What is the most popular surname in Vietnam? What do Vietnamese names mean: interpretation and history of origin

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Complete Vietnamese name usually consists of three (less often - four) parts: father's last name(less often mother’s surname), middle name or "nicknames" and own name . In accordance with the East Asian system of personal names, in Vietnam the full name is traditionally constructed in the above order (like the Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, etc.). It is not customary for the Vietnamese to use and write one last name without a first name. A given name without a surname is used very often. (see explanation below).

When translating a full Vietnamese name into Russian, you must write each part separately and with a capital letter, for example, Pham Van Dong(unlike translation Chinese name, when the middle and last name can merge into one word, for example, Mao Zedong) and stick general rules transcriptions.

However, it should be noted that in practice, official transcription rules are not always followed.

Surname

The first part of the full name is the father's surname.

The surname is located at the beginning of the full name, it is passed on from father to children. It is estimated that there are about one hundred surnames in common use, although some are used much more often than others.

Vietnamese surnames traditionally coincide with the surnames of the ruling dynasties. That is, during the reign of the Li dynasty, this surname gained the greatest popularity. It is logical that currently about 40% of Vietnamese people bear the surname “Nguyen” after the last imperial dynasty of Vietnam.

Below is a list of the 14 most common surnames in Vietnam. Together they make up 90% of Vietnamese surnames. Surnames are given with their Chinese equivalents and the number of speakers as a percentage:

• Nguyen - Nguyễn 阮 (38.4%)
• Le - Lê 黎 (9.5%)
• Pham - Phạm 范 (7.1%)
• Huynh/Hoang - Huỳnh/Hoàng 黃 (5.1%)
• Fan - Phan 潘 (4.5%)
• Wu/Vo - Vũ/Võ 武 (3.9%)
• Dang - Đặng 鄧 (2.1%)
• Buoy - Bùi 裴 (2%)
• Do - Đỗ杜 (1.4%)
• Ngo - Ngô 吳 (1.3%)
• Duong - Dương 楊 (1%)
• Li - Lý 李 (0.5%)

Among the remaining 10% of surnames, there are those that belong to the Chinese and those that belong to the rest of the small nations living in Vietnam. However Chinese surnames are usually inherited from a distant ancestor and are currently no longer recognized as foreign.

Some of the other names:

Due to the fact that most Vietnamese have the same surnames, it is not customary for the Vietnamese to use and write one surname without a name.

Name

Middle name

The middle name (tên đệm or tên lót) is selected by parents from a rather narrow circle. In the past, the middle name indicated the gender of the child: all women had a middle name Thị(Thi). There were many middle names for men; by the 20th century, the following became the most common: Văn(Wang), Việt(Viet), Đan(Dan), Đình(Ding), Ðức(Duc), Duy(Zooey) Minh(Ming), Ngọc(Ngoc), Sĩ(Shi), Xuân(Xuan), Phu(Ugh), hữu(Huu). Currently, the main function of both male and female middle names is to show belonging to one generation in the family (brothers and sisters have one middle name, different from previous and subsequent generations).

Personal name

This name is the main form of address among the Vietnamese. Names are chosen by parents and usually have literal meaning in Vietnamese. For women, names often represent beauty, like the names of birds or flowers. Men's names often reflect desirable attributes and characteristics that parents want in their children - such as morality.

There are “sets” of names that reflect, for example, the four feminine virtues: Kong (Vietnamese) Cong, skillful, good working), Dung (Vietnamese) Dung, beautiful), Han (Vietnamese) Hạnh, well behaved), Ngon (Vietnamese) Ngon, polite); four mythical creatures: Lee (Vietnamese) Ly, qilin), Kui (Vietnamese) Qui, turtle), Phuong (Vietnamese) Phượng, phoenix), Long (Vietnamese) Long, the Dragon).

Full four-part name

Sometimes, after the father's surname, the child is given the mother's surname. Then his full name consists of four parts.

There are also situations when the middle or proper name can be double. Then we get a name with four parts, for example Nguyễn Thị Trà My, where Nguyễn is the surname, Thị is the middle name, and Cha My is the personal name, meaning " camellia".

Use of the name in writing and address

Due to the fact that most Vietnamese have the same surnames, it is not customary for the Vietnamese to use and write one surname without a name. A given name without a surname is used very often and, as a rule, in this case the surname Nguyen is meant, although there are other options.

