Understanding the naming conventions of non-European cultures is important for an investigator or anyone wishing to certainly and correctly identify people in our diverse country. The following column information is an attempt to assist the reader in correctly applying the conventions of uniquely ethnic names so identification is possible. This article should not be interpreted as indicating any unusual prevalence of any specific ethnic group toward unlawful or immoral activities, since no such intention exists. In coming issues of The John Cooke Fraud Report, we will explore the mysteries of the naming practices of many ethnic cultures. In this issue, we look at Vietnamese names.

VIETNAMESE NAMES Vietnamese people most generally have three names. The first of these three names is the name which identifies the person’s family. The middle name appears next and the given name (what we generally call the first name in this western society) appears last. Thus if John Edward Smith was Vietnamese, he would be known as Smith Edward John. Or Anna Elizabeth Jones would be Jones Elizabeth Anna.

Because there are many similar sounding names, it is very important in correctly identifying a person to obtain an accurate listing of the name. Vietnamese names cause particular difficulty for the investigator because they are so similar in sound and because it is nearly impossible to ascertain the gender of the individual solely from his/her name.

It is important to understand that Vietnamese is a monosyllabic language. Every word in the Vietnamese language is a single syllable when it is correctly pronounced. As an example, let’slook at the most common name Nguyen. If we were to apply an English translation to this spelling, the result might be Nihgooyen. Understanding that the pronunciation is correctly just one syllable, however, the correct way to say Nguyen is Winn.

It is hoped that the following information relative to family, middle and given names will be helpful.

Family Names

Nearly 50 percent of all Vietnamese people have the family name of Nguyen. Adding to the confusion is the fact that nearly 85 percent of the Vietnamese have one of the following family names: 

Dang, Dao, Dinh, Do, Duong, Hoang, Huynh, Le, Ngo, Nguyen, Pham, Tran, Vo, Vu.

Other names you may see are Au, Bui, Cao, Chau, Chu, Chuong, Cu, Doan, Gia, Ha, La, Lai, Lam, Loung, Ly, Ma, Phan, Ta, Trinh, Truong and Tu.

Unlike the American custom, a Vietnamese bride does not assumeher husband’s family name. She retains her own family name throughout her life. Traditionally, the children of the marriage will take the family name of the father. The only time husband and wife will share the same family name is when they both have the same name prior to the marriage. The most common instance, because of sheer numbers, is Nguyen.

Middle Names The Vietnamese use the middle name to give meaning to the given name. For instance, in the name Thanh Thuy, Thanh is meaningless alone, but when combined with Thuy it means clear water. In rare cases, generally among the older Vietnamese, the only clue to gender is found in the middle name. Seeing Van as a middle name means you are dealing with a male; Thi is a female. It is rare to see these names used by younger Vietnamese as they are too ordinary or too traditional for their tastes.

Given Names

Many names are used interchangeably for either men or women.

The most common given names are:

Commonly used by both sexes:  Anh, Dung, Hanh, Hoa, Hong, Khanh, Lan, Liem, Nhung and Xuan.

Commonly used by men:  An, Ba, Bang, Bao, Bay, Canh, Ching, Cong, Cung, Dat, Dong, Gia, Giang, Gon, Ha, Hai, Hieh, Hiep,Hoai, Hoang, Hoi, Hung, Huynh, Khoa, Khoi, Ky, Lai, Linh, Loc, Long, Luc, Luu, Luy, Man, Manh, Minh, Nam, Nghia, Ngoc, Nguyen, Nho, Ninh, On, Phat, Phu, Phuc, Phung, Qua, Quan, Quang, Quy, Quyen, Sang, Sau, Son, Tam, Tan, Tao, Thanh, Thao, Thien, Thoi, Thuan, Tion, Toan, Tru, Truc, Trung, Tu, Tuan, Tung, Tuong, Tuyen, Ut, Van, Vang, Vien, Viet, Vinh, Vu and Xuong.

Commonly used by women:  Bich, Chau, Diep, Hang, Kim, Lien, Mai, Mong, My, Nguyet, Phuong, Quynh, Thi, Thoa, Thu, Trinh, Tuyet, Uyen and Yen.

The majority of women’s given names are also used as middle names. Sometimes a woman has two middle names (in almost all instances, one of them will be Thi), making her name total four instead of three.

Compound given names are also most common with women, although they are occasionally also seen in men’s names. Each name is capitalized and they are not hyphenated. When a name is provided that contains four separate words, you are usually seeing a compound given name.

When addressing a Vietnamese person as Mr., Mrs. or Miss, it is proper to use the given name, or the compound given name. Thus, Nguyen Van Pham would be called Mr. Pham; and his wife Than Thi Chau would be called Mrs. Chau. If there is a compound given name, use both. For instance, Vo Thi Xuan Hoa is addressed as Miss Xuan Hoa. Using the Mr. or Mrs. with the family name will usually get no response. It would be akin to shouting across a crowded room, “Mr. John” to John Charles Smith. He simply would not recognize that you meant him.

Many times Vietnamese will Americanize the order of their names when dealing with Americans. Understanding the relatively small number of family names in common use should help in correctly placing the names. Even official documents like a Social Security card or a driver’s license may list the names incorrectly or confusingly. It should be noted that anyone trying to conceal their identity will likely make use of the assumed American misunderstanding of Vietnamese names and naming. Common ways that mislead investigators include giving the three names in scrambled order, sloppy pronunciation causing misidentification of a name the investigator is not accustomed to hearing, and incomplete spelling of a name such as spelling Manh without the “h” to cause confusion with the name Man.

To avoid confusion, ask for family name and spelling first, then middle name and spelling followed by given name and spelling. At least two Index Information Sheets may be required for each name to catch cases of Americanization.

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