Vietnamese People: Characteristics and Ethnicity

1. Characteristics of Vietnamese people

The long and steady history of Vietnam is well known. Vietnamese people serve as an example to the rest of the globe of their complete independence and capacity to secure their future. The younger generation is more self-aware, and in order to carry on that tradition, it must overcome small but important integrating challenges.

There is no question that the attributes of Vietnamese's indisputable beauty derive not only from its stunningly beautiful surroundings but also from the admirable characteristics of the Vietnamese people. It's possible that for a very long time, the only thing the world knew about Vietnamese people was that they were brave warriors with a significant history. The truth is that people are actually pretty kind, social, and warm-hearted in daily life, despite their gruff appearance. Don't be hesitant to travel to Vietnam to experience for yourself the welcoming culture and stunning people. You never know, maybe after your spectacular journey to Vietnam you'll meet a lot of wonderful people who will become lifelong friends with you.

People in Vietnam are generally hospitable and friendly. Vietnamese people, for the most part, are modest. This characteristic comes to the fore when they receive praise for their achievements. In this situation, they frequently reject compliments and direct them toward the good qualities of others. Their dignity is another quality of the Vietnamese people. Since they see receiving help as a debt, they detest it. Also extremely proud of their nation is the Vietnamese people. When a Vietnamese person or group succeeds on a national or international scale, this proud mentality only gets stronger and better.

Some of Vietnamese people’s typical characteristics are listed at the following:

- Diligence and hospitality

The art of greeting one another is a natural beauty in Vietnam and has ingrained itself into the national identity. When we greet someone, we are showing that individual our kindness, respect, and courtesy. In Vietnam, greetings are a natural beauty and have developed into a distinctive aspect of Vietnamese culture. They serve to both reaffirm and strengthen current connections as well as to forge new ones.

“Xin chào” means “Hello”

“Tạm biệt” means “Goodbyes”

“Cảm ơn” means “Thank you”

“Xin lỗi” means “Sorry”

“Không sao” (or Không có gì) means “No problem”

“Tôi yêu Việt Nam” means “I love Vietnam”

- Hard-working and intellectual rigor

Vietnamese individuals are renowned for working tirelessly to accomplish their objectives. They really think that putting in extra effort would yield greater outcomes, and they have made a tremendous effort both for themselves and for the coming generation. A strong level of curiosity is also how Vietnamese people always establish their moods when working. Their creativity and desire to learn new things are constant traits that make their job more productive. It is drilled into every generation that perseverance and a desire to learn more are what define the Vietnamese people.

- Family-oriented

In Asian culture, the family and the Vietnamese community both play significant roles. As a result, keeping strong family relationships is something that Vietnamese people take for granted. Their families are the center of their lives and their job. Vietnamese family reunions are best held around traditional festivals or public holidays to strengthen the bonds between members of the same extended family. A fantastic personality trait shared by all Vietnamese people is their respect for the elderly and love for the young. This trait not only strengthens family ties but also establishes a culture of good behavior in daily life.

- Education is important

Vietnamese people place a high value on education. You can find out how much time students spend studying when you talk to them and find out about their social life. Although their efforts to get admission to prestigious colleges might be discouraging, they should be commended nonetheless. They strive even harder to be at the top of their class after they get in.

- They are talented chefs

It goes without saying that Vietnamese cuisine is excellent, and discovering new foods when visiting or living in Vietnam is a tremendous treat. Vietnamese cuisine offers an incredible diversity, and chefs always come up with fresh takes on the traditional dishes. In Vietnam, almost every meal is another reason to adore them.

2. Vietnamese people: Features of the culture

- A strong feeling of community

First and foremost, characteristics of Vietnamese culture are defined by a strong feeling of community, which is expressed in six Vietnamese virtues: thankfulness, self-esteem, love for their country of origin, collective compassion, solidarity, and compassion for others. In addition to these positive traits, the sense of community leads to a few negative traits, such as an excessive reliance on other people's assistance or resources, a failure to distinguish between an individual's contribution and accomplishment, the subjective or unjustified criticism of another person's ideological beliefs, bragging, being ungrateful for titles or accomplishments, being trend-obsessed, or being formalistic.

