A district in central Vietnam’s Quang Nam Province is home to highly skilled, self-trained archers, both males and females, who are from the same nuclear and extended ethnic families.

The Bhnoong ethnic minority, in the province’s Phuoc Son District, have long been known for their exceptional skills in archery and the crafting of bows and arrows.

They invariably win medals in provincial and national archery competitions. The archers also represent other provinces at many contests for money.

Archers of the jungle

Among such archers are Ho Van Ut, 62, his six children, and a daughter-in-law. Their house is packed with medals and achievement certificates.

Dozens of arrows dangle in the window as a token of their pride. Each year Ut crafts six new bows for his six children, including four sons.

He is not the only elder in the district who can make bows, but his craftsmanship is beyond comparison.

“Just like our ancestry, my heritage for my offspring is only bows and arrows. My father taught me how to craft bows and arrows, outrun wild animals, aim my bows and shoot arrows while on the run, and make poison to kill prey as quickly as possible,” Ut shared.

He noted that the most difficult part is finding material to make the bows.

“Locbnua, the ideal wood for bows, should be tough but highly flexible and elastic, and can bend without breaking. Women aren’t allowed to step over the bows, and bows mustn’t be used to shoot snakes, as they bring terribly bad luck. If the bows break, the archers would die,” Ut added firmly.

It takes him a month to craft a bow. With Ut’s training, his six children have practiced archery since a tender age.

They are now not only their village’s most exceptional archers, but also the pride of Bhnoong people all over the district.

Though Ut’s eldest son, Ho Van De, cannot craft bows yet, he can make and sharpen his own favorite arrows.

He shared that the arrows must be straight, tough, and dry so that they can stick to the target fast.

Made from a certain kind of bamboo found in nearby forests, De dries his arrows over a stove, instead of drying them in the sun, to prevent curvature and termite attacks.

De shared that he has taken part in so many district-level archery competitions that he cannot remember them all.

He has earned a total of 13 golds, five silvers, and four bronzes in archery at national sports festivals since 2010.

“I took part in my first archery competition as a sixth grader. It was a district-level competition. As my arms were too weak to stretch the bow strings and position the arrows, my father did it for me, which made everyone laugh,” the young man recalled.

After three shots, he won first prize. The boy has joined every archery competition since then.

De added that he and most local archers practice in a banana tree forest nearby.

“Shooting at the banana trunks is great, as we can hear the distinct sound when the arrow is piercing through the air toward the target. The soft trunks also allow us to reuse our arrows, while we have to make new ones if we shoot at other trees, which leave the arrows bent or broken,” he revealed.

Shooting while on bikes

Ho Van Da, 19, De’s younger brother, is also an outstanding, medal-winning archer.

“We typically bring our bows and arrows to the fields mostly to kill squirrels, birds and crop pests. Aiming at a fleeing animal is much more challenging than a stationary target during competitions,” Da shared.

He added with a smile that just as ancient warriors aimed their bows on horseback, today’s youth practice doing so while riding their bikes.

De and Da’s younger sisters have also followed their father’s footsteps and are locally known for their stunning skills.

De’s wife, Ho Thi Huong, was also trained by her husband in archery. She won a bronze medal at a recent district-level sports competition.

De said that he just bought a brand-new bike for VND40 million (US$1,883) with the prizes from his recent victories.

‘Mercenary archers’

In 2010, archery was included in a national sports festival for the first time. Quang Nam Province sent over 30 athletes to the festival, most of whom were Bhnoong archers from De’s district.

De, Da and other highly skilled archers also represent other provinces at national competitions.

Ho Thi Day, one of De’s cousins, shared that she once represented the southern province of Binh Phuoc in a national competition.

The officials there promised to present her with VND10 million ($471) for a gold medal and VND7 million for silver.

She also asked her cousins to take part and bought a new bike with the prize money.

The archery category at the 2010 provincial competition became a battle between Bhnoong archers from Phuoc Son District, who knew their opponents’ strengths and weaknesses all too well.

They won every medal in the competition’s archery event.

According to Nguyen Thanh Tu, deputy director of the Quang Nam Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the Bhnoong community in Phuoc Son District has long been exceptional in archery.

As Bhnoong people have natural gifts and practice the sport from a young age, Kinh (Vietnam’s majority ethnic community) athletes can hardly expect to outperform them.

However, Tu added sadly that the department has yet to train them properly and help them achieve more in their sport careers.

Though hunting is strictly forbidden now, the Bhnoong, who are also skilled climbers, treasure their bows and arrows and their archery skills as prized heirlooms and heritage to pass on to future generations, Tu noted.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!