and feelings of festival participants, distinguishing them from other types of festivals, such as event festivals, types of festivals, etc.

1.3.2.2. Opening time

Festivals in Vietnam are held most often in the three months of spring and autumn. These two periods are when people are free. Spring has warm weather, autumn has cool weather, both are favorable for holding festivals. These two basic factors create comfort and joy for festival-goers.

1.3.2.3. Participants

The attraction of festivals to people is very large and varies depending on the object of worship, the beauty of the relic or scenic spot, and the number of people participating in the festival. Usually, people base on the objects of worship and the number of pilgrims to distinguish between large and small festivals, national festivals or festivals of a region, locality, or village.

Festivals in Vietnam have existed and developed for many generations. Festival-goers are completely voluntary with a sincere heart. Coming to the festival is to show respect and remembrance to the gods who have protected, helped, and defended the lives of the people.

1.3.3. The role of traditional festivals in tourism

When evaluating festivals for tourism purposes, the following characteristics should be noted:

- Festival time: festivals do not take place all year round, but only concentrated in a short period of time. Some festivals last for about one or two months, but there are also festivals that last for a few days. During the festival, pilgrims come in large numbers with many different purposes, including tourism.

- Festival scale: festivals vary in size, some take place over large areas, even internationally. On the contrary, some festivals are limited to a small locality. This clearly affects tourism activities and especially the ability to attract tourists.

- Festival location: festivals are often held at historical and cultural relics, which allows for better exploitation of both relics and festivals for tourism purposes. Relics and festivals are two types of human tourism resources that always go hand in hand and intertwine with each other. Festivals are associated with relics and are inseparable from relics. It can be said that relics are the quintessence of tradition crystallized in solid form, and festivals are the soul that conveys that quintessence to everyday life.

Tourists often have the need to attend festivals and often feel a strong sense of belonging and passion to participate. Such festivals have been closely linked to the cultural life of the whole region or each country. It is here that the community sentiment and understanding between ethnic groups are most clearly revealed.

Visually, festivals and tourism have one thing in common: they are created by humans and for humans. They both rely on the crowd and meet the needs of the crowd to survive and develop.

Festivals are a highlight, converging unique cultural and artistic activities of the people, a community activity capable of meeting the multifaceted needs of the spiritual life of each member of the community, of the community and the whole society. Festivals are often held at certain times in a space that is a scenic spot, relic or in cultural institutions suitable to the nature of the festival. Entertainment games, other cultural and social activities such as singing contests, rice cooking contests, cockfighting, weaving, wrestling, swinging, throwing balls, etc. not only appear during big festivals but are also a folk game in all villages. It is the connection between natural landscapes, tangible and intangible cultural heritage that creates tourism attraction.

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