1. Introduction to the Collection

The Essence of Vietnamese Literature and Language collection is a compilation of significant research works on Vietnamese literature, language, and script. This collection not only serves as a repository reflecting the depth of Vietnam’s cultural heritage across different historical periods but also as a crucial platform for academic research and teaching in the humanities. By offering a comprehensive perspective on the development of Vietnamese literature from the medieval to modern periods, the collection highlights the cultural and intellectual values associated with each historical stage.

2. The Role of the Collection in Literary and Linguistic Research

The collection goes beyond featuring exemplary literary works by systematically examining key literary genres such as lục bát (six-eight meter), song thất lục bát (double seven-six-eight meter), narrative poetry, and scholarly prose. This diversity of genres not only enhances the reader’s understanding of the evolution of Vietnamese literature but also fosters interdisciplinary approaches between literary and linguistic studies.

Moreover, the collection focuses on research concerning Vietnamese script and phonetics across different historical periods. Texts in chữ Hán-Nôm, early chữ Quốc ngữ manuscripts, and other linguistic materials in the collection provide invaluable data for studying the formation and development of the Vietnamese language. This holds significance not only for historical linguistics but also for the preservation and promotion of Vietnam’s written heritage.

3. Cultural Heritage and the Continuation of Tradition

One of the collection’s key contributions is facilitating access to classical literary works through scholarly research that elucidates the underlying layers of meaning within each text. For instance, studies on The Tale of Kiều extend beyond textual analysis to explore aspects such as poetics, textual history, and the reception of the work across various periods. Similarly, research on The Lament of the Soldier’s Wife (Chinh phụ ngâm) and the works of Đoàn Thị Điểm has shed light on the characteristics of women’s literature and the role of female authors in Vietnamese cultural life.

Additionally, the collection plays a vital role in recognizing and preserving traditional linguistic and cultural values in the modern context. Studies on Vietnamese vocabulary, phonetics, and grammar from past centuries are not only academically valuable but also contribute to teaching Vietnamese as a foreign language, as well as compiling dictionaries and linguistic resources.

4. Interdisciplinary Approaches and Applications in Modern Research

In today’s research landscape, the Essence of Vietnamese Literature and Language collection is not merely an archive of knowledge but also an avenue for new approaches that integrate traditional research methods with modern technology. The digitization of Hán-Nôm texts and the application of artificial intelligence in text processing have made accessing these materials more convenient while enabling corpus-based linguistic analysis. This advancement not only enhances research efficiency but also fosters connections among scholars worldwide.

Furthermore, the collection embodies a dynamic academic dialogue between generations of researchers. Classic studies by pioneering scholars continue to be examined and compared with new discoveries, enriching the understanding of Vietnamese literature and language. This aspect is crucial for preserving and advancing academic heritage, reinforcing the collection’s role as an influential intellectual hub.

5. Conclusion

The Essence of Vietnamese Literature and Language collection is not just a valuable repository of materials but also a symbol of continuity and progress in literary and linguistic research. With its rich content, diverse methodologies, and broad applicability, this collection plays a crucial role in preserving and promoting Vietnam’s cultural heritage. In the era of globalization and digitalization, further research and expansion of this collection will help affirm the significance of Vietnamese literature and language within global intellectual discourse while fostering scholarly exchanges across cultures.

1. The spread of the Chinese language and writing in Vietnam

The introduction of Chinese characters into Vietnam commenced following Qin Shihuang's pacification of Lingnan in 214 BC. Subsequently, in 207 BC, Zhao Tuo established the Nanyue Kingdom, which extended from the southern region of the Five Ridges to central Vietnam. In 112 AD, the Han Dynasty conquered the Nanyue Kingdom and established the Jiaozhi commandery. Jiaozhi comprised nine counties, six of which were located in the Guangdong and Guangxi regions of China, while the remaining three—Jiaozhi, Jiuzhen, and Rinan—are situated within present-day Vietnam. Vietnam remained under the direct control of various Chinese feudal dynasties until its independence in 939 AD, a period known as the Northern Domination. During this millennium of Northern Domination, the diverse ethnic nationalities of Vietnam coexisted with those from southern China and the Han people from northern China. The Han migrants to Vietnam can be categorized into three distinct groups: (1) officials and military personnel dispatched by the central government to Nanyue; (2) intellectuals seeking to escape the restrictions imposed by the central authority, aspiring to migrate south to showcase their talents; and (3) ordinary individuals who traveled to Nanyue for commercial purposes. Each of these groups contributed to the dissemination of the Chinese language and writing within the cultural milieu of the local Vietnamese population, utilizing both written and oral forms of communication.

