The Vietnamese Culture

The Vietnamese culture may be mysterious and unknown to some people. Nowadays, more and more people are going to Vietnam for traveling and business. Getting to know the Vietnam and the Vietnamese is interesting as well as fascinating. The Vietnamese are the Chinese minority group who spend their livelihood on family gatherings. A normal family does consist of both parents (the father and the mother) and at least two children. The family is guided by respect among members, especially the parents.

            In a typical family set up, the father is usually the bread winner who obtains his earnings from an occupation of his choice. A family that comprises of a father who has a job, the family is likely to be stable with a stable lifestyle, but with elements traditions in it. For instance, the children have to be guided and taken to school for a better future. As such, the emphasis is laid on education to the tertiary level; that is, the university level.

            In the evening, each and every member of the family would gather to share a delicious indigenous meal prepared and served by the mother. Chopping sticks are used to serve the family is separate small dishes; 3 chopsticks spaghetti or rice, one spoon of soup. It is not normal to live with extended family, but once in a while, they may pay a visit to the family and later, leave for their maternal home.

            In Vietnam, the secrets of superstition are a part of the tradition and customs passed down from one generation to the other. Superstition plays a crucial role as stories being told concerns dragons. In fact, in this culture, no creature is as impressive as the dragon. For Vietnamese peasants, the dragon was a symbol of the fourfold deity-cloud, rain, thunder, and lighting. 

            In the Vietnam, the most important occasion is the new year. Gift are offered and taken since it is necessary for interpersonal relationships. Nevertheless, some holiday such as mother’s/father days, birthdays and Thanksgiving days are also celebrated. Nearly all their rituals and traditions are correspondence to the Vietnamese religion ‘the Shamanism’ emphasis on the good of the interpersonal relationship.  

            The Vietnamese use calligraphy writings in most of their arts. In most arts, primary emphasis is given to Buddha/God, education and lifestyles teaching (morality). Even though these arts emphases on some moral aspects, there are cases of disrespect among people. In this community, greeting a considered as a myth and needs to done by everyone, if one fails to do so, he or she would be disrespectful to the person he or she has failed to greet. Consequently, beating of wives and putting on shoes in the house is not part of the community’s tradition. Therefore, it is respectful to obey the old and practice virtues.

            To some considerable degree, this community is perceived to be smