The Gia Rai

With a 24,000 plus population, the Gia rai are concentrated in Gia Lai province, a part in Kon Tum province and northern Darlac province. They are also called Gio-rai, To Buan, Hobau, Hdrung and Chor. Their language, close to that of the Ede, Cham, Ra-glai and Chu-ru, belongs to the Malayo-Polynesian Group.

The Gia rai believe in the existence of Giang (genies) and hold many rituals connected with the genies of production.

They chiefly live on cultivation in burnt-over land and terraced fields. Ordinary rice is the staple food. Farm implements are simple, including machete, cleaver, picks and hoes, and digging sticks to plant seeds into holes. Livestock breeding has developed, covering cattle, pigs, dogs, and poultry. In former days, the Gia rai possessed a large herd of horses. They also breed elephants. Men are skilful in basketry, and women in cloth weaving. Hunting, gathering and fishing are sideline occupations, bringing significant economic rewards.

The Gia rai live in separate villages called ploi or bon. There are elongated and small houses, but all are built on stilts with the entrance door facing north. The village chief and the elders have great prestige and have the role of running collective activities. Each village has a communal house called rong which is the venue of communal activities for young unmarried men.

The matriarchal system prevails. Females are free to choose their lovers and select their husband. After the wedding, the husband lives in his wife's family and has no right of inheritance. The daughter, after marriage, no longer lives with her parents and inherits from them. The children take the family name of the mother. In society, men play an important role but in the home women enjoy more power. In the old days, a dead man was buried at the same place as people of his maternal lineage. Today, a dead husband is buried in the same grave as the wife's family.

In folklore, mention should be made of long epics and such old tales as "Dam Di Di San" (Dam Di goes hunting), "Xinh Nha", etc. Remarkable musical instruments include gong, T'rung, To-nung and Krong-put. These traditional instruments are closely associated with spiritual life. Songs and dances are learnt in childhood and practice until old age. When people grow weak, they play the role of on-lookers at festivals and ceremonies held in the village or the family.