Artisans in the central town of Hue city make conical hats.

The conical hat is a symbol of Vietnamese women that is worn everywhere throughout the nation.

The legend of the non la is related to maternal love and farming history in Vietnam. According to the story, many years ago a severe deluge flooded the earth’s surface; a Goddess appeared with a hat made from palm leaves and protected humankind from the rain. To honor the Goddess the farmers decided to make a hat the same as hers and continued the tradition.

Hue’s trade villages: Dong Di, Tay Ho, Phu Cam, La Y, Nam Pho, Doc So, and An Cuu, have made it Vietnam’s most famous town for making non la. The central town’s trademark conical hats come complete with a verse from a Vietnamese poem.

Conical hats are made from bamboo leaves or soft palm leaves, which are found everywhere in Vietnam. The hats are made in a one-size-fits-all – 45-50 cm across and 25-30 cm high – to suit the average Vietnamese woman’s head.

To make them, they start with a bamboo frame to attach the bamboo or palm leaves to. Then they run a big thread of bamboo fiber or nylon around the hat 16 times to tie it all together. Each hat’s beauty depends on the skill of the artisan. The hats from Hue with the embroidered poems are popular souvenirs for tourists.

Not only are they a neat piece of handcraftsmanship, a non la is an essential piece of equipment to protect people from the sun and the rain. Hue is synonymous with the romantic image of Vietnamese women in non la and purple ao dai. On June 9, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue announced the establishment of the Non la and Ao dai Association to preserve and honor these Vietnamese traditional symbols.

Reported by Diem Thu