As a rule, Vietnamese people address each other by personal names, even in formal situations, although the honorifics “Mr,” “Madam,” and others are also used when necessary. This contrasts with the situation in many other cultures, where the surname is used in formal situations.

Determining parts of a full name

Determining which part of a Vietnamese's full name is a surname and which part is a middle or personal name is often very difficult.

First, some words, such as Văn, can be used both as a surname (Van Tien Dung) and as a middle or personal name (Nguyen Van Cao).

Secondly, a significant portion of Vietnamese people currently live outside of Vietnam. Their names are subject to changes in the form of dropping surnames and rearranging parts of the full name backwards, in a Western manner. Sometimes, instead of a Vietnamese surname, a European version of the name is added. Eg, famous actor Vietnamese-born Nguyen Tien Minh Chi is known worldwide as Johnny Nguyen, while his co-star Ngo Thanh Van is known as Veronica Ngo.

To understand such names, you need to remember the list of the most common Vietnamese surnames and given names, and in all doubtful cases, look at the names of both parents or relatives living in Vietnam, whose full names were not subject to distortion.

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Excerpt characterizing the Vietnamese name

The Vietnamese have few surnames - much less than the Europeans, and they don't mean anything.

When a child is born, he is given his father's surname. There are usually three words on his birth certificate. The first word is his last name, the last is his given name, and the second is the so-called “auxiliary name”. For example: Nguyen Van An. Here I would like to dwell on this subsidiary name “Van” and talk a little about it. In general, auxiliary names are optional; you can do without them. So if subsequently a person does not like the combination Nguyen Van An that his parents gave him, he can abandon it and take another, for example, Nguyen Minh An, Nguyen Xuan An and so on, or completely abandon the auxiliary name and become simply Nguyen An. And for women, the auxiliary name is “Thi”: Tran Thi Tuyet, Pham Thi Hong, Nguyen Thi Binh, Le Thi Xuan Nga...

The number of Vietnamese surnames is very limited, but the names are extremely diverse. The fact is that we do not have “stable”, “permanent” names, like, for example, the Russians Sasha, Seryozha, Natasha, Lyuba. Usually each name means something. There are names that have an independent meaning: Tian - lemon, Man - plum... And very often names come in pairs. So don’t be surprised if when you ask a Vietnamese girl named Hau what her name means, she answers: “My name and my older sister’s name Huang together mean “queen” - Huang Hau, and with the name younger brother Phuong - “rear”: Hau Phuong.

If the family is large, then the names of the children can form a whole phrase. For example, in a family there are children with the names: Viet, Nam, Anh, Hung, Tien, Kong, Vi, Dai. And together we get the phrase: “Heroic Vietnam will win great victory" The first child in a family is often given the name Ka - "eldest", and the last child Ut - "youngest". Women's names usually mean something tender and beautiful: Dao - “peach flower”, Lua - “silk”, Ngoc - “pearl”.

By giving their children names such as Rice, Water, House, Field, people dreamed that they would always have rice, a home and that their lives would be better.

The entire history of the Vietnamese people is reflected in their name system. Before the August Revolution of 1945, peasants were in bondage to the landowners. Sometimes landowners took upon themselves the right to give names to peasant children. And to emphasize the difference between the poor children and their own, they gave them ugly, humiliating names. And many superstitious peasants, wanting their children not to get sick, did not dare to choose for them beautiful names, and only those like Et (Frog), Zyun (Worm), Theo (Rubber) were given... They believed that evil spirits would not pay attention to children with such names and would leave them alone.

Oleg and Valentina Svetovid are mystics, specialists in esotericism and occultism, authors of 15 books.

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Vietnamese names

Vietnamese male and female names

Vietnamese names are names that are used in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.

Vietnamese names have three parts: surname, middle name and personal name. For example: Pham Van Dong, Ho Chi Minh.

Surnames

Surname located at the beginning of the full name, it is passed on from father to children. Since most Vietnamese people have the same surnames, it is not customary for the Vietnamese to use and write one surname without a name.

The most common surnames in Vietnam: Nguyen, Chan, Le, Pham, Huynh, Hoang, Vu (Vo), Phan, Dang, Bui, Ho, Do, Ngo, Duong, Ly, Van.

Middle name

Middle name can be passed on from generation to generation.

