(VOVWORLD) - An annual ceremony commemorating sailors of the historic Hoang Sa (Paracel Islands) flotilla took place at An Vinh village’s communal house in Ly Son District, in the central province of Quang Ngai, on Wednesday.
 Ceremony commemorating sailors of the historic Hoang Sa flotilla is held at An Vinh village's communal house in Ly Son district, the central province of Quang Ngai. (Photo: VNA) |
The “Feast and Commemoration Festival for Hoang Sa Soldiers” pays tribute to the men who enlisted to serve in the flotillas to patrol the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa (Spratly Islands), surveying sea routes and erecting sovereignty landmarks and steles declaring Vietnam’s national territory in Hoang Sa and Truong Sa.
It was held as part of Quang Ngai’s “Tourism Week 2024” and was recognized in April 2013 as a national intangible cultural heritage.
The event began with a ceremony, with puppets representing the heroic soldiers and their basic necessities like rice, salt, fuel, and drinking water on replica boats, which were then released into the sea to symbolically send them off.
After the ceremony, the traditional boat race of the Four Spirits (Dragon, Unicorn, Turtle, and Phoenix) was held. In the past, such races were organized to select skillful and strong seafarers to join the flotilla.
According to recorded history, the legendary fleet was established in the early 17th century under the reign of the Nguyen Lords in the south. Each year, 70 fishermen were enlisted, commissioned to survey sea routes and erect sovereignty landmarks and steles declaring national territory in Hoang Sa and Truong Sa.