This evidence suggests that Chinese characters were likely introduced into Vietnam as early as the beginning of the Common Era. The establishment of Chinese educational institutions in Jiaozhou County, along with the dissemination of Chinese Buddhist texts, provided the Vietnamese populace with opportunities to learn and utilize Chinese characters as a foreign language, which predominated during that period. Following Vietnam's independence in the 10th century, the Vietnamese adopted a local pronunciation for Chinese characters, referred to as "Han-Vietnamese pronunciation" (汉越音). At this juncture, the Chinese language and characters had begun to lose their "foreign" attributes within Vietnam, having been assimilated to some extent by the Vietnamese people, primarily in terms of pronunciation, thereby diminishing their previously distinct foreign character.

During the millennium of Northern rule, Chinese characters were not particularly embraced by the Vietnamese populace. However, following Vietnam's independence, the Vietnamese court sought to establish a unified and stable feudal regime by emulating the Chinese feudal model, with Confucianism serving as the foundation for governance. At this time, Vietnamese Confucian scholars regarded the "Four Books and Five Classics" as essential texts for their intellectual and moral development, leading to the designation of Chinese characters as "Confucian characters" in Vietnam. A notable representation of the influence of Chinese Han culture, particularly Confucianism, on Vietnam is the Temple of Literature, established in 1070 in Hanoi. This institution is recognized as the country's earliest national university, utilizing Confucian principles as its primary educational framework. Prominently displayed in the main worship hall is a Chinese plaque inscribed with the characters "Teacher of All Ages" (“万世师表”) designated as "Kangxi's Imperial Book" (康熙御书). Additionally, the main hall features an altar dedicated to Confucius, flanked by shrines honoring ancient Confucian scholars from both China and Vietnam. Throughout its long history, Chinese characters have been held in high esteem by the Vietnamese, symbolizing the "the characters of sages" (“圣贤之字”) in their cultural consciousness.

For two thousand years, the Vietnamese have regarded Chinese characters as "the characters of sages." However, they have also actively engaged in assimilating Chinese literature into their own cultural context. For instance, they developed "Nôm characters," which are pronounced in Vietnamese and were created using the principles of Chinese characters to express local sounds and meanings. The earliest Nôm characters emerged in the seventh century and played a significant role in articulating Vietnam's folk beliefs, national culture, and literary traditions. While Chinese characters were predominant in administrative and educational domains, Nôm characters held greater importance in literature. During the Ho Dynasty (1400-1407) and the Tây Sơn Nguyen Dynasty (1788-1802), Nôm characters received considerable emphasis and were promoted within administrative and educational contexts. Throughout Vietnam’s extensive national history prior to 1945, all dynasties utilized Chinese characters (along with classical Chinese) as the official language of the country. Over the course of a thousand years of independence, the Vietnamese employed Chinese characters and classical Chinese to compile historical texts, create literary works, and document folk traditions and customs. In Vietnamese temples—especially during the Ly and Tran dynasties—traces of Chinese characters and classical Chinese can be observed prominently. Furthermore, in the homes of ordinary Vietnamese families, it is customary to display Chinese couplets during the Spring Festival. These couplets, influenced by the Chinese language and culture, closely resemble their Chinese counterparts in both content and form. Although the tradition of posting couplets is not as prevalent today, remnants of this practice, including Chinese characters, Nôm characters, and even Romanized Mandarin, can still be found in many rural households across Vietnam. This enduring presence of the Chinese language and culture underscores their profound impact not only on Vietnam's historical dynasties but also on the spiritual lives of ordinary Vietnamese people.