In the past, the middle name indicated the gender of the child: all women had a middle name Th?(Thi). There were many middle names for men.

The most common middle names in Vietnam: Van(Wang), Vi?t(Viet), Dan(Dan), Dinh(Ding), ??c(Duc), Duy(Zooey) Minh(Ming), Ng?c(Ngoc), Si(Shi), Xuan(Xuan), Phu(Ugh), H?u(Huy).

Personal name

Personal names there are many in Vietnam. Some names are the same for men and women, for example: Hanh (happiness), Hoa (peace), Thuy (water), Xuan (spring), Ha (summer), Thu (autumn).

Many Vietnamese, like other peoples, have secret names, known only to themselves and their parents.

Vietnamese male names

Bao– defender (B?o)

Binh– calm, peaceful (Binh)

Wang– cloud (Van)

Vien– completion (Vien)

Vui- funny

Viet– Vietnamese

Dang– success

Ding– top (D?nh)

So– virtuous (D?c)

Dung– brave (Dung)

Duong– sun, courageous (Duong)

Quan– warrior (Quan)

Quang– clear, pure (Quang)

Kui– precious (Qui)

Cuong- strong

Lyk- force

Min– bright (Minh)

Nghia- fair

Nguyen– beginning (Nguyen)

Ting– faith, trust (Tin)

That– star (Tu)

Tuan– bright (Tu?n)

Thanh– bright, clear, blue (Thanh)

Thuan– tamed (Thu?n)

Thyk– true

Hieu- respectful son

Xoan– spring (Hoan)

Hung– courageous (Hung)

Chi- intelligence

Chung- loyal

Vietnamese girl names

Beach– jade (Bich)

Ziep– foliage

Dung– patient

Kim– gold (Kim)

Kuen– bird (Quyen)

Kui– precious (Qui)

Lan– orchid

Lien– lotus (Lien)

Tench– spring (Linh)

May– apricot color (Mai)

Mi- beautiful

Ngoc– precious stone, jade (Ng?c)

Nguyet– moon (Nguy?t)

Nyung– velvet (Nhung)

Tien– fairy, spirit (Tien)

That– star (Tu)

Tuen– ray (Tuy?n)

Toot – White snow(Tuy?t)

Thanh– bright, clear (Thanh)

Thai– friendly, welcoming (Thai)

Thi– poem, poetic (Thi)

Thu– autumn (Thu)

Chau– pearls (Chau)

Tee– tree branch (Chi)

Phuong– phoenix (Phu?ng)

Hang- moon

Hien- good

Hoa– flower (Hoa)

Hong– rose (H?ng)

Xoan– spring (Hoan)

Huong– aroma (Hu?ng)

Chang- moon

Chin– chaste

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Vietnamese names. Vietnamese male and female names

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The modern Vietnamese anthroponymic system is usually threefold: the first word is the surname, the last is the given name, and the second is the so-called auxiliary, intermediate name, for example: Nguyen Van Huyen, Le Van Hao. But often there are two-part names, consisting only of a surname and a given name, for example Mac Duong.

Number of Vietnamese surnames, i.e. names passed on by inheritance from father to children reaches 300. In the delta of the river. There are no more than 200 of them in Red. The most common surname is Nguyen (more than 50% of families); the second place in terms of occurrence belongs to the surname Le, followed by surnames such as Chan, Fam, Hoang, Ngo, Tao etc. When surnames arose, which of them are purely Vietnamese, and which were borrowed - these are questions on which there has not yet been a consensus among scientists. With few exceptions, modern Vietnamese surnames have lost their etymological meaning. The number of surnames is very limited, but the names are extremely numerous and varied.

The choice of name among the Vietnamese is quite free and arbitrary, but nevertheless, there are rules that greatly facilitate for parents such an important and responsible matter as naming a child. Usually girls are given names that mean the names of various flowers, plants, fabrics, precious stones, as well as animals, birds, etc., for example: Cook"chrysanthemum", Tao"peach", Lua"silk", Lieu"willow", Tea"pearl oyster" Loan"phoenix". Male names are most often an expression of abstract, abstract concepts, positive human qualities, as well as names of parts of the world, seasons, etc., for example: So"virtuous", Khiem"modest", Xuan"spring", Thu"autumn". Often the first child in a family is named Ka"senior", and the last - Ut"Jr". In some southern regions In Vietnam, children are given names in the order in which they appeared in the family: Ka"first", Hai"second", Ba"third", etc.

