Katuic peoples

The Katuic peoples live mainly in central Vietnam's Truong Son region and the highlands of south eastern Laos. The peoples include the Katu, Ta Oi, Paco and the Bru (Van Kieu) in Vietnam. The Katuic groups in Laos include the Bru, Ta'oih, Kantu, Dakkang, Triw, Chatong and Ngeq.

They subsist mainly on shifting cultivation, hunting and fishing. They traditionally lived in small villages centered around a communal house. Their religion revolves around the spirits of the forest, the Rice Mother and ancestor spirits. Even today, these groups retain most of their traditions and spirit beliefs. However, they have been heavily affected by the newly constructed Ho Chi Minh Highway, which cuts straight through the homeland of the Vietnamese Katuic groups.

The French military officer Le Pichon, who was stationed among the Katu in 1938, wrote a short book about entitled "Les Chasseurs de Sang" ("The Blood Hunters") about the (now non-existent) practice of the Katu to hunt people to please certain spirits.

External links

* [http://www.katuicproject.net The Katuic Ethnography Project]