Lion dances during the annual middle autumn festival in Hội An. The festival was listed as a national intangible heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. — Photo courtesy of Hội An City's Centre for Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation

HỘI AN — The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has listed the mid-autumn Full Moon Festival (on the 14th day of the eighth lunar month) of the Hội An ancient town in central Quảng Nam Province as a National Intangible Heritage.

The city’s Centre for Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation said the mid-autumn festival of Hội An was one of 14 recognised by the ministry, and the official certificate will be handed over soon.

The centre said the festival this year will be held with a series of activities and cultural performances in the Old Quarter and on the Hoài River banks on September 29, promoting tourism recovery after the pandemic.

It’s a post-harvest festival during which people gather together in celebration of a bumper harvest by making cakes and offerings from farm produce, expressing thanks to Heaven for peace and abundant crops, according to the centre.

A model poses with lanterns in Hội An. The ancient town often decorates the streets with lanterns. — Photo courtesy of Jenny Nguyen

Lion and unicorn dances are a focus of the festival on the main stage in the Hoài River Square and along the streets of the Old Quarter.

The festival is decorated by lanterns in the Old Quarter and candle-lit paper flowers released on the Hoài River on the 14th and 15th day of the eighth lunar month. It’s also a favourite rendezvous for local people and foreign tourists visiting and exploring the culture and lifestyle of Hội An.

The UNESCO-recognised world heritage site received the annual Nguyên Tiêu Festival – the fifth national intangible heritage of Hội An after Thanh Châu bird's nest, Thanh Hà Pottery village, carpentry of Kim Bồng Village and Trà Quế vegetable garden. — VNS

Foreign tourists enjoy releasing candle-lit paper flowers on the Hoài River of Hội An. — VNS Photo Công Thành