The names of the Vietnamese can be associated with toponyms: with the place of birth - Kuen(name of an area near Hanoi), Khoa(Moscow), with the place of birth of one of the parents or the place where they met - Thai(Thai Nguyen city); the name may reflect a particular family event, for example Coy"orphan" (i.e. the child was born after the death of the father), the profession of the parents - May"tailor", tools - Tiang"chisel", "chisel", Bao"plane", etc.

If the family is large, then the names of the children can form a whole phrase. For example, in a family there are children with the names: Viet, Us, Anh, Hung, Tien, Kong, In and, Give. And these names pronounced in this sequence mean: “Heroic Vietnam will win a great victory.” Giving newborns names like Gao"rice", New"water", Nya"house", Duong"field", parents dreamed that their children would always have wealth and that their lives would be better.

Before the August Revolution of 1945, in a family where children were often sick or died, superstitious parents did not dare choose beautiful names for them, but only gave them such as This"frog", Zyun"worm", Theo"scar". In the minds of the Vietnamese, “evil spirits” will not pay attention to children with such names and will leave them alone.

Between the first and last names there is usually a so-called intermediate, or auxiliary, name. This is common in female names. Thi, A Wang- in male names. Component Thi used to be included in almost all women's names. For male names, the choice of “auxiliary” names is wider: as an “intermediate” name there are such as Ngoc"jasper", "jade", Huu"friend", "right", Lien"union" Xuan“spring”, etc. In general, the “auxiliary” name is not permanent and not necessary; you can do without it. For example, if a person named Nguyen Van An subsequently he doesn’t like this combination, he may take another “auxiliary” name: either Min, or Xuan, i.e. Nguyen Minh An, Nguyen Xuan An, or completely abandon the “auxiliary” name and simply write your name Nguyen An. The "auxiliary" name appeared much later than the surnames. Long-term historical era gave names consisting only of surnames and personal names: Ngo Quyen, Lee Bi, Khuk Khao. As for female names, at present, on the one hand, Thi much less often used as part of female names, especially in cities and among the intelligentsia; on the other hand, women's personal names became two-part, making it more difficult to distinguish them from men's.

If women had one “auxiliary” name, then with men’s names the situation is somewhat more complicated. Previously, the choice of such names was large, but currently their number has been reduced to 12 ( Zui, Ding, Dan, So, Ngoc, Viet, Ugh, Xuan, Huu, Si, Wang, Min), of which Wang- the most common, followed by Dan And Ding. All these words are borrowed from Chinese.

Despite the fact that in Vietnamese anthroponymy there is no canonized list of names (individual and “intermediate”, “auxiliary”), nevertheless, the choice of an “auxiliary” name was not completely arbitrary. It was regulated by historically established rules, according to which all representatives of one generation within one related group (xo) had a common element in the name. For example, in the family Le one generation has a common element Cam, second - Hong, third - Phuoc. Thus, by this “auxiliary” name it was possible to determine the degree of relationship with other representatives of the same related group. However, there was another practice when one common element was passed on from generation to generation, for example, the name of the father - Nguyen Van Huyen, son's name - Nguyen Van Duy(son), etc.

Currently, these traditions are being violated in cities and towns of the “urban type”; often the “auxiliary” name began to be replaced by the first component of a two-part personal name, for example Xuan Hua. Although each name has an independent meaning, names often come in pairs. So it is not surprising when, in response to a question addressed to a Vietnamese girl named Howe, what her name means, you can hear in response that her name and the name of her older sister Huang together mean "queen" - Huang Hau, and in combination with the name of his younger brother Phuong - Hau Phuong means "rear".

In addition, there has been a tendency to replace the "auxiliary" name with the mother's surname, e.g. Chan Le, Dang Nghiem etc., which should be associated with the large role that women began to play in modern Vietnam, although, however, such a practice existed before in the history of Vietnam.

Among the Vietnamese, surnames are inherited through the paternal line. A woman who bore her father's surname before marriage did not change her surname when she got married. She was called by her husband's name. But not everywhere Vietnamese women change their names after marriage, but now many, especially in cities, prefer to keep their own names.

The Vietnamese do not have middle names, as in the old days it was believed that there was nothing worse than mentioning a parent's name out loud. On the contrary, in some rural areas, parents take the names of their children (most often they call themselves by the name of their eldest son). If the eldest son died, the parents were addressed by the name of their youngest daughter.