Since 1919, the French colonial regime, alongside the Nguyễn Dynasty of Vietnam, effectively abandoned Confucianism and established a Franco-Vietnamese education system that utilized French and Romanized Vietnamese as the primary mediums of instruction. Following the August Revolution in 1945 and the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the government declared Vietnamese as the national common language, thereby displacing the status of the Chinese language and characters. Nonetheless, a significant number of Vietnamese words continue to be borrowed from Chinese. In the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s, the prominence of Chinese in Vietnam diminished compared to the pre-1945 era; however, it is noteworthy that many Vietnamese leaders and intellectuals of that time remained proficient in Chinese and produced numerous literary works in the language. A notable example is Chairman Ho Chi Minh's renowned "Prison Diary," which contains over 100 poems written in Chinese characters during 1942-1943.

Since the 1990s, the internationalization of the Chinese language has accelerated, paralleling the rise of English, leading to an increasing number of Vietnamese individuals studying Chinese. This trend is driven by the demands of academic research, as a thorough understanding of Vietnam's history and cultural traditions necessitates proficiency in Chinese. Furthermore, the strengthening of diplomatic and economic relations between China and Vietnam has also contributed to this phenomenon. Following China's reform and opening-up policies, the rapid economic development has resulted in a growing influx of Chinese investors into Vietnam, acquiring Chinese language skills essential for navigating the economic landscape. Additionally, China serves as a crucial strategic partner for Vietnam, and proficiency in Chinese has become a valuable tool for communication. 

As a result, the influence of the Chinese language and characters in Vietnam has been both historically significant and relevant in contemporary times, profoundly shaping various aspects of Vietnamese social and cultural life. The most notable impact has been on the Vietnamese language itself.

2. The pathway and evolution of the Chinese language and characters in Vietnam

Vietnam and China are interconnected by mountains and rivers, facing each other across these natural barriers. The two nations share a long and profound history of linguistic and cultural exchange. From several centuries before Christ through the millennium of Northern rule in Vietnam, contact between the Chinese and Vietnamese languages primarily occurred through oral communication. During this period, the Chinese official class and ordinary citizens, particularly merchants, migrated from the north to Vietnam for governance and trade, significantly enriching the Vietnamese vocabulary with numerous common terms. Many of these words continue to be prevalent in the daily lives of the Vietnamese people today, such as buồng （房）, buồm （帆）, đuốc（烛）, đũa（箸）, mùa（务）, múa（舞）. Following Vietnam's independence in the 10th century, the country began to establish its own governance and identity. During the early period of state formation, particularly in the Ly and Tran dynasties, the Vietnamese utilized Chinese culture and characters as primary tools for cultivating national talent. As direct communication between the Vietnamese and Chinese gradually diminished, the predominant "oral channel" of Sino-Vietnamese linguistic contact began to be supplanted by a "written channel." Consequently, the pronunciation of Chinese characters by the Vietnamese started to diverge from the actual sounds of Chinese, leading to the gradual establishment of the "Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation" system. Additionally, it was during the medieval period that both Vietnamese and Chinese evolved into syllable-timed languages, exhibiting similar linguistic structures. This shared typological characteristic, combined with the well-developed Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation system, facilitated the integration of numerous Chinese words into the Vietnamese vocabulary, resulting in a substantial corpus of Sino-Vietnamese terms.

Sino-Vietnamese words entered the Vietnamese vocabulary primarily through the "written language route." However, it is important to note that only those intellectuals who frequently utilize Sino-Vietnamese terms possess a comprehensive understanding of their meanings. In contrast, most ordinary citizens and farmers, who spend their days working in the fields, are typically familiar with only a limited set of Chinese loanwords, such as the following: 1. The limited number of monosyllabic Sino-Vietnamese words commonly encountered in daily life such as thiên （天）, địa（地）, quỷ（鬼）, thần（神）, cúng（供）, tế（祭）; 2. Sino-Vietnamese words that have been adapted into Vietnamese, referred to as "post-Sino-Vietnamese words" such as gan（胆）, gương（镜）, rồng（龙）, rạng（朗）, vạch（划）, vẽ（画）; 3. Chinese words that entered the Vietnamese vocabulary prior to the establishment of Sino-Vietnamese phonetics, referred to as "pre-Sino-Vietnamese words," include terms such as buồng （房）, buồm （帆）, đuốc（烛）, đũa（箸）, mùa（务）, múa（舞）, among others; 4. Sino-Vietnamese loanwords that have entered the Vietnamese vocabulary through the "oral route" from modern dialects include terms such as vằn thắn (馄饨), tào phớ (豆腐)，tài xế (司机), mì chính（味精）. It was only after the August Revolution in Vietnam (post-1945) that illiterate Vietnamese peasants gained access to education and social group activities. This newfound opportunity enabled them to comprehend Sino-Vietnamese words, thereby initiating a transformative phase in their cultural lives. Consequently, rather than being excluded, Sino-Vietnamese words found new avenues for development within the Vietnamese language.

