Unit 03. Peoples of Viet Nam. Lesson 7. Looking back - project

Welcome to my project
Lê Thảo Anh 8/5
March 2019
I. About the Kinh peoples
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About the Kinh
The Vietnamese people or the Kinh people are an ethnic group originating from present-day northern Vietnam. They are the majority ethnic group of Vietnam, comprising 86% of the population at the 1999 census, and are officially known as Kinh to distinguish them from other ethnic groups in Vietnam. The earliest recorded name for the ancient Vietnamese people appears as Lac Viet.

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CHART
85.7274%
Population of Vietnam in 2009: 85.846.997
The Kinh
The Others
14.2726%
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II. Geography
- Vietnam is located on the eastern Indochinese Peninsula between the latitudes 8° and 24°N, and the longitudes 102° and 110°E. It covers a total area of approximately 331,212 km2. ----- The combined length of the country`s land boundaries is 4,639 km, and its coastline is 3,444 km long. At its narrowest point in the central Quang Binh Province, the country is as little as 50 kilometers across, though it widens to around 600 kilometers in the north. - Vietnam`s land is mostly hilly and densely forested, with level land covering no more than 20%. - Mountains account for 40% of the country`s land area, and tropical forests cover around 42%. The northern part of the country consists mostly of highlands and the Red River Delta. Fansipan which is located in Lao Cai Province is the highest mountain in Vietnam, standing 3,143 m (10,312 ft) high.
III. Traditional clothes
The ao dai is a Vietnamese traditional garment, worn by both sexes but now most commonly worn by women. In its current form, it is a tight-fitting silk tunic worn over trousers.
The word "ao dai" was originally applied to the outfit worn at the court of the Nguyen Lords at Hue in the 18th century. This outfit evolved into the ao dai, a five-paneled aristocratic gown worn in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Inspired by Paris fashions, Nguyen Cat Tuong and other artists associated with Hanoi University redesigned the ao dai as a modern dress in the 1920s and 1930s. The updated look was promoted by the artists and magazines of Tu Luc van đoan (Self-Reliant Literary Group) as a national costume for the modern era. In the 1950s, Saigon designers tightened the fit to produce the version worn by Vietnamese women today. The dress was extremely popular in South Vietnam in the 1960s and early 1970s. On Tet and other occasions, Vietnamese men may wear a brocade robe, a version of the ao dai made of thicker fabric.
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IV. Festivals and holidays


The country has eleven national recognied holidays which includes the New Year`s Day on 1 January, Vietnamese New Year (Tet) from last day of the last lunar month to fifth day of the first lunar month, Hung Kings Commemorations on 10th day of the third lunar month, Day of liberating the South for national reunification on 30 April, International Workers` Day on 1 May and National Day Celebration on 2 September. During Tet, many Vietnamese from the major cities will return to their villages to gathering for family reunions and praying for dead ancestors. Older people will usually give the young a red envelope while special holiday food of chung cake in a square shape together with variety of dried fruits as the festival sweets are presented in the house for visitors. Many other festivals are celebrated throughout the seasons in a year including the Lantern Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and various temple and nature festivals. In the highlands, Elephant Race Festival are held annually during the spring where riders will ride their elephants for about 1.6 kilometers with the winning elephant will be given sugarcane. Traditional Vietnamese weddings remain widely popular and are often celebrated by expatriate Vietnamese in Western countries. In Vietnam, the dressing have been influenced by Western styles with the wearing of white wedding dresses and black tuxedos although there were also many who still preferring to choose Vietnamese traditional wedding costumes for traditional ceremonies.


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V. Cuisine
Vietnamese cuisine traditionally features a combination of five fundamental taste "elements" spicy (metal), sour (wood), bitter (fire), salty (water) and sweet (earth). Common ingredients include fish sauce, shrimp paste, soy sauce, rice, fresh herbs, fruits and vegetables. Vietnamese recipes use lemongrass, ginger, mint, Vietnamese mint, long coriander, Saigon cinnamon, bird`s eye chillies, lime and basil leaves. Traditional Vietnamese cooking is known for its fresh ingredients, minimal use of oil and reliance on herbs and vegetables where it is considered one of the healthiest cuisines worldwide. The use of such meats as pork, beef and chicken was relatively limited in the past, and as a result freshwater fish, crustaceans particularly crabs and molluscs became widely used. Fish sauce, soy sauce, prawn sauce and limes are among the main flavoring ingredients. There is an estimate of 40 Vietnamese dishes with many are usually served as a norm in the country street food culture. Many notable Vietnamese dishes such as ide noodle roll, rice vermicelli soup and “pho” are originated from the north and were carried to central and southern Vietnam by northern migrants. Local foods in the north are often less spicy than southern dishes as the colder northern climate limits the production and availability of spices. Black pepper is used in place of chillies to produce spicy flavors. Vietnamese drinks in the south also are usually served cold with ice cube especially during the annual hot seasons compared to the north where hot drinks are much more preferable in colder climate. Some examples of basic Vietnamese drinks include Vietnamese iced coffee, egg coffee, salted pickled lime juice, glutinous rice wine, sugarcane juice and Vietnamese lotus tea.

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VI. Language
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The official national language of the country is Vietnamese, a tonal Austroasiatic languages (Mon–Khmer) which is spoken by the majority of the population. In its early history, Vietnamese writing used Chinese characters before a different meaning set of Chinese characters developed between the 7th–13th century. The folk epic Kieu story(The Tale of Kieu) by Nguyen Du was written in the romanised Vietnamese alphabet used for spoken Vietnamese, was developed in the 17th century by the Jesuit Alexandre de Rhodes and several other Catholic missionaries by using the alphabets of Romance languages, particularly the Portuguese alphabet which later became widely used through Vietnamese institutions during the French colonial period. Vietnam`s minority groups speak a variety of languages, including Tay, Muong, Cham, Khmer, Chinese, Nung and Hmong. The Montagnard peoples of the Central Highlands also speak a number of distinct languages as their language is derived from both the Austroasiatic and Malayo-Polynesian language groups. In recent years, a number of sign languages have developed in the major cities.

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Quizzes
What is the other name for the Kinh peoples?
The Lac peoples
2. How many percentage of Vietnamese are the Kinh peoples?
About 86%
3. What is the highest mountain in Vietnam?
Fansipan
4. Where is Fansipan?
Lao Cai province
5. What was ao dai involved from?
The outfit worn
6. How many national holidays/festivals are there?
Eleven national recognised holidays/festivals.
7. What is traditional cooking well-known for?
It is known for its fresh ingredients, minimal use of oil and reliance on herbs and vegetables.
8. List at least 5 cuisine.
Example: egg coffee, lotus tea, salt pickled lime juice, ice coffee, rice noodle roll, etc.
9. What is the language of the Kinh peoples?
Vietnamese
10. Are you a Kinh people?
Thank you for listening