The Vietnamese with Kenneth Nguyen 443- Did Chinese Writing "Civilize" Vietnam? The Origins of Vietnam with Professor John Phan
Aug 22, 2025
In this conversation with Professor John Phan, an Associate Professor of Vietnamese Humanities at Columbia University, listeners dive into the fascinating evolution of the Vietnamese language. Phan examines its intricate relationship with Chinese influences and dispels the myth that Vietnamese originated from Chinese roots. He elaborates on the development of Vietnamese writing and its cultural significance, along with the impact of technology on language and identity. The discussion brilliantly intertwines historical context with modern cultural expressions in Vietnam.
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Writing Vs. Speech As Separate Technologies
- Writing is a technology separate from speech and often borrowed, not invented anew by most societies.
- Literary Sinitic (Văn Ngôn / Hán Văn) served as Vietnam's primary written medium for centuries.
Conqueror Script Became Cultural Core
- Literary scripts can become culturally integrated and feel native even if they originated with conquerors.
- Vietnamese elites adopted Hán-Văn so fully that it became their primary literary identity for centuries.
Four Independent Origins Of Writing
- Scholars generally identify four independent inventions of writing: Sumerian cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Chinese script, and Mayan script.
- Many modern scripts (Latin, Cyrillic, etc.) ultimately trace back to Egyptian via Phoenician alphabets.
