Beyond Phu-Tai Matmii Handwoven Silk Fabric: Weaving Pattern Design, Ancestral Wisdom, and Originality

Abstract

Handwoven silk patterns are vital to transferring ancestral assets, which plays a crucial role in preserving ethnic silk heritage in northeast Thailand. However, traditional weaving patterns are not preserved following the handwoven silk pattern, transferring ancestral wisdom, thus originality becomes a seriously endangered conservation practice. This research aims to explore how weaving pattern design, ancestral wisdom, and originality of Phu-Tai Matmii handwoven silk fabric is maintained in Kalasin province. An ethnonarrative research was conducted using a purposive sampling technique of 20 Phu-Tai Matmii handwoven silk groups in Somdet district, Kalasin province, northeast Thailand. Face-to-face in-depth interview transcripts of data were performed using an interpretive thematic analysis (themes, familiarization, coding, quotations, and writing up). The first theme is reweaving pattern designs, with subthemes of sketching pattern, color dyeing, yarn spinning, and combine pattern techniques. The second theme is ancestral wisdom, including the subthemes of pattern imitation, trials, practice, weaving, and finished silk products. The third theme is original identity along with subthemes of pattern perception, pattern communication, pattern values, pattern culture, and pattern identity.