Culture
Religion, family structure, festivals, music, ao dai, etiquette.
58 articles in this section. Most stand on their own.
Badminton in Vietnam: Nguyễn Tiến Minh and the current scene
Badminton is one of Vietnam's most widely played recreational sports, carried into global relevance by Nguyễn Tiến Minh's 15-plus years as national number one.
Cải Lương: the modern southern renovated theatre
Cải lương is southern Vietnam's hybrid musical theatre, born around 1918 from blending folk vọng cổ song with Western instruments and staging.
Chèo: the folk opera of the Red River delta
Chèo is northern Vietnam's village folk opera, mixing comic satire, sung verse and moral folk tales. Here is its Red River delta origin and how it compares to tuồng and cải lương.
Contemporary Vietnamese visual artists worth watching
A guide to Dinh Q. Le, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, Bui Cong Khanh, Nguyen Huy An and Nguyen Thanh Nguyen, and where to see their work in Vietnam and abroad.
Hồ Xuân Hương: the subversive 18th-century woman poet
How a Vietnamese woman poet used double-meaning verse to critique class, gender, and Confucian hypocrisy under the Nguyen dynasty.
Nam Cao and the realist novel in Vietnamese literature
Nam Cao (1917-1951) is Vietnam's most studied realist writer, best known for the novella Chí Phèo. A profile of his life, major works, and his death during the war against France.
Nguyễn Du and The Tale of Kiều
Nguyễn Du (1766-1820) wrote Truyện Kiều, the national epic poem of fate and virtue that Vietnamese still quote from memory today.
Nhã Nhạc: the imperial court music of Huế (UNESCO)
Nha Nhac is the ceremonial court music of the Nguyen emperors in Hue, recognised by UNESCO in 2003 and revived for visitors today.
Quan Họ and Ca Trù: two UNESCO Vietnamese chamber traditions
Quan họ and ca trù are two UNESCO-listed chamber traditions from northern Vietnam — courting duets from Bắc Ninh and scholar-class sung poetry from Hanoi.
Sepak Takraw (Cầu Mây): the kick-volleyball with Vietnamese roots
Cầu mây is Vietnam's name for sepak takraw, the acrobatic kick-volleyball popular across Southeast Asia and a regular SEA Games event.
Tố Hữu: canonical poet of Vietnamese revolution
Tố Hữu shaped how generations of Vietnamese encountered the revolution through verse, while also holding senior Party posts. His poetry and politics remain closely intertwined.
Traditional Vietnamese musical instruments
A guide to Vietnam's classic instruments — dan tranh, dan bau, dan nguyet, dan nhi, sao truc and trong — with brief histories and where to hear them live.
Tuồng (Hát Bội): Vietnamese classical opera
Tuồng, also called Hát Bội, is Vietnam's oldest classical opera form, built on Chinese-influenced stagecraft, Nguyễn court patronage, and elaborate painted masks.
V.League 1 clubs: the top tier of Vietnamese football
A club-by-club look at V.League 1, Vietnam's top football division — Hanoi FC, Cong An Ha Noi, Nam Dinh, HAGL and more — plus stadiums and ticket prices.
Contemporary Vietnamese authors worth reading in English
A guide to Bao Ninh, Nguyen Huy Thiep, Duong Thu Huong, Nguyen Ngoc Tu and Le Minh Khue, with notes on where to find their work in Vietnam and abroad.
Vietnamese film directors to know: Trần Anh Hùng and after
A guide to the directors who put Vietnamese cinema on the festival map, from Tran Anh Hung to a younger generation, and where to actually see their films.
Vietnamese film festivals: HANIFF, DANAFF, and the Golden Kite Awards
A guide to Vietnam's three major film events — HANIFF, DANAFF, and the Golden Kite Awards — covering timing, focus, and how visitors can typically get tickets.
The Vietnamese national football team: Golden Star Warriors
The Vietnamese national football team, nicknamed the Golden Star Warriors, rose to regional prominence under coach Park Hang-seo. Here is the team history, key results, and where to watch a match.
