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Let’s learn about the Vietnamese language! We’ve gathered background information and interesting facts about the language. In addition, check out our newest children’s books available in Vietnamese.
Where is Vietnamese Spoken?
Vietnamese, the official language of Vietnam, is a Mon-Kmer language spoken by approximately 80 million people worldwide. It is also recognized as a minority language in the Czech Republic, with over 50,000 Vietnamese-speaking inhabitants.
Vietnamese in the United States
Over 1.5 million Vietnamese speakers live in the United States, making Vietnamese the fifth most spoken language. Large groups of Vietnamese speakers live in California, Texas, and Washington.
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Interesting Facts About Vietnamese
Vietnamese started out as strictly a spoken language. When it first became a written language, Vietnamese used an edited version of Chinese characters. The language was Latinized during French colonization. The Vietnamese alphabet has no F, J, W, or Z.
Vietnamese is a tonal language with six distinctive tones, making pronunciation very important in conveying the correct meaning. It has no gender, no articles, no verb tense, and no plurals.
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Vietnamese Books – Bilingual Children’s Books
If you interact with children who speak Vietnamese or are learning the language, you may want suggestions on some of the best bilingual children’s books. The Living in Harmony series is useful for discussing universal themes of kindness and respect while learning about a new culture. Our newest Habitat Series is perfect for exploring some of the earth’s most diverse biomes. We offer a wide selection of books; see all our bilingual Vietnamese books here.
Are you interested in learning about other languages as well? Check out our series of posts on world languages, including Khmer, Bengali, Tigrinya, Hmong, Cherokee, Dari, and Pashto!