Read the following passage and then answer the questions

II. Read the following passage and then answer the questions.

Tay’s Culture and Belief

With around 1.7 million people, the Tay are the biggest ethnic minority group in Viet Nam. They live mainly in Vietnam’s northern and northwestern provinces - Cao Bang, Bac Can, Lang Son, Ha Giang, Thai Nguyen, and Lao Cai. They live along rivers in mountain foothills.

The Tay build their villages in valleys, on mountainsides, or in the highlands. A Tay village has from 20 to over a hundred households. They live in wooden stilt houses with tile or palm leaf roofs.

Both men and women wear clothes made of hand-woven cotton, dyed with indigo. Women wear high collared, waist- or knee-length shirts buttoned on the right side. Their pants have roomy legs and a wide belt. Tay women enjoy wearing jewelry, particularly silver necklaces and arm and wrist bracelets. Men’s clothing is similar to that of women.

Like many other Vietnamese ethnic groups, the Tay practice polytheism and believe that supernatural powers have impacts on their life. Worshipping their ancestors is the most sacred ritual of the Tay. The ancestral altar is placed in the center of the house. In front of the altar is a bed on which visitors are not allowed to sit or lie. The Tay have many taboos, like: people may not step on the edge of the stove, after attending a funeral people must take a bath before tending the cattle and poultry, and new mothers are not allowed to stay near the altar.

The Tay have developed a rich culture of poems, songs, epics, tales, funny stories, and dance. Popular folk singing genres of the Tay are call-and-response singing, lullaby, Then, and wedding and funeral singing. It is sung at events such as worshipping at the ancestral altar, praying for sick people, praying for a couple to have children, at family get-togethers, to welcome guests, and at a “going to the field” festival held in the first month of the new year. It is an indispensable part of the spiritual and religious life of the Tay.

1. Where do the Tay people mainly live in Viet Nam?

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2. What type of clothing do the Tay people wear?

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3. What is the most sacred ritual of the Tay people?

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4. What are some popular folk singing genres of the Tay?