Currently, as Sino-Vietnamese words and phrases continue to enter the Vietnamese vocabulary in large quantities, another noteworthy phenomenon has emerged: the increasing creation of new terms by Vietnamese speakers based on Chinese morphemes with Sino-Vietnamese pronunciations, referred to as "Vietnamese Sino-Vietnamese words." These terms closely resemble traditional Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary but do not have direct equivalents in Chinese. Examples include di tản （移散—‘迁徙’）, cư xá（居舍—‘宿舍’）, tiếp viên（接员—‘服务员’）, tiếp thị（接市—‘营销’）, hội thảo（会讨—‘研讨会’）. Although the aforementioned terms can also be rendered as "移散," "居舍," "接員," "接市," and "会讨论" in Chinese, they do not appear in several authoritative modern Chinese dictionaries, such as the Modern Chinese Dictionary or the Modern Chinese Standard Dictionary. It can be argued that "Vietnamese Sino-Vietnamese words" are products created by Vietnamese speakers based on their comprehensive understanding of Chinese morphemes that have long been integrated into their language. In some instances, these Vietnamese-style Sino-Vietnamese terms have supplanted traditional Sino-Vietnamese loanwords that previously held significant status. For example, hội thảo (会讨) has completely replaced khai hội (开会) and, to some extent, has supplanted hội nghị (会议). However, the phenomenon of borrowing Chinese words "intact" into Vietnamese has not entirely disappeared. For instance, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training established the Cục Khảo thí và Kiểm tra chất lượng giáo dục (Examination and Education Quality Supervision Bureau, 考试与教育质量监督局) a few years ago. This title includes the Sino-Vietnamese loanword khảo thí (考试), which is generally supplanted by the Vietnamese-style Sino-Vietnamese term thi cử (试举).

It is evident that, although the number of Vietnamese-style Sino-Vietnamese words is steadily increasing, Vietnamese speakers often resort to Sino-Vietnamese loanwords when aiming for a more formal or traditional written expression, particularly in naming conventions. Currently, the majority of Vietnamese surnames are derived from Sino-Vietnamese loanwords, with very few being pure Vietnamese terms. As a result, Vietnamese individuals can easily and accurately translate their names into Chinese characters. A comparison of the naming structures of the Chinese and Vietnamese ethnic groups, along with the cultural connotations embedded within these names, reveals numerous similarities and intricate connections. For instance, commonly used surnames such as 阮, 黎, 潘, 范, 吴, 陈, 李, 杜, 高, 胡, 武, 伍, 张, 王, 马, 刘, 林, 裴, 冯, 文, 曾, 贺, 黄, 孙, 宋, 苏, 韩, 何, 蔡, 丁, 段, 童, 朱, 周, 杨, 谭, 江, 甲, 莫, 梅, 孟, 邓 and郑… appear strikingly similar to those found among Chinese individuals. Research indicates that many Vietnamese surnames can be traced back to ancient Chinese surnames. Moreover, the Vietnamese naming system is profoundly influenced by Confucian principles within Chinese culture. Vietnamese society has been shaped by Chinese cultural practices, particularly Confucianism, for centuries, with Confucian ethics holding significant esteem. As a result, many Vietnamese names reflect Confucian values such as benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, faith, loyalty, courage, and filial piety. This is especially true for male names, exemplified by individuals such as 陈忠, 范光孝and 范德扬. Before the 1980s, it was common for ordinary families in Vietnam to adopt a naming format of surname →文 → given name, as seen in names like 阮文说、阮文利、范文通. Additionally, female names frequently included the word "氏" as in 阮氏芳庄and 潘氏艳芳. However, the use of "氏" and “文” in both male and female names has diminished in prevalence in contemporary naming practices.

