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Focusing on the Ethnic Minorities of Vietnam

An Interview with Alden Anderson

I recent­ly did an inter­view with Sam­my Tuong Hoang of Cul­ture Mag­a­zin for the Dec/Jan 2021 issue. Pre­sent­ed here is the print­ed article.

The arti­cle can be found on their web­site here.

This arti­cle is also avail­able: Tiếng Việt

Focusing on the ethnic minorities of Vietnam with Alden Anderson

Focus­ing on the eth­nic minori­ties of Viet­nam with Alden Anderson

Focusing on Ethnic Minorities with Alden Anderson

Focus­ing on the Eth­nic Minori­ties of Viet­nam with Alden Anderson

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Happy International Women’s Day! To all of the h Happy International Women’s Day! To all of the hard-working, beautiful, kind and all-around amazing women of the world. Thank you for everything that you do! Grandma Mak lived over a hundred years. An infectious smile and shock of beautiful white hair. Whenever we saw her she always broke out into a big smile just like this. On a few visits I brought her a sandwich we sat side by side in the morning sun eating together while the neighborhood kids gathered around. Quiet, peaceful moments shared without words. A bright light in a peaceful village.
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a pivotal battle f The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a pivotal battle fought in early 1954 by the Viet Minh to drive the French out of Vietnam. Grandma Hung, 90, was part of that battle. . It was a decisive victory for the Viet Minh and resulted in the French withdrawing from "French Indochina" (what is now Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) thus ending nearly a century of French colonial rule that ostensibly started under the rule of Napoleon III in the mid-1800s with the French invasion of what is now Da Nang in Central Vietnam. . Granda Hung: . "During the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, I carried rice for the soldiers...I couldn't sleep much. Sometimes I ate at 4 AM. My children were little when I joined the Cooperative (Viet Minh). They didn't have anything to eat so I had to dig for (wild) yams to feed my family.” . "Those who were my age that fought in Dien Bien Phu have all passed away now. Even my siblings. It's just me and my cousin left." . Grandma Hung was quick with a laugh and smile as we hung out in her stilt house. We talked about Dien Bien Phu and about her culture. She's from the Cao Lan ethnic minority group and is wearing her traditional clothes. There's a very cute video of Trinh teaching her English on @myvietnamdiary youtube channel (link in her bio). . Grandma Hung, 90 Cao Lan Ethnic Group Tuyên Quang (North), Vietnam
"I love him, he loves me. We both are orphans, no "I love him, he loves me. We both are orphans, no parents, no siblings. Who else would love us? No one would love me as he does, and no one would love him as I do. He supports me, I support him." . "I’m more than 100 years old. It’s been a long time, I don't know my exact age. My parents passed away when I was a kid. I don't have any siblings. When I grew up, I joined the army. I studied nursing. The enemy sprayed the poisonous substance everywhere by plane (agent orange)." . "We got married in March 1976. We met each other in A Luoi (Central Vietnam). At that time, people joining the army gathered together. So people could meet their lover. We loved each other, but we had to wait until we had freedom, wait until our mission was complete. If everybody loved each other and all got married, who would protect the country? We had to be strong to fight for our country. Even if you are in love, you have to be strong. Despite what people said, I still followed my heart (to protect Vietnam). We had to have a strong will and focus on fighting against the Americans." . "Now we just love each other." (giggling) . Pârhiet (Husband): "She is adorable!" . Tâm, 100+ years old Pa Co Ethnic Group A Luoi, Vietnam
"I'm old old, but I'm still happy. I don't have a "I'm old old, but I'm still happy. I don't have a reason, I'm just happy", grandma Phua says with a giggle. . "I’m almost 100 years old. I don’t know how I can live this long. I don’t do hard work every day anymore, but if I have free time, I do some small chores.” . “I used to grow rice. Now I don’t have anything to work on but I'm still happy." . Grandma Phua, "almost 100 years old" Black H'Mong Ethnic group Mù Cang Chải, Yên Bái, Vietnam . . Something Grandma Phua said that has stuck with me: “I don’t have a reason, I’m just happy.” Such a simple yet profound statement. It made me think about happiness and that we don’t need a reason to be happy. I try to think about this in my daily life. Stop with the “Ill be happy when…..(insert reason)” and just be happy for no reason.
