The story of two villages separated by a river, boys and girls for hundreds of years do not marry each other

"Your village, my village"

The story seems to only exist in fairy tales, but it still exists in present life, in a peaceful countryside along the Hoat River. That is Chanh Loc village, Ha Giang commune and Dong Bong village, Ha Tien commune, Ha Trung district, Thanh Hoa province.

According to the elders in the village, the fact that boys and girls from two villages cannot marry each other has been in the village covenant since ancient times. The covenant has been passed down from generation to generation and is still preserved today. Boys and girls from two villages only see each other as brothers and sisters and cannot marry each other.

Ms. Phan Thi Lan, Head of the Department of Culture and Information of Ha Trung district, confirmed that this is a true story, it originated from an ancient village covenant and it has been passed down until now.

Telling this unbelievable but true story, Ms. Mai Thi Nhay (Dong Bong village, Ha Tien commune) said that boys and girls from Dong Bong village and Chanh Loc village consider each other as blood brothers and sisters, and do not marry each other by the folk song "When the loach lays eggs on the banyan tree, the starling lays eggs in the water, then I will marry you".

“The folk song is intended to talk about difficult, rare or impossible things in life, just like the marriage of boys and girls from Dong Bong village and Chanh Loc village. The fact that boys and girls from the two villages do not marry each other is a village covenant from hundreds of years ago, associated with the practice of making friends (brotherhood). The village covenant has been passed down from generation to generation, and is still preserved today. Boys and girls from the two villages only see each other as brothers and cannot marry each other,” said Ms. Nhay.

According to many elders, they were told that long ago there was a man of Chinese origin, later called Master Tong by the people, who reclaimed land and established a village on the banks of the Hoat River, Ha Trung district.

During the process of building the two villages, this person mobilized the construction of Chanh Loc village first, then established Dong Bong village later. The two villages were on either side of the Hoat River. Chanh Loc village was called the older village, and Dong Bong was the younger village. The people of the two villages went back and forth, being as close to each other as blood brothers, but blood brothers were not allowed to marry each other.

Over hundreds of years, there have been cases where boys and girls from two villages fell in love, but because of village rules, the couples had to separate and could not become husband and wife. If boys and girls from two villages were found to have romantic feelings for each other, they would be warned.

Mr. Tong Van Khuyen, head of Dong Bong village (Ha Tien commune) said that this is a true story, the convention is still preserved to this day. Implementing the regulations in the village convention, people of the two villages often go back and forth, help each other, and consider each other as brothers in the family.

Missed the chance because of... "homeland vows"

Not only the people of Dong Bong village (Ha Tien commune), but also many people in Chanh Loc village (Ha Giang commune) know about this village covenant. Also because of this village covenant, there are some cases where boys and girls from the two villages have feelings for each other, but cannot come together.

Ms. Pham Thi Dan (from Chanh Loc village) said that she herself was a daughter-in-law here, but had heard about the "legend" that boys and girls from Dong Bong and Chanh Loc for generations had not been able to get married to each other through the stories of the elders in the village and outside the commune.

According to Ms. Dan, in her 40 years as a daughter-in-law in Chanh Loc village, she has only witnessed one case of someone not listening to the family's advice. That was the son of Mr. C. (Dong Bong village) who married a woman in Chanh Loc. The young couple did not listen to their elders and still got together. After living together for a while, the two have now "gone their separate ways".

Mr. Pham Van Dat (Chanh Loc village) said that he himself had previously loved a girl in Dong Bong, but when his grandfather talked to him and advised him not to violate the village's rules, he listened and had to "miss the chance" with the person he loved.

Perhaps the story of the two villages considering each other as “brothers” has been deeply ingrained in the subconscious of the people here, so without anyone telling them, the younger generations later also know very well the story of the village covenant of the two villages.

Ms. Phan Thi Lan, Head of the Ha Trung Department of Culture and Information, said that the ancient land of Tong Son (now Ha Trung district) was the homeland of 13 kings of the Nguyen Dynasty. This precious land still preserves many ancient relics and unique customs in the lives of the people.

“Not only is there a village covenant that boys and girls from “your village and my village” cannot marry each other, in Dong Bong there is also the custom of burning Dinh Lieu and bringing the fire home, which is an indispensable traditional custom at the moment of New Year's Eve, a beautiful feature in the cultural life of local people with the wish to pray for peace, luck, smooth work, and bountiful crops” - Ms. Lan said.