- The emphasis on yin

The emphasis on yin is one of the characteristics of Vietnamese culture’s feature. As a result of this trait, certain positive traits emerge, such as a desire for stability, tenderness and forgiving, sentimentality, a tendency toward poetry, persistence, and hospitality. However, this trait breeds undesirable behaviors like being sluggish, lethargic, and reserved as well as tunnel vision and a reverence for anything foreign.

- The inclination for harmony

The inclination for harmony that Vietnamese culture exhibits results in four good traits, including exemplariness, unhurriedly, optimism, and practicality, as well as a few unfavorable traits, such as carelessness, an excess of respect for consensus, egalitarianism, ambiguity, and indecision.

The ability to coordinate is the fourth trait of Vietnamese culture. As a result, on the one hand, Vietnamese are adept at building relationships and recognizing the wider picture. However, they are shallow and superficial, and they rely too much on their connection to support themselves.

- Flexibility

The characteristics of Vietnamese culture’s flexibility are their last quality. Vietnamese people are extremely adaptive and innovative, yet they can also be haphazard, irresponsible, and lawless.

-  Worship their Ancestor 

Vietnamese folks are appreciated by foreigners for being intelligent and artistic. That is the explanation why Vietnam, destroyed by wars in its history, might develop as if by magic within the early part of the twenty-first century. The Vietnamese also are skillful and studious to make qualified merchandise like fruits, seafood, and crafts commerce to the countries everywhere the planet.

- Lifestyle of Spirituality 

Their special method of interaction with others is severely undermined by philosophical philosophy. With the guiding principles of humanism, compassion, and forbearance among people, Confucianism has played a significant role in Vietnamese thinking and conception over the last 500 years. In addition, many Vietnamese people practice alternative faiths and ideologies including Buddhism and Taoism. Usually, their prayers to the gods are for good health, abundance, and joy.

- Lifestyle of Nostalgia

Modernization and industrialization are taking place in Vietnam. However, Vietnamese people continue to appreciate their traditional values from the past. Numerous rituals and traditions, such as Banh Chung on day holidays and the lantern festival within the Mid-Autumn Festival, are consistently upheld and passed down from one generation to the next. Vietnamese food, clothing, and lifestyle have a number of historical connections. Traditional Vietnamese cuisine and attire, such as Ao Dai and Ao Tu Than, continue to exist in the modern world.

3. Vietnamese people: Women

In the past, when talking about women, society often took "Tu Duc" - four communication standards of Vietnamese women: Cong, Dung, Ngon, Hanh - the standard to identify and evaluate the products of women. Applied to each society, each historical period, with different ancestors, conditions and cultural environments, the understanding and application of the "Tu Duc” are also different. The concept of "Tu Duc" before was understood as follows:

- Cong (Hardworking): The word "Cong" in the old conception (Confucianism) was understood as a domestic science, running an efficient family, sewing, quilting, embroidery, raising healthy children, cooking. During the resistance war against the French-American, the standard for building women in this period was: "Loyalty, bravery, loyalty to the country and the family, to the husband and children, to the people of the compatriots".

- Dung (Beautiful): According to Confucian conception, Dung is understood as beauty in appearance and external style. The standard of beauty compared to women is meek, discreet, graceful, etc.

- Ngôn (Well-spoken): polite, discreet, soft, easy-to-listen speech. Beautiful speech must be associated with appropriate gestures, soft spoken words, correct gestures, page presentation. “Language” asks a woman to speak at the right time, in the right place, in the right manner. Standards in communication language are always a necessary condition for everyone because it is a means of expressing the cultural beauty of people.

- Hạnh (Well-behaved): is considered the most important virtue of a woman. It is only happiness, morality, benevolence, loyalty, gratitude, lifelong leprosy, etc. A woman's virtue can be through relationships: husband-wife relationship, children-parents, etc.

However, in today's society, these virtues have been changed to match the development trend of society. Vietnamese women today not only play the role of keeping the fire for the family, but also play an important role in the fields of economy, society, state management, business, science and technology, etc. Therefore, "Cong-Dung-Ngon-Hanh" no longer has the original meaning but has been expanded and developed in many different directions.

