54 GROUPS: RO MAM PEOPLE OF VIETNAM
This page provides some details about the Ro Mam people. They are one of the 54 groups of people in Vietnam.
Name Of Ethnic Group
Ro Mam (also known as Ro Mam Ale)
Ro Mam People Population
639 people (2019 Census)
Locality
The Ro Mam live in Le Village, Mo Rai Commune, Sa Thay District of Kon Tum Province.
Customs & Habits
The village of the Ro Mam is a “de”. An old chief is normally the head of the de. Each family has 10-20 people of various generations who have blood ties and who live under the same roof. Each nuclear family forms its own economic unit. The Ro Mam’s matrimonial rites have two steps, the engagement phase, and the wedding phase. Several days after the wedding, a young couple may divorce. However, once they have lived together for a long time they are not allowed to divorce. When a person dies, Ro Mam people bury the body in the cemetery. The cemetery is always at the west end of the village.
Culture
The Ro Mam language belongs to the Mon-Khmer Group. Rituals and ceremonies are usually held during the production cycle from the start of the slashing of the field until the land is set on fire, and eventually when the rice is brought to the house. These communal village activities continue to the present day.
Costumes
Women wear skirts and short-sleeved shirts. The skirts are made from the coarse cloth without decorations, and they fall down below their knees. Men wear loincloths, where the front flap hangs over their knees and the back flap falls below their shins. Women like to wear earrings, bracelets, and necklaces made from glass beads.
Economy
The Ro Mam survive mainly from slash-and-burn cultivation, hunting, and gathering. Sticky rice is their staple food.
For more information about 53 more ethnic groups of people in Vietnam, please follow this link
Leave A Comment