V-pop artist guide: Sơn Tùng, Đen Vâu, Mỹ Tâm, and current stars
A guide to who is who in V-pop today, from arena headliner Sơn Tùng M-TP to rapper Đen Vâu, veteran Mỹ Tâm, and rising names like HIEUTHUHAI and tlinh.
Water puppetry (Múa rối nước): origins and where to see it
Water puppetry began in the flooded rice paddies of the Red River delta and is now a fixture of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City theatre schedules for visitors.
Bát Tràng and Vietnamese ceramic villages
A guide to Vietnam ceramic craft villages — Bát Tràng near Hanoi, Phù Lãng, Chu Đậu, and Thanh Hà near Hội An — for day trips, workshops, and buying.
Vietnamese lacquer villages: where the pieces come from
A guide to Vietnam lacquer (son mai) craft villages near Hanoi and Binh Duong, with tips on workshop visits and buying authentic pieces.
Hội An lantern-making workshops
A practical guide to Hoi An lantern workshops — half-day classes, silk vs bamboo frames, and how to tell an authentic Hoi An lantern from a Chinese import.
Vietnamese silk-weaving villages
Van Phuc, Nha Xa, Duy Xuyen, and Bao Loc are the four main hubs of Vietnamese silk weaving, each open to visitors who want to watch looms in action and buy from source.
Contemporary art galleries by city in Vietnam
Manzi (Hanoi), Galerie Quynh (HCMC), Vincom Center for Contemporary Art, plus the emerging gallery scene.
Vietnam's contemporary art scene
Galleries, art districts, public art, and the young Vietnamese artists worth following. HCMC vs Hanoi vs Hội An, plus the Đổi Mới-generation framework.
Vietnamese drinking culture — bia hơi, rượu, and the etiquette
Bia hơi nights, rượu shots at business dinners, 'một, hai, ba, dô!' toasting, and the role drinking plays in Vietnamese social and business life.
Vietnamese ethnic-minority crafts — buying authentic
How to tell H mong indigo, Dao embroidery, and Cham silk from tourist-grade imitations.
Vietnamese gaming and esports culture
VCS League of Legends, the PUBG Mobile scene, mobile gaming dominance, and the Vietnamese internet-cafe culture.
Vietnamese social hierarchy and formal titles
Age-based hierarchy, professional titles (Thạc Sĩ, Tiến Sĩ, Bác Sĩ), party and military titles. The system that organises every Vietnamese interaction.
Vietnamese hospitality — what to expect, regional differences
Vietnamese hospitality is real and structured. What 'being a guest' actually means, how north vs central vs south differ, and the gestures that count.
Kinship language in Vietnamese culture — the social structure behind the pronouns
Why Vietnamese has no neutral 'you' — the social structure behind anh / chị / em / chú / cô. The cultural framework, not just the words.
Lucky and unlucky numbers in Vietnamese culture
Why apartments skip the 4th floor, why 9 is auspicious, why 'đẹp' numbers cost more for plates. Vietnamese number superstition, with the cultural roots.
Martial arts training in Vietnam — Vovinam and Wing Chun
Vovinam (Vietnam s indigenous martial art), Wing Chun in HCMC, Vinh Xuan, and the foreigner-accessible schools.
Football and sport in Vietnamese culture
Vietnam is a football-obsessed country. The national team, the V-League, the bia-hơi match-night culture, plus the rising sports beyond football.
Vietnamese street food culture by region
Hanoi pavement-corner culture, Hue royal-cuisine-on-the-street, HCMC mobile vendors, Mekong floating markets — the regional street food map.
Vietnamese tea culture and ceremony
Vietnamese tea is everyday, not ceremonial — trà đá (iced tea) free at every meal. But there's a real tea-house tradition in Hanoi and Huế, plus the highland farms producing the country's best leaves.
Traditional Vietnamese games and pastimes
Đá cầu (shuttlecock kicking), cờ tướng (Vietnamese chess), bầu cua tôm cá (the dice gambling game), plus the modern pool-hall culture that's replaced much of it.
Vietnamese Birth Customs: Đầy Tháng, Thôi Nôi and the Zodiac Hour
A Vietnamese child's first year is marked by two formal ceremonies — đầy tháng at one lunar month and thôi nôi at the first birthday — alongside careful zodiac calculation.
