Some features of the Sen Dolta festival among the Khmer people in Loc Ninh district, Binh Phuoc province today

Abstract

Sen Dolta is one of the typical traditional festivals of the Khmer community in Loc Ninh district – the Southeast region as well as in the Mekong Delta – the Southwest region and other areas. The festival reflects many distinctive cultural features, including customs, beliefs, arts, community relationships, especially the Khmer people’s way of behaving towards their ancestors’ spirits. Although there are the same origin and meaning as the Khmer community in the Mekong Delta – the Southwest region, due to the impact of many factors, besides the similarities, the Khmer festivals in Loc Ninh district also possess characteristic cultural traits. Based on a comparative perspective and the ecological-cultural theory, combined with the ethnographic fieldwork method, the research results indicate that the Sen Dolta festival of the Khmer people in Loc Ninh district, Binh Phuoc province has undergone changes and at the same time formed unique features, different from those in other Khmer regions, especially compared to the Khmer people in some localities in the Mekong Delta – the Southwest region. In addition to factors such as the historical context, social interactions, cultural exchange and acculturation among ethnic groups, etc., the specific natural conditions and ecological environment are the significant factors shaping the unique cultural traits as well as modifying the Sen Dolta festival of the Khmer people in Loc Ninh district, Binh Phuoc province and in the Southeast region today.