Jewelry of the Ca Dong

For a long time, copper bracelets, silver bracelets and colorful beaded chains ... are not only beauty jewelry of Ca Dong ethnic women but also show ethnic cultural identity.

Like other ethnic groups living in the Truong Son mountain range and the Central Highlands region, since ancient times, Ca Dong people have been searching for materials available in nature or through trading and trading to have materials for making jewelry. For Ca Dong people, jewelry is both an aesthetic need and also contains values ​​in the cultural and spiritual life such as beliefs, religions, customs, festivals ...

According to the concept of the Ca Dong people for many generations, the brass bracelet (cot), silver bracelet (nie) worn on the wrist, the neck is the home of longevity, prosperity, luck, and is considered guardian and it becomes a soulmate, witness the ups and downs in the life of every Ca Dong woman. Once a woman in the family dies, she will bring a brass bracelet, a silver bracelet on her hand, and a neck that is most attached to her life to the afterlife. 

In particular, these bracelets are also an indispensable treasure in the Ca Dong wedding ceremony. Depending on the conditions of each family, in addition to traditional gifts, the boys' relatives need to prepare a copper bracelet and a silver bracelet for young couples to make dowry. It is the marriage primate of couples, they are very precious. Because of its value, the Ca Dong woman always told her children to respect and protect this dowry.

Usually, the wealthy, powerful Ca Dong often look for the most beautiful and unique copper and silver bracelets to represent. So, many wealthy families are willing to exchange buffaloes for a copper and silver bracelet. Nowadays, although the material value has decreased significantly, the bronze and silver bracelets still bring great spiritual value. In fact, many elderly Ca Dong women never remove these precious bracelets from their bodies. They say that this jewelry has soul. So, when not wearing any more, the elderly will be very vulnerable. Besides, if someone foolishly lends it to others, their wealth and power will dissipate.

Ca Dong people are very taboo about losing or leaving broken copper or silver rings. They believe, if that happens, every disaster will strike their family. Therefore, whenever people see a broken copper or silver ring, they often give it to the poor, as if they were making a blessing in hopes of reducing their bad luck. After that, they will rush to worship, please replace with a new copper ring, silver ring to change the destiny.

Beaded jewelry (pret kha kham) is also considered one of the outstanding features of Ca Dong ethnic women. Beads have many different types of large and small and there are many colors but the most popular color is blue and yellow. Beaded strings for women to wear on the neck. In addition to beaded jewelry, Ca Dong ethnic women also use jewelry with long copper strings attached with rattles to wrap on the back of the pants to increase the beauty when participating in the festival.

Today, having the opportunity to visit the villages of Ca Dong people in the two highland districts of Bac Tra My and Nam Tra My, it is not difficult to catch the image of Ca Dong women and young women wearing jewelry. Every occasion of festivals, weddings, Ca Dong women often take the stored jewelry to introduce to their descendants. Each copper bracelet, silver necklace, multicolored necklaces and all copper wires with rattles attached to a story about the life of every Ca Dong woman. And they are forever considered by the Ca Dong as beauty symbolizing prosperity, authority, and sacredness ...