Thanh Tien Paper Flower Village 'Lights Up': 10,000-branch Orders Herald a Warm Spring

This Tet season, the family of Mr Nguyen Hoa in the traditional paper flower village of Thanh Tien, Hue, received orders for 10,000 paper flower branches from customers near and far. The village seems to 'light up', ablaze with paper flowers, heralding a warm and prosperous spring.

The people of Thanh Tien village (Phu Mau commune, Hue City, Thua Thien - Hue) are once again busy, meticulously cutting each piece of paper and dyeing the petals in every colour. Since ancient times, Thanh Tien village's paper flowers have been an indispensable cultural feature, serving the worship needs of the people of the old capital each time Tet and spring arrive.

The family of Mr Nguyen Hoa (60) is one of the oldest paper-flower households in this village. Each year, around the tenth lunar month, he, his wife and children set aside their field work to focus on making paper flowers for Tet. Mr Hoa cannot recall when the craft began, knowing only that he has followed in his forebears' footsteps for about 50 years.

According to Mr Hoa, Thanh Tien paper flowers came into being hundreds of years ago. In the old days, Hue had a harsh climate and unpredictable weather, so there were no fresh flowers on hand to offer at the temples and shrines. Near Tet, endless rains and floods kept flowers from blooming in time, so the people of Thanh Tien devised the making of paper flowers - first to offer to deities and ancestors, then to adorn the home during the Tet days.

Thanh Tien paper flowers are special for their full range of colours, with all the materials and stages coming from the patient, skilful hands of the artisans. In the old days, paper flowers were placed mainly on the altars of the Grandfather, the Grandmother, the Kitchen God, the family altar and the pagoda. Through many ups and downs, with their own distinct character, Thanh Tien paper flowers today have spread far and wide, appearing in many restaurants and hotels, and sometimes even in a corner of the living room.

Thanks to this, in recent years the paper-flower craft has gradually flourished, bringing a steady income to many families in Thanh Tien village. This year, Mr Hoa and his wife are delighted as the number of customers ordering flowers has risen - not only people from Hue but also from many other provinces ordering them for decoration.

According to Mrs Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam (62, Mr Hoa's wife): 'In the old days, the people of Hue bought only a few branches to place on the altar for Tet worship. Today, as society develops, many people and hotels fond of the old culture also order them for decoration.'

By early in the twelfth lunar month this year, Mr Hoa's family had received orders for nearly 10,000 paper flower branches from customers near and far. The price has also risen slightly, with a finished branch selling on the market for 7,500 dong.

Each year, around the twelfth lunar month, the people of Thanh Tien village carry their flowers into the city to sell, bringing the cultural tradition of Hue to many places.