The Cultural Identity Inheritance of the Bun Phi Khon Lao Festival, Lao People's Democratic Republic

Abstract

Culture and traditions are considered one of the most valuable legacies of humanity, culture considers something that is created and properly selected to be a good way of life for people. therefore, the purpose of this research is to study the Cultural Identity Inheritance of the Bun Phi Khon Lao Festival. This research study is qualitative research and used the snowball sampling technique, the key informants in the Pak Lai area, Xaiyabuli Province, Lao PDR, the amount of 90 people. Field study data collecting by Descriptive Analysis method. The data collection that includes Document Analysis, Data Surveys, Participatory Observation, and Non-Participatory Observation, Unstructured Interview, Structured Interview, and Focus Group Discussion. The research results found that;

       The Bun Phi Khon Lao Festival is a kind of play tradition in Pak Lai, Xaiyabuli, Lao PDR, it can be said that it is a local legend that has been passed down from the people of Pak Lai, known and familiar with each other from small to large, officially returned to the revival in 1975, the Lao PDR established it as the Year of Tourism in Laos, where the Khon Ghost was one of the city's cultural symbols selected to be featured in the annual Xaiyabuli Province. The people of Pak Lai believed that this performance was to pay homage to the souls of their deceased ancestors, to consecrate powerful divine spirits whose rulership is based on the belief that it is sacred to induce fertility or calamity to the country. In addition, Lao people inherit their cultural identity based on the beliefs of the community's cultural way on the basis of the Lao economic and social context and has hoped-for results from the introduction of the Khon ghost from cultural wisdom to the following business system and the direct inheritance from the public sector, which is caused by various departments, including from the powerful people in each era that drive, encourages, and encourages attention. And inheriting traditional conservation patterns through beliefs of supernatural phenomena and Buddhist beliefs which reflects the history of Phi Khon, a cultural identity that has been carried over in various forms, both in the promotion of conservation, restoration, and business expansion with the cooperation of the people in the community and society, until the Khon Ghost is the cultural heritage of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.