Today's "Công" virtue is different from the past. Household chores were shared by her husband or hired a maid. However, taking care of children, keeping the family warm, etc., are still played by women. 

Regarding the virtue of "Dung", the beauty of Vietnamese women are far different from the standards of the past. Beauty has always been an indispensable human need. Nowadays, if there is no natural beauty, many women have chosen to take care of themselves by going to a beauty salon, clinic, etc. However, no matter what beauty, Vietnamese people still attach great importance to the beauty of the soul along with the beauty of the outer appearance.

As for "Ngôn”, along with the pace of society's development, women's work requires that they cannot always follow the rules. Language is being intellectualized, scientific, short and concise, containing a large amount of information.

“Hạnh”- As mentioned above, a woman's virtue is reflected in the beauty of her soul. Today, a woman's virtue is most clearly shown in her role as a child, wife, and mother. The wife is always the spiritual support for the husband, sharing the husband's joys and sorrows, successes and failures.

Women today always know how to beautify themselves, learn to improve knowledge, behave culturally, and fulfill responsibilities towards family and society. In conclusion, Cong, Dung, Ngon, and Hanh are still four precious virtues of Vietnamese women regardless of period.

4. Vietnamese People: Ethnic Groups

The presence of ethnic groups today in Vietnam is the result of a long history of immigration. Ethnic groups arose in a certain place of origin, but for some reason they had to migrate to neighboring areas, thereby forming the distribution of ethnic groups in the territory of Vietnam.

The most common way to identify them is by their language and clothing. There are many ethnic groups with different languages, but their ancient origins share a common ancestor, a group of people who speak the same language. The closer the ethnic groups are to each other, the more similar their languages are.

Vietnam is located in the area connecting the two oceans, the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean, with many islands, which is convenient for exchanges in the region and with other continents, so it has long been the residence of Vietnamese people. many different ethnic groups. On the path of human development, Vietnam is a country located between two centers of ancient civilizations, so it soon becomes an exchange point for those civilizations. Up to now, although each ethnic group has its own historical and cultural traditions, they are always closely linked with each other in common destiny. Ethnologists divide the Vietnamese people into eight linguistic groups as follows:

- Việt - Mường (includes Việt, Mường, Chứt...) 

- Tày - Thái (includes Tày, Nùng, Thái, Bố Y, Cao Lan, Sán Chỉ, Lào...)

- Mông - Dao (includes Mông, Dao, Pà Thẻn ...) 

- Tạng - Miến (includes Hà Nhì, Lô Lô, Xá...) 

- Hán (includes Hoa, Sán Dìu...) 

- Môn - Khơ me (includes Khơ Mú, Kháng, Xin Mun, Hơ-rê, Xơ-đăng, Ba Na, Kơ-ho, Mạ, Rơ-măm, Khơ Me...) 

- Mã Lai - Đa Đảo (includes Chăm, Giơ rai, Ê-đê, Raglai...) 

- Hỗn hợp Nam Á (includes La Chí, La Ha, Pu-péo ...) 

Since the August Revolution of 1945 with the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, all Vietnamese ethnic groups, whether few or many, have been free and equal, striving to develop together, working together and building the country together.

Vietnam has a total of 54 ethnic groups currently living across the country. These nations are listed below:

The majority of Vietnamese people are of Kinh ethnicity. They primarily reside in the lowlands, downstream of major rivers, coastlands, and major cities such the Red River Delta, Central Coast, and Southeast. They also speak Vietnamese, which is the official language of Vietnam. This population enjoys a traditional Vietnamese way of life and has access to practically all of Vietnam's historical and cultural monuments. In the metropolitan centers in the South, ethnic Hoa make up roughly 3% of the population. While keeping their customs and way of life from their own country, they not only adapted to local life but also established their own community.