Not only are personal names in Vietnam influenced by the Chinese language and culture, but a significant portion of place names also derives from Chinese words. The names of provinces and cities throughout Vietnam predominantly consist of Sino-Vietnamese loanwords, both from ancient times and into the present. For instance, names such as Hanoi (河内the capital, formerly known as Thang Long City升龙城), Hai Phong (海防), Bac Ninh (北宁) Province, Quang Ninh (广宁) Province, Thanh Hoa (青化) Province, Quang Binh (广平) Province, and Quang Tri (广治) Province exemplify this linguistic influence. This phenomenon underscores the important role that the Chinese language and culture have played in shaping the naming conventions of the Vietnamese people.

Over the past decade, a novel pathway for the integration of the Chinese language and characters into Vietnamese has gradually emerged. This method facilitates the substantial influx of Chinese words into Vietnamese newspapers through what can be termed the "Pinyin method," which utilizes "Pinyin letters"—the Latin characters employed to annotate Chinese characters according to the "Chinese Pinyin Scheme." Given that Vietnam's national language is also based on the Latin alphabet, the incorporation of Chinese terms in the form of Pinyin letters into Vietnamese publications occurs relatively seamlessly. Our investigation focused on prominent Vietnamese publications, specifically "Sports and Culture News" and "Youth News" in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The results indicated that within a sample of fewer than ten articles, dozens of Chinese words presented in Latin letters could be identified.

It is noteworthy that not all articles concerning China in Vietnamese newspapers are directly translated from the original Chinese text; many originate from English, French, and other Latin-based languages. In such cases, the translator, regardless of their proficiency in Chinese, often has no choice but to retain these Pinyin phrases "as is." This practice not only facilitates convenience but also ensures fidelity to the original content. Even when the source text is in Chinese, the occurrence of Chinese terms in their phonetic forms within Vietnamese newspapers is prevalent. This phenomenon arises because not all contemporary translators possess expertise in Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation, rendering them unable to readily convert Chinese words into their Sino-Vietnamese equivalents. Consequently, translators may need to consult reference materials, a process that is not always feasible. Thus, preserving the phonetic form of these Chinese words becomes the most practical solution. Importantly, this trend does not imply that specific Sino-Vietnamese nouns have vanished from Vietnamese newspapers; rather, they continue to coexist within the same articles as their phonetic counterparts.

Observations indicate that in Vietnamese newspapers, the Chinese words that are rendered into Sino-Vietnamese are predominantly familiar terms for Vietnamese readers. Examples include Ngọa hổ tàng long (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 卧虎藏龙), Lý An (李安), Chương Tử Di (章子怡), Thượng Hải (上海), Tây An (西安), Thiểm Tây (陕西) and Tứ Xuyên (四川). In these instances, even when these terms appear in their Pinyin forms within Chinese articles, translators often opt to convert them into Sino-Vietnamese equivalents that are more accessible to Vietnamese audiences, drawing upon their knowledge of Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation. It is widely acknowledged that such Sino-Vietnamese terms are generally perceived as more "friendly" by Vietnamese readers compared to their Pinyin counterparts.

Furthermore, in recent years, familiar Chinese terms such as wushu, sanshou, and gongfu have become increasingly prevalent, not only in newspapers but also in television broadcasts and everyday conversations among Vietnamese people. These terms denote various forms of Chinese martial arts (武术、散手、功夫). Notably, sanshou and gongfu can also be expressed in their Sino-Vietnamese forms as tán thủ and công phu, respectively, while retaining the same semantic meanings. However, it is important to highlight that wushu and its Sino-Vietnamese equivalent, võ thuật, exhibit different semantic scopes. The term võ thuật serves as a general descriptor for various martial arts disciplines, whereas wushu specifically refers to the combat routines and weapon forms utilized in competitive contexts. In this regard, the "Pinyin approach" serves a critical function in distinguishing between a noun that refers specifically to competition routines and a term that encompasses a broader range of martial arts schools.

