Geppetto's Dilemma - the Decline of Traditional Toy Making in Viet Nam

Tet Trung Thu, the Mid-Autmun Children's Festival, is Viet Nam's festival for children. However, even during this old and beloved Vietnamese tradition, Viet Nam's industry of traditional toys and crafts is on the decline.

What is the most popular holiday in Viet Nam?

An adult may tell you that the answer is Tet Nguyên Dán, the Vietnamese New Year, but a child will tell you Tet Trung Thu, the Mid-Autumn Children's Festival, wins hand down! Whether eating their favorite treats, parading with rabbit- or star-shaped lanterns, wearing masks to scare away the moon-gobbling demon Ra Hu, or just shouting, playing, and singing in the streets, the Mid-Autumn festival is the time for children in Vietnam.

Traditionally the festival included folk games such as choi chuyen (stick and ball), O an quan and rai ranh (small stones in squares), di cau tre (small bamboo bridge), nhay day (jump rope) and ca kheo (walking on two high sticks). In addition to lanterns and masks, the Festival has also traditionally been a time for buying handcrafted Vietnamese toys like tien si giay (paper doctor, for good studying), ong danh gay (stick fighting doll, a symbol of martial spirit), as well as drums, ships, paper lion heads, and toy animals.

These toys are crafted from available materials like recycled metal, rice powder, sponge, and paper. However, like the many other Geppetto's of the modern world, traditional toy makers in Vietnam are increasingly unable to make their creations come to life. Sales are down, even during the very old tradition of the Children's Festival.

This Toy Story tells the tale of one such Vietnamese toy maker, while Vietnam Investment Review's Timout story "Child at Heart" describes the history of the festival and the decline of traditional toys. Plastic toys crossing the border from China are replacing traditional toys during the Festival. Timeout quotes below:

“I think it’s time for the government to minimise the importation of Chinese toys into Vietnam,” said Pham Van Manh, a 65-year-old man on Hang Bong street. “I am afraid that Vietnamese children will forget all about tradition and end up with modern toys. It’s particularly sad because toys such as masks, puppets and lanterns are cheaper, more educational and more traditional.”

And a recollection of the old days:

Seventy-five-year-old composer To Vu remembers the old days well.

“When I was young, I begged my parents to take me to shops on Hang Ma street, where I spent hours trying to choose between myriad toys,” Vu said. “Children in my neighbourhood would jealously compare each other’s toys in the lead-up to the festival. When the day finally came, we all gathered on the street and sang songs and danced. At the end of the day, we sat around huge moon-lit trays of fruit and mooncakes. I will never forget such times."

However, some groups are fighting to keep the traditions alive. Ha Noi's Viet Nam Museum of Ethnology launched its program to perserve traditional toy making through teaching Vietnamese children traditional toy making skills and games.

"Traditional toys play an important role in helping to shape children’s personalities and develop their thinking, awareness and creativity"

"We hope to bring children back to Vietnamese traditional culture, but we also want to help adults explore their kids’ intelligence and creation," Huy said. [museum director Nguyen Van Huy].

Additional Links and Resources:

Things Asian - "Mid-Autumn Children's Festival" - a lovely article describing the Fesitval

Vietnam: Journey's of Mind Body and Spirit - from the American Museum of Natural History

Stamps of Mid-Autumn Festival Toys