Vietnamese is the official language of Vietnam and the one most common in usage. It is derived from the Asian Linguistic system (Ray, Dragicevich & St. Louis, 2009). In its written form it is mono-syllabic meaning each syllable is presented as its own word. For instance, Vietnam is spelt Viet Nam.
The Vietnamese language is spoken tonally with six different tones existing for each syllable (Ray et al, 2009). To further complicate matters, the four main regions of Vietnam: South, Central, North-Central, and North all have their own dialects and nuances (Ray et al, 2009).
Other than Vietnamese the three most common languages one is likely to encounter are French, Chinese, and English. The French language is mainly spoken by the elder generation, reflecting the years of French colonial rule. Chinese is making a comeback after years of suppression and is reflective of an increase in cross-border trading between Vietnam and China. Likewise English, first introduced during the American occupation of the South during the Vietnam War, is increasingly becoming the preferred second language among citizens (Ray et al, 2009).
Check out the video below for a quick lesson in some very basic Vietnamese phrases.
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