The current name, Ho Chi Minh City, was given after reunification in 1976 to honor Ho Chi Minh. Even today, however, the informal name of Sài Gòn remains in daily speech both domestically and internationally, especially among the Vietnamese diaspora.
Is Saigon a Vietnamese name?
Upon capturing the city during the Cochinchina Campaign in 1859, the French officially westernized the citys traditional name into Saigon (French: Saïgon). The Vietnamese most often write the name as Sài Gòn, in two words, following the traditional convention in Vietnamese spelling.
What is Vietnam called today?
Socialist Republic of Vietnam VietnamSocialist Republic of Vietnam Cộng hòa Xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam (Vietnamese)Demonym(s)VietnameseGovernmentUnitary Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist republic• General SecretaryNguyễn Phú Trọng• PresidentNguyễn Xuân Phúc50 more rows
Why did Ho Chi Minh change his name?
He adopted the name Ho Chi Minh, meaning Bringer of Light. At the end of World War Two the Viet Minh announced Vietnamese independence. When the Communists took the South Vietnamese capital Saigon in 1975 they renamed it Ho Chi Minh City in his honour.
Is it bad to say Saigon?
Officially, the southern metropoliss name is Ho Chi Minh City, and has been for many years, but there are still a number of locals and visitors alike that call it Saigon. However, nowadays, the two names are not used to make any kind of political statement; they are simply alternate ways of referring to the city.
What does the name Saigon mean?
An etymology of Saigon (or Sài Gòn in Vietnamese) is that Sài is a Sino-Vietnamese word (Hán tự: 柴) meaning firewood, lops, twigs; palisade, while Gòn is another Sino-Vietnamese word (Hán tự: 棍) meaning stick, pole, bole, and whose meaning evolved into cotton in Vietnamese (bông gòn, literally cotton stick,
What is the nickname of Vietnam?
Trung Quốc 中國, or the Middle Country, was also used as a name for Vietnam by Gia Long in 1805. Minh Mang used the name Trung Quốc 中國 to call Vietnam.
How do houses in Vietnam look like?
A traditional northern Vietnamese house is built with mud or brick walls, a thatched or tile roof, and earthen or concrete floors. Large houses are set around a courtyards and are open-fronted with a sloping red-tile roof supported by heavy wooden pillars.
What is the most common first name in Vietnam?
The most common are Le, Pham, Tran, Ngo, Vu, Do, Dao, Duong, Dang, Dinh, Hoang and Nguyen - the Vietnamese equivalent of Smith. About 50 percent of Vietnamese have the family name Nguyen. The given name, which appears last, is the name used to address someone, preceded by the appropriate title.