The Vietnamese Language

Vietnamese is spoken by about 85 million people. It is the main language of Vietnam in Southeast Asia. Vietnamese uses the same alphabet as English, but with extra marks. These marks tell you how to say a word in the right tone. The tones change what a word means.

Tones in Vietnamese

Vietnamese has six different tones. A tone is how your voice goes up or down when you say a word. The same sound can mean very different things with different tones. For example, the word 'ma' can mean ghost, mother, or rice plant. Kids in Vietnam learn these tones from a young age.

Vietnamese Writing

Long ago, Vietnamese was written with Chinese characters. In the 1600s, priests from Europe helped make a new writing system using Roman letters. This system is called Quoc Ngu. It uses extra marks above and below letters. Today, almost all Vietnamese books and signs use this system.

Fun Facts

• Vietnamese has 29 letters in its alphabet.
• Vietnam has more than 100 million people, and most speak Vietnamese.
• The word 'pho' is a famous Vietnamese soup dish.

Did You Know?

Vietnamese does not change verbs for past or future. Instead, people add small words to show when something happens.