Names of the Nation
To define Viet Nam, the name of our country, we go back to its origin, following successive changes which have occurred during our long and glorious history.
The word "Viet" is the Vietnamese pronunciation of a Chinese character which means "far-off". It also means "to traverse", "to go beyond" to pass through "to get over" to "draw oneself up" or "to sit up again". The word "Viet" thus indicates a country far from China, which tends to pass over obstacles, to sit up again and spread. The word "Nam" means 'south'. So the name Viet Nam means the "South of the Viets" or 'the South populated by the "Viet".
But before coming to this name which is considered definitive or official, our national toponym has undergone many changes and morphological transformations, which are interesting to note:
1. Van Lang under the dynasty of Hong Bang or Lac Vuong (5th century B.C. to 257 B.C.)
2. Au Lac under the dynasty of the Thuc (257-207 B.C.)
3. Nam Viet under the dynasty of the Trieu (207-111 B.C.)
4. Giao-Chi under the Chinese Early Han (111 B.C.-203 A.D.)
5. Giao-Chau under the Chinese Later Han (203-544)
6. Van Xuan under the Early Ly (544-603)
7. An Nam under the Tang dynasty (603-939)
8. Dai Co Viet under the dynasty of the Tran and their successors (969-1054)
9. Dai Viet under the Ly and Tran dynasties (1054-1400)
10. Dai Ngu under the Ho dynasty (1400-1407)
11. An Nam under the Chinese Ming dynasty (1407-1427)
12. Dai Viet under the Le dynasty and the warlords of the Nguyen (1428-1802)
13. Viet Nam under the Emperor Gia Long (1802-1832)
14. Dai Nam under the Emperor Minh Mang and his successors (1832-1945). The French terms Tonkin, Annam and Cochin China were used concurrently to describe the Vietnamese portions of Indochina.
15. Viet Nam, re-used in April, 1945 by the first national government headed by Tran Trong Kim, under Emperor Bao Dai.
16. Viet Nam Dan Chu Cong Hoa (Democratic Republic of Viet Nam) was officially established after the August Revolution which deposed Tran Trong Kim. On 2 September 1945, Ho Chi Minh, President of the provisional government, read a Declaration of Independence.
17. Between 1954 and 1975 Viet Nam was partitioned:
18. Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam (Socialist Republic of Viet Nam) adopted in 1976 after the Communist victory on 30 April 1975 which reuified the country.
Thus, we have known at least twelve different national names, and almost all of them contain the word "Viet", which indicates our ethnic origin. This ethnic group is distinct from that of the Han of the Yellow River in China.
Concerning our present national name, Viet Nam, it is advisable to recall the important role of the diplomatic mission headed by Le Quang Dinh, the Armed Forces Minister of Emperor Gia Long, who was sent to China in 1802. In effect, the Vietnamese monarch wanted the Chinese emperor to approve the new Vietnamese national name of Nam Viet. Ambassador Le Quang Dinh pleaded as follows:
"The new Kinh of the Nguyen has succeeded in realising what the former reigns of the Tran and Le could not - the reunification under his rule of both the old land of An Nam and the new land of Viet Thuong. Consequently, we would like to ask permission to change the ancient name of An Nam to Nam Viet (An Nam plus Viet Thuong)."
The Emperor of China, after consulting principal dignitaries of his Court, held that the name Nam Viet might evoke the memory of kingdom of Trieu Da. As this ancient kingdom had also included the two Chinese provinces of Kuang Tong and Kuang Tsi, the proposed name of Nam Viet could lead to misunderstandings. or even hide territorial ambitions! He solved the problem by reversing the order of the two words, and thus the national name of Viet Nam was consecrated.
Source: Thai Van Kiem et al. (1969) Vietnamese Realities 3rd ed. Sai Gon p.67. with the addition of points 16 to 18 by the editor.