The majority of the hilly provinces that are located to the north of the densely populated Red River Delta are part of Vietnam's northern region. The area is dominated by mountains, hills, and highlands, and it is home to ethnic groups including the H'mong, Dao, Giay, Tay, Thai, and Muong, all of whom have unique lifestyles and customs that are closely related to the local environment. Destinations like Sapa, Ha Giang, Mai Chau, and Pu Luong, which are known for their stunning mountain scenery, draw plenty of tourists who want to explore the local sites and learn about the various ethnic minorities and their cultures. Due to the difficult geography and low population density, the locals live mostly in isolated tribal communities that are distributed along mountain ranges or major streams or in valleys. They depend on agriculture in the form of terraced rice fields or small-scale livestock raising for a living.

The ancient Chams Community's homeland lies along the Central Coast to the south. The Chăm people have established their own dynasties, expanded their towns, villages, and communities, and also enhanced their culture. Numerous ancient Chăm cultural monuments can be found in this area, one of which, Quang Nam Province's My Son Sanctuary, has proudly earned the distinction of being a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Chăm people still uphold their distinctive customs and culture after assimilating with Ethnic Vietnamese, which will undoubtedly make a vacation to the South Central Coast highlight thanks to stunning cultural performances, traditional dance, and festivals, among other things.

Many hill tribal groups, like the Jarai, the M'nong, the Ede, and the Bahnar, call Central Highlands. As a result, a large number of tourists come here each year to take in the beauty of this distinct culture. The Central Highlands are renowned for its unique architecture, including the Rong House (Tall House) or traditional community longhouse. They are also known for the Gong Culture, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, which provides a forum for inspiring stories of bravery and color. The highland farming or farming on farms with basalt soil, traditional crafts, and cattle are the mainstays of inhabitants' everyday existence here.

The Mekong Delta, which is located in the southernmost part of Vietnam, is a region where Khmers and ancient Vietnamese people have historically interacted culturally. Many aspects of Khmer architecture, particularly churches and temples, are visible to visitors in this area. The tight link between the river and the residents' life has allowed both ethnic groups to coexist and establish a distinctive culture. Despite belonging to several ethnic groups, the majority of the population in the Mekong Delta lives in the same places—on the level plains or along the river's edge, where they float through their days. In order to survive, people must produce and provide food. They cultivate wet rice, raise animals, tend orchards of fruit trees, and manufacture handicrafts as part of their everyday existence on land. During the Mekong River's flood season, residents of floating homes or houseboats move their boats between farms to feed their livestock or go fishing.

5. Vietnamese family values

Vietnamese families have relationships that are more nuanced than those in Western nations. Confucian principles had a significant impact on traditional values in Vietnam. As several generations co-exist to care for one another, extended families make up the bulk of households in Vietnam. Vietnamese families resemble a sort of miniature society, with the oldest members having the loudest voices and managing the majority of household duties.

Members of every family are expected to adhere to the family's specific set of rules and values. Conversely, the elder generation tolerates the younger generation. Both generations show respect for one another. Traditional Vietnamese still uphold a lot of their long-standing traditions and beliefs in their interactions with their spouses and children as well as in their connections with their parents.

In the eyes of children, Vietnamese moms still hold the same prestige as their counterparts despite being affected by Confucianism. They are the epitome of devotion, selflessness, and sacrifice. Vietnamese parents view their children as their most prized possessions, hence most of them are anxious to have as many children as they can, given their financial means.

But the majority of them have a propensity to practice rigorous parenting to raise their cherished children. That is to say, relative to other types of interactions, family ties have received more attention. Vietnamese people have long had the idea of blood connections ingrained in their minds.

It implies that you should expect other family members to provide moral and material support for you, especially when you are in need. You are also required to assist other family members when they are in need, and the reverse is true. It is true that family relationships affect both material and financial matters as well as the emotional assistance provided.

Despite being proud of their arduously won freedom, the Vietnamese people generally feel that peace and prosperity would be preferable. Vietnamese have mostly maintained traditional values in their lifestyle, which are shown in the relationships between family and friends despite experiencing numerous ups and downs. Because of this, visitors' perceptions of Vietnamese people are consistently characterized by cliched words like "pleasant" and "hospitable." Don't be afraid to pay for Vietnam tours since you will always be welcomed in the newly founded nation. Vietnamese people value humanism, community, intellect, and pride in their nation. Looking at the five main facets of Vietnamese culture will demonstrate this.