The Vietnamese Education System: Exams, Tutoring and the Top Universities
Vietnamese schooling is 5+4+3 years through secondary, ends in the high-stakes thi tốt nghiệp THPT exam, and is supplemented by a near-universal private tutoring industry.
Vietnamese Funeral Customs: White Mourning, 49 Days and Paper Offerings
Vietnamese funerals follow a long arc — three to seven days of wake and burial, 49 days of formal mourning, and annual death anniversaries that continue indefinitely.
Gender Roles in Vietnam: Official Equality, Traditional Practice
Vietnamese law guarantees gender equality and women's workforce participation is among the highest in Asia, but traditional family expectations remain firmly in place.
Generational Divides in Vietnam: War, Đổi Mới and the Digital Native
Three Vietnamese generations live alongside each other — the pre-1975 cohort, the Đổi Mới generation born into reform, and the digital-native Gen Z — with sharply different worlds.
LGBTQ Life in Vietnam: Legal Status, Social Tolerance and the Scene
Same-sex relationships are decriminalised and broadly tolerated in Vietnamese cities, but same-sex marriage is not legally recognised — a familiar Asian middle ground.
The Vietnamese Lunar Zodiac: Twelve Animals and Marriage Compatibility
Vietnam's twelve-animal zodiac shares ten signs with the Chinese system but swaps Rabbit for Cat and Ox for Water Buffalo, and remains widely consulted for marriage matching.
Phong Thủy: Vietnamese Feng Shui in Homes, Altars and Business
Phong thủy — the Vietnamese version of feng shui — guides house orientation, altar placement, business opening dates and the placement of fish tanks and mirrors.
Religion and Family in Vietnam
Ancestor worship, Mahayana Buddhism, Catholicism in the south, and the structure of the Vietnamese family.
Traditional Vietnamese Music: Cải Lương, Ca Trù, Nhã Nhạc and Quan Họ
From UNESCO-listed northern chamber song to southern reformed theatre, Vietnam's traditional music traditions remain living art forms rather than museum pieces.
Vietnamese Cinema: Trần Anh Hùng, Tết Blockbusters and the Indie Scene
Vietnamese cinema lives in two parallel worlds — quiet art house films that win at Cannes, and Tết comedies that earn ten million dollars in a week.
The Vietnamese Diaspora: Việt Kiều from California to Berlin
Around five million Vietnamese live overseas — a diaspora shaped by 1975 refugees, post-1990 economic migrants, and labour exporters across the US, France, Germany, Australia and Asia.
Vietnamese Literature: From Nguyễn Du to Bảo Ninh
Two centuries of Vietnamese literature run from Nguyễn Du's verse epic Truyện Kiều through the colonial-era realists to Bảo Ninh's Sorrow of War.
Vietnamese Names: Order, Meaning and How to Address People
Vietnamese names run family-middle-given, and people are almost always addressed by the given name plus a kinship title — not by the family name.
Vietnamese Pop Music (V-pop): Sơn Tùng, Mỹ Tâm and the Underground Rap Scene
V-pop is no longer derivative — Sơn Tùng M-TP, Mỹ Tâm and Hà Anh Tuấn dominate the mainstream while Đen Vâu and Suboi lead a serious rap underground.
Vietnamese Wedding Customs: Ăn Hỏi, Đám Cưới and the Betel Tradition
A Vietnamese wedding is two ceremonies — the engagement (ăn hỏi) and the wedding day (đám cưới) — bound together by red áo dài, lacquered gift boxes and trầu cau.
Tết and the Vietnamese Festival Calendar
The lunar new year is the big one. But there are eight or nine other festivals worth knowing about.
Vietnamese Etiquette: What to Know
Greetings, addressing people, gifts, the table, the home — a working guide to not embarrassing yourself.
Gift-Giving Etiquette in Vietnam
What to give, what to avoid, and how to present a gift respectfully in Vietnamese business and social settings.
The Áo Dài and Vietnamese Dress
The áo dài isn't a national costume; it's a continuously evolving form. A short guide for visitors.