will be added when necessary. Or why there are so many Nguyễns? However, some people prefer to use both given names. In the past, the middle name was selected by parents from a fairly narrow range of options. I’m a girl, so it doesn’t feel right to be called “Anh” , Thanks for your take, Trâm Anh. Typically, Vietnamese will be addressed with their given name, even in formal situations, although an honorific equivalent to "Mr.", "Mrs.", etc. Take Pham Van Duc, for example, Pham is the family name or what we call the last name. Vietnamese middle names generally have three usages: 1) to indicate a person's generation; 2) to separate branches of a big family; 3) to indicate a person's position (birth order) in the family. I think when I wrote this post I was remembering classes where I’ve had 2+ students with the same main given name (eg. Vietnamese personal names generally consist of three parts: one patrilineal family name, one or more middle name(s) (one of which may be taken from the mother's family name), and one given name, used in that order. In some cases, names are combined to create a unique name. Although I don't live there now, I lived in Saigon for a total of 3.5 years and I still maintain this blog to help others learn Vietnamese. Further, some historical names may be written using different Chinese characters (Sino-Vietnamese), but are still written the same in the modern Vietnamese alphabet. Back in those days, the surname of the Emperor was often used like a clan name. Therefore shortening it to one or the other is not on! Hello and welcome to More Vietnamese! Keep up the great blogging here Ruth. In a normal name list, those two parts of the full name are put in two different columns. Names with the same spelling but with different tones represent different meanings, which can confuse people when the accent marks are dropped, as is commonly done outside Vietnam. Vietnamese don't usually write their names in the first middle last order, so I think they probably accept any order so long as it's all there. More language tips. I do find it weird calling a girl “Anh”, even when I’m speaking English, so I try to use both names where possible. About 40 percent of Vietnam's population is named Nguyen. Vietnamese language is tonal and so are Vietnamese names. In very formal situations you may use Ông or Bà instead, or you may include the person’s title like the late General Giáp (Đại tướng Giáp). When being addressed within the family, children are sometimes referred to by their birth number, starting with one in the north but two in the south. I have followed you on Twitter as you post lots of very pertinent and interesting stuff on learning Vietnamese. This common street name comes from a historical figure of that name. Their infantry and cavalry both miss Blast Furnace, and the latter is especially shallow with other key upgrades such as Husbandry and Hussar missing. [2] The top three names are so common as people tended to take family names of emperors to show loyalty. Middle Names The Vietnamese use the middle name to give meaning to the given name. Vietnamese Girls Names. The Vietnamese family name is usually passed down by the father to his children. Additionally, their unique unit and team bonus are both foot archers, making the Vietnamese able to pick from a wide variety of different units there. Great post. 31. Most Vietnamese have one middle name, but it is quite possible to have two or more of them or to have no middle name at all. This is often happens with very common names like Anh: people will introduce themselves with the two used names together like Vân Anh or Minh Anh. Let’s look at an example: Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai. In rare cases, generally among the older Vietnamese, the only clue to gender is found in the middle name. That contrasts with the situation in many other cultures in which the family name is used in formal situations, but it is a practice similar to usage in Icelandic usage and, to some degree, Polish. 1. However this homogeneity is not that important as in Vietnam surnames are not really used, aside from official paperwork and when filling in forms. That practice is less common recently, especially in the north. Vietnamese names typically consist of three parts: a family name, one or more middle names, and a personal name (or given name), in that order. Brothers and sisters share the same middle name, which distinguish them from the generation before them and the generation after them (see, To separate branches of a large family: "Nguyễn. Over so many generations, these family names became permanent. But saying that, I’ve had some Vietnamese students who don’t mind using just one of these given names.