When you think about writing in a foreign language, what springs to mind? Writing essays for class? Writing a short text about a trip you went on or a fun evening you had with friends?…
Most rooms in the house have ‘room’ (phòng) as part of their name. Phòng ngủ (bedroom), phòng khách (living room), phòng ăn (dining room) but bathroom and kitchen are a notable exception: they use nhà…
A few months ago I shared 3 ways to learn Vietnamese through facebook. To recap, they were: Chat with native speakers Translate your Vietnamese friends’ status updates Consider changing your language settings I’ve since become…
Listening is absolutely crucial for language learners. Being able to understand the person you’re talking to means you can nod in agreement, respond, ask questions… ie. have a conversation and connect with people. If you…
You’ve seen my Vietnamese name, Thảo, all over this site but I’ve never explained how I came to have a Vietnamese name and why it’s Thảo. The problem I faced The problem of what to…
Have you ever wondered what to call your Vietnamese friend? Which name to use? Or why there are so many Nguyễns? Read on to find the answers to all these questions and more in this…
Thảo ơi, I heard that Vietnamese is monosyllabic. Is that right? Do Vietnamese words have syllables? It’s true that in Vietnamese every syllable is written separately, and many words have just one syllable (such as…
It seems I didn’t need to bring so many Vietnamese books back with me to the UK as I’ve found a decent collection in south London. Initially I only looked in the languages section of…
ơi is one of my favourite Vietnamese words. Why do Vietnamese people say ơi? Let’s look at the most common uses of the Vietnamese word ơi. 1. Em ơi (Or anh ơi or chị ơi.)…
How do you say “Christmas” in Vietnamese? The word ‘Christmas’ in Vietnamese is either Giáng Sinh or in some contexts the French influenced Nô en or Noel. Is Christmas celebrated in Vietnam? To put it…