How can one distinguish one person from another in speech? - after all, so many people have the same name! It helps that in Vietnamese, depending on the relationship, the degree of respect for the interlocutor and the speech situation, many different auxiliary words are used in spoken (and sometimes written) speech. The following words are usually used before a name: when addressing a man - anh"Older brother", ong- "mister" thang- a word emphasizing the familiarity of address, carrying a dismissive connotation; when addressing a woman - you "elder sister"; when addressing younger ones - Em; when addressing elders - ku"grandfather", "grandmother" or words meaning "uncle", "aunt", "comrade". It must be emphasized that the use of personal names was limited. Only sometimes among relatives or close friends, as well as when addressing younger ones, names were used. For example, children and youth can call each other by name; young people can address each other by name if they know each other well, as well as a boy and a girl, loving friend friend, husband and wife (but never in the presence of strangers!) - before the birth of children.

Until relatively recently, a Vietnamese person usually had not one, but several names throughout his life. IN early childhood the boy could have a “milk” name, known only within the family circle. After reaching adulthood, he received an official name, which accompanied him until the end of his life. Very often, upon entering the service, parents and friends gave young man also a middle name ( ten juan). In addition, everyone had the right to choose a pseudonym ( ten hieu). For example, President Ho Chi Minh's real name was Nguyen Shinh Cung, and when he went to study, his parents, according to Vietnamese tradition, gave him a different name - Nguyen That Thanh.

After death, a person usually receives a different name, because among the Vietnamese it is considered a great sin to mention the real, lifetime name of the deceased. A personal posthumous name usually consists of two words conveying dignity or any special character traits of the deceased, for example Thuan Duc“immaculate virtue”, etc.

A Vietnamese name usually consists of three elements: a surname, a middle name and a proper name. For example: Ho Chi Minh.

The most common surnames in Vietnam: Nguyen, Chan, Le, Ly, Ho, Pham, Vo. A common joke is that in Vietnam 50% of the population bears the surname Nguyen, 40% - Chan, and the remaining 10% includes all other surnames; this slightly rounds off the official figures, but, in general, it is true.

A middle name can have a special meaning and be passed down from generation to generation. Some middle names are found only in the structure of a male name, such as Van or Duc, which makes it possible to clearly distinguish between male and female names.

A proper name is the last element in the structure of a Vietnamese name. This is the name a person is called. Unlike surnames, there are a lot of proper names in Vietnam. Some names can be worn by both men and women, for example: Han (happiness), Hoa (peace), Thuy (water), Xuan (spring), Ha (summer), Thu (autumn).

Male names characterize the virtues of a noble husband: Dung (brave), Hung (courageous), Vuy (cheerful), Nghia (fair), Trung (faithful), Binh (calm), Duc virtuous), Cuong (strong). For the love of home country parents often call their children national names Viet (Vietnamese) and Nam (Southern). Other names mean virtues and moral qualities of a man that are significant for Vietnamese society: Hieu (respectful son), Chi (mind), Thuc (truth), Luk (strength), Tam (heart), Dang (success). Eastern philosophy considers the sun to be a traditional male yang symbol, which is why the Vietnamese language has the name Duong (sun).

Female proper names repeat the names of flowers: Hoa (flower), Hong (rose), Huong (fragrance), Diep (foliage), Mai (apricot blossom), Lan (orchid). Vietnamese people often give their daughters names that praise traditional feminine virtues: Trinh (chaste), Dung (patient), Hien (kind), Mi (beautiful). The moon is a traditional symbol of femininity and beauty, so in the Vietnamese language there are several female names with the corresponding poetic meaning: Chang, Hang and Nguyet.

Sometimes a Vietnamese name is perceived as two-syllable, but in fact it is nothing more than “an address word + a proper name.” The basis of address words is a system of kinship terms, this helps determine the age, gender and social status of unrelated communication participants: ask your older brother Dyka, convey the most good wishes Auntie Lien, a fax arrived from sister Huong, etc. In Vietnam, a name is given by parents for life; upon marriage, women do not change their surname, and children receive their father's surname.

For the full version, see the print publication:
Daria Mishukova "Vietnam. Journey to the land of dragons and fairies"
Hanoi, Culture and Information Publishing House, 2010 - 268 pp.