With 54 officially recognized ethnic groups, and h With 54 officially recognized ethnic groups, and hundreds more sub-groups speaking over 100 languages, Vietnam is one of the most ethno-linguistically diverse regions in South East Asia. . The Dao are perhaps the most culturally diverse of all of the ethnic groups in Vietnam with 13 different sub-groups in Vietnam alone (5 of which are only in Vietnam). . Originally from Southern China, the Dao migrated to Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand starting as early as the 13th century. In Vietnam, they primarily live in the mountainous regions across the North and retain strong cultural traditions. Traveling around the North it’s quite common to see Dao women and men working and going about their daily lives while wearing their traditional clothes. . With a population of 891,151 (2019), the Dao are the 8th most populous ethnic minority group in Vietnam. . Pictured here is Qua, 3, from the Dao Cham (Dao Ao Dai) ethnic group in Ha Giang, (North) Vietnam
I’m loving memory, Grandma Sáu. . She lived to I’m loving memory, Grandma Sáu. . She lived to be 105 years old. A long life with many descendants. A beautiful woman with a light in her eye. Quick with a smile and laugh. One of the sweetest people we've met. . Arriving at her house she welcomed us like grandkids and when leaving she said "When I pass away, I will always watch over you. You are good people! . Grandma Sáu passed on October 27th, 2022. She is survived by her family in Ninh Thuan, Vietnam as well as her extended family around the world. . Grandma Sáu, we're happy and honored to have met you. A beautiful, sweet and gentle woman. May you rest in peace. You are loved by many.
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Happy International Women’s Day! To all of the h Happy International Women’s Day! To all of the hard-working, beautiful, kind and all-around amazing women of the world. Thank you for everything that you do! Grandma Mak lived over a hundred years. An infectious smile and shock of beautiful white hair. Whenever we saw her she always broke out into a big smile just like this. On a few visits I brought her a sandwich we sat side by side in the morning sun eating together while the neighborhood kids gathered around. Quiet, peaceful moments shared without words. A bright light in a peaceful village.
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a pivotal battle f The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a pivotal battle fought in early 1954 by the Viet Minh to drive the French out of Vietnam. Grandma Hung, 90, was part of that battle. . It was a decisive victory for the Viet Minh and resulted in the French withdrawing from "French Indochina" (what is now Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) thus ending nearly a century of French colonial rule that ostensibly started under the rule of Napoleon III in the mid-1800s with the French invasion of what is now Da Nang in Central Vietnam. . Granda Hung: . "During the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, I carried rice for the soldiers...I couldn't sleep much. Sometimes I ate at 4 AM. My children were little when I joined the Cooperative (Viet Minh). They didn't have anything to eat so I had to dig for (wild) yams to feed my family.” . "Those who were my age that fought in Dien Bien Phu have all passed away now. Even my siblings. It's just me and my cousin left." . Grandma Hung was quick with a laugh and smile as we hung out in her stilt house. We talked about Dien Bien Phu and about her culture. She's from the Cao Lan ethnic minority group and is wearing her traditional clothes. There's a very cute video of Trinh teaching her English on @myvietnamdiary youtube channel (link in her bio). . Grandma Hung, 90 Cao Lan Ethnic Group Tuyên Quang (North), Vietnam
"I love him, he loves me. We both are orphans, no "I love him, he loves me. We both are orphans, no parents, no siblings. Who else would love us? No one would love me as he does, and no one would love him as I do. He supports me, I support him." . "I’m more than 100 years old. It’s been a long time, I don't know my exact age. My parents passed away when I was a kid. I don't have any siblings. When I grew up, I joined the army. I studied nursing. The enemy sprayed the poisonous substance everywhere by plane (agent orange)." . "We got married in March 1976. We met each other in A Luoi (Central Vietnam). At that time, people joining the army gathered together. So people could meet their lover. We loved each other, but we had to wait until we had freedom, wait until our mission was complete. If everybody loved each other and all got married, who would protect the country? We had to be strong to fight for our country. Even if you are in love, you have to be strong. Despite what people said, I still followed my heart (to protect Vietnam). We had to have a strong will and focus on fighting against the Americans." . "Now we just love each other." (giggling) . Pârhiet (Husband): "She is adorable!" . Tâm, 100+ years old Pa Co Ethnic Group A Luoi, Vietnam
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