In summary, the integration of the Chinese language and characters into the Vietnamese vocabulary has demonstrated significant continuity and robustness throughout history, manifesting through "oral," "written," and "phonetic" channels. However, as time has progressed, the cohabitation of Vietnamese and Chinese has diminished in prominence within modern economic contexts. The number of individuals proficient in both Chinese and Vietnamese pronunciation has also declined, leading to a reduced efficacy of both the "oral" and "written" channels for the incorporation of Chinese into Vietnamese. Concurrently, the trend of utilizing Chinese and Vietnamese elements to create new vocabulary is expected to gain traction. Moreover, a new "phonetic alphabet channel" is emerging, which raises questions about the future of Chinese phonetic terms in Vietnamese texts. While these terms may face challenges before widespread acceptance, their potential remains evident due to their practicality and relevance in specific contexts. The initial dissemination of Chinese characters in Vietnam primarily arose from the administrative and cultural needs of Chinese feudal rulers seeking to govern and develop border ethnic groups. The Vietnamese people's initial passive acceptance has evolved into an active engagement with Chinese characters, underscoring the significant functions and values embodied in Chinese writing and the culture it represents. The spread and influence of Chinese characters in Vietnam are both comprehensive and profound, possessing multifaceted cultural significance.

Ultimately, the dissemination of the Chinese language and characters in Vietnam is an inevitable historical phenomenon that exhibits varied manifestations across different epochs. As the global status of both China and Vietnam continues to rise, the relationship characterized by "long-term stability, future-oriented perspectives, good neighborliness, and comprehensive cooperation" is poised for further strengthening. Consequently, the revitalization of the spread and influence of the Chinese language and characters in Vietnam is anticipated.

References

1. Lǐ Xíngjiàn (Chief Editor). Xiandai Hanyu Guifan Cidian (现代汉语规范词典). Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press & Foreign Languages Press, Beijing, 2004.

2. Nguyễn Tài Cẩn. The Origin and Formation Process of Sino-Vietnamese Pronunciation (Revised Edition). Vietnam National University Press, Hanoi, 2002.

3. Nguyễn Quang Hồng. Syllables and Language Typology (Reprinted Edition). Vietnam National University Press, Hanoi, 2002.

4. Nguyễn Quang Hồng. Preserving and Developing Vietnamese – the Common Language of Vietnam’s Ethnic Groups. Journal “Language & Life,” Issues 1+2/2004.

5. Lexicography Department, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Revised Edition). Xiandai Hanyu Cidian (现代汉语词典). Commercial Press, Beijing, 1999.

The Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, cordially invites faculty members, researchers, graduate students, and undergraduates to attend a Research Talk entitled "A New Study on the Localization of Sino-Vietnamese Words", presented by Prof. Dr. Vũ Đức Nghiệu—one of the leading scholars in the field of Vietnamese historical linguistics.

This talk will present Professor Nghiệu’s latest findings on the phenomenon of localized Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary, referring to the process by which Chinese-origin words, upon entering Vietnamese, not only retain certain phonetic features but also undergo semantic, syntactic, and usage transformations to better align with the native Vietnamese linguistic system. His research sheds new light on the localization of Chinese linguistic elements in the evolution of the Vietnamese language, while also opening pathways for interdisciplinary inquiries bridging linguistics, cultural studies, and Han-Nom philology.

📅 Time: 14:00, Wednesday, June 4, 2025
📍 Venue: Room 307, Building E, University of Social Sciences and Humanities,
336 Nguyễn Trãi Street, Thanh Xuân District, Hanoi

Prof. Dr. Vũ Đức Nghiệu is a distinguished scholar in Vietnamese linguistics. He has held several leadership positions at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU Hanoi, and has produced a significant body of research on linguistic acculturation, especially the historical influence of Chinese on Vietnamese. Throughout his academic career, he has been deeply engaged in the study of Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary, Han-Nom textual data, and medieval literature, making substantial contributions to the understanding of linguistic Vietnamization—particularly at the lexical level.

