Vietnamese people

Vietnamese people
sdgedfegw · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Group	Vietnamese people
Native name	Người Việt
Population	96 million (approx.)
Regions	Vietnam; Ho Chi Minh City; Hanoi; Đà Nẵng; Can Tho; Hai Phòng
Languages	Vietnamese language; Minh Hóa dialect; Southern Vietnamese dialect
Religions	Buddhism in Vietnam; Catholic Church in Vietnam; Caodaism; Hòa Hảo; Vietnamese folk religion
Related	Kinh people; Hoa people; Khmer Krom

Vietnamese people are an East Asian ethnic group primarily associated with the modern state of Vietnam. Concentrated in the Red River Delta and Mekong Delta, they comprise the largest component of the population of Vietnam and maintain significant communities in United States, France, Australia, Canada, and Germany. Their culture reflects interactions with China, India, Khmer Empire, French Indochina, and global diasporic networks tied to events like the Vietnam War and the Fall of Saigon.

Ethnogenesis and Demographics

The ethnogenesis of the Vietnamese people links archaeological cultures such as the Đông Sơn culture and the Sa Huỳnh culture with historical polities including Âu Lạc, Nanyue, and the Lý dynasty. Genetic and linguistic studies correlate influences from Austroasiatic peoples, Tibeto-Burman populations, and maritime contacts with Austronesian peoples, while historical records from Sima Qian and Tang dynasty annals document early interactions. Modern demographic patterns are shaped by internal migration to urban centers like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, state-led resettlement during the Đổi Mới reforms, and external movements tied to treaties such as the Geneva Accords (1954) and bilateral agreements with France and United States.

Language and Identity

The primary language of the Vietnamese people is the Vietnamese language, an Austroasiatic tongue written historically with Chữ Nôm and currently using the Vietnamese alphabet developed by Alexandre de Rhodes and other missionaries. Linguistic identity intersects with regional dialects—Northern Vietnamese dialects centered on Hanoi, Central Vietnamese around Huế, and Southern Vietnamese in Saigon—and minority tongues spoken by Tày people and Thổ people in border regions. Literary traditions include classical poetry linked to the Trần dynasty and modern prose shaped by authors like Nguyễn Du and Nguyễn Trãi, while nationalist writings during the Nguyễn dynasty and revolutionary pamphlets circulated by Võ Nguyên Giáp and Nguyễn Ái Quốc (later Ho Chi Minh) contributed to collective identity.

History

Historical narratives of the Vietnamese people encompass periods of independence and foreign rule, beginning with state formations such as Van Lang and Âu Lạc, resistance to Han dynasty rule, and the long era of self-rule under dynasties like the Lý dynasty, Trần dynasty, and Lê dynasty. Maritime and continental conflicts included clashes with the Khmer Empire, expeditions against the Cham people, and frontier expansion known as Nam tiến. Colonial contact with France produced the era of French Indochina and nationalist movements culminating in the August Revolution led by Viet Minh and the proclamation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam by Ho Chi Minh. The 20th century saw division after the First Indochina War, reunification following the Vietnam War, and economic reforms under Đổi Mới that integrated the country into institutions like the World Trade Organization.

Culture and Society

Social life among the Vietnamese people features Confucian-influenced kinship patterns rooted in practices from the Song dynasty and rituals preserved in ancestral altars and village commons such as those documented in the Hanoi Old Quarter and Hội An. Culinary traditions include dishes like phở, bánh mì, and bún chả with regional variations tied to Red River Delta and Mekong Delta produce. Performing arts draw on forms such as water puppetry from Thanh Hóa, ca trù from Hà Nội, and modern cinema linked to filmmakers associated with the Vietnamese Film Institute. Festivals such as Tết (Lunar New Year), Mid-Autumn Festival, and regional observances at sites like Perfume Pagoda sustain communal cohesion, while contemporary society engages with institutions such as Vietnam National University, Hanoi and cultural exchanges with entities like the Smithsonian Institution.

Religion and Beliefs

Religious life among the Vietnamese people is pluralistic: syncretic practices combine elements from Mahayana Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism alongside indigenous ancestor veneration recorded in Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư. Organized movements include Caodaism founded in Tây Ninh and reformist currents like Hòa Hảo from An Giang. Catholicism, introduced by missionaries such as Alexandre de Rhodes, maintains large communities centered in areas like Phát Diệm, while diasporic congregations support links to institutions in Rome and Louisiana. Pilgrimage sites include Mỹ Sơn, Bái Đính Temple, and Ba Chua Xu Temple.

Economy and Occupations

Traditional livelihoods among the Vietnamese people historically centered on wet-rice agriculture in the Red River Delta and artisanal trades in market towns like Hội An and Sa Pa. Colonial-era commercial networks tied to Saigon and Haiphong expanded into cash-crop production and manufacturing; post-Đổi Mới shifts fostered growth in sectors associated with corporations such as Vingroup and PetroVietnam, and integration into supply chains with partners like China and Japan. Urban employment concentrates in services, technology hubs near Thủ Đức and industrial zones such as Bình Dương, while coastal communities engage in fisheries linked to ports like Cái Lân and aquaculture in the South China Sea.

Diaspora and Migration Patterns

Significant diasporic communities formed after the Fall of Saigon in 1975, producing waves of refugees—known as "boat people"—settling in countries including the United States (notably Orange County, California), France (particularly Paris), Australia (notably Melbourne), and Canada (notably Toronto). Earlier migrations under French colonialism sent workers to New Caledonia and La Réunion, while merchant diasporas such as the Hoa people maintained networks across Southeast Asia in hubs like Cholon and Singapore. Recent labor migration occurs under agreements with South Korea and Taiwan, and return migration connects transnational families to development projects supported by institutions like the World Bank and bilateral programs with Japan.

Category:Ethnic groups in Vietnam