My inclination is to favor a local origin. Some support for this comes from the absence of any clearly Indian-inspired motifs on the Thai cloths.

Further west in Laos there are other weft Ikat patterned cloths that do feature motifs derived from Indian cloths, but these seem to be absent on the Thai cloths.

Conclusion

 

In concluding I would like to comment on the current state of weaving these Ikat patterned cloths. Clearly these cloths represent only a limited survival of what was once a very widespread tradition among the Daic and Austronesian speaking peoples of Vietnam. And while there have been signs of a further decline in the weaving of such cloth in recent years both among the Cham and the Thai, all is not lost.

True, the warp Ikat weaving of the Thai may soon face extinction.

 

However, there has been something of a revival in the production of weft Ikat patterned cloth among the Thai of western Thanh Hoa Province. This is in part due to the marketing activities of the Thai of Mai Chau. Only a few years ago there was a sharp drop in the quality of this cloth, but over the past couple of years the quality seems to be improving and a number of weavers continue to produce such cloth for domestic consumption as well as for the market.

 

In the case of the Chau Cham, weaving of Khmer-inspired weft Ikat cloth has ceased completely. But production of warp Ikat patterned cloth is in quite a healthy state. In fact, weavers are not only producing the more traditional cloth with checks and Ikat patterns, but are experimenting with new styles. Such innovation is largely linked to a growing commercial tourist market as Chau Doc has emerged as an important tourist destination in recent years. In regard to Phan Rang warp Ikat patterned cloth, at present it is produced both for domestic use and for the large commercial market, although most Ikat patterned cloth appears destined for use by the Cham themselves with tourists and Vietnamese preferring other styles of more brightly colored cloth.

 

A significant issue in My Nghiep concerning the continued production of warp Ikat patterned cloth is the number of people able to weave this style of cloth. Only about six women know how to weave Ikat patterned cloth, with differing levels of skill, and the best of the weavers are fairly old. The limited market interest in Ikat patterned Cham cloth, combined with the shortage of weavers able to produce it does not bode well for the sustainability of Ikat weaving in this area.

References:

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