On an autumn day, October 7, 2025, linguist Prof. Dr. Sci. Nguyễn Quang Hồng passed away, leaving in the hearts of Vietnamese scholars an irreparable sense of loss. Eighteen years earlier, also on these autumn days, October 16, 2007, the renowned linguist Prof. Cao Xuân Hạo also departed this world, mourned deeply by his friends, students, and colleagues. Two towering figures of Vietnamese humanities—Cao Xuân Hạo and Nguyễn Quang Hồng—thus both chose the autumn days of humankind to close their earthly journeys. In a quiet and fateful way, autumn has become the season of farewell for two of the greatest minds in modern Vietnamese linguistics. To honor them, this article revisits the essay that Nguyễn Quang Hồng wrote in October 2007, when he reflected on his colleague and elder brother in scholarship, Professor Cao Xuân Hạo.

In that piece, Nguyễn Quang Hồng recalled learning of Cao Xuân Hạo’s passing through a phone call from a young colleague. Though aware of his mentor’s declining health, he was overcome with grief at the realization that he would never again share a conversation with Cao Xuân Hạo. His memory drifted back to 1965, when, fresh from his studies at Peking University, he first met the already accomplished Cao Xuân Hạo. The elder linguist devoted an entire autumn afternoon to explaining his theory of the Vietnamese syllable to the young scholar  - a meeting that, as Nguyễn Quang Hồng recalled, revealed that Cao Xuân Hạo was seeking an entirely new way to understand Vietnamese from within its own nature.

According to Cao Xuân Hạo, the Vietnamese syllable is an indivisible whole—a unified phonetic, semantic, and functional unit—and cannot be mechanically divided into “initial, medial, nucleus, and final” parts, as in European phonological models. He called this perspective the theory of non-segmentality, presented most fully in his 1985 work Phonologie et Linéarité (Phonology and Linearity). The book earned high praise from international scholars; several French linguists observed that if speakers of monosyllabic languages such as Vietnamese had developed modern phonology, they would have chosen the syllable—not the phoneme—as its fundamental unit. From Vietnam, Cao Xuân Hạo raised an independent, decolonizing voice that challenged Eurocentric norms in global linguistics.

Beyond phonology, Cao Xuân Hạo ventured into Vietnamese grammar. Rejecting the traditional European “Subject–Predicate” framework, he proposed a “Topic–Comment” structure that better captures the logic of Vietnamese sentences, where the first part introduces the topic and the latter elaborates on it. His book Vietnamese: A Functional Grammar Outline (1991) became a turning point, helping generations of linguists and teachers see Vietnamese not as a distorted version of Western syntax but as a coherent linguistic system in its own right.

In Nguyễn Quang Hồng’s recollection, Cao Xuân Hạo was not only a rigorous theoretician but also a profoundly humanistic intellectual. His knowledge extended far beyond linguistics: fluent in Russian—so well that even native speakers admired him—he also mastered French, English, and Latin, was deeply versed in Chinese linguistics and writing, and translated Russian and French literature into Vietnamese, both precise and lyrical. His essays on language and culture, later collected in Tiếng Việt – Văn Việt – Người Việt (The Vietnamese Language, Literature, and People), brought linguistic thought closer to the general public, showing Vietnamese not merely as a tool of communication but as a cultural heritage worthy of care and pride.

Concluding his 2007 tribute, Nguyễn Quang Hồng wrote that Cao Xuân Hạo passed away peacefully, leaving behind an invaluable legacy for the Vietnamese language. This autumn, as Nguyễn Quang Hồng himself has also left this world, those words echo anew—like a double elegy for two scholars who devoted their lives to affirming the dignity and integrity of Vietnamese: a language that needs no borrowed mirror to be seen, for it is already complete and free in its own being.

Read Hoài niệm về Anh Cao Xuân Hạo by Nguyễn Quang Hồng:
 https://ngonngu.net/nqhong_hoainiemvecaoxuanhao/354

Read Tiếng Việt – Văn Việt – Người Việt by Cao Xuân Hạo on Digitizing Việt Nam platform:
https://www.digitizingvietnam.com/en/our-collections/tinh-hoa-van-hoc-va-ngon-ngu-viet-nam/tieng-viet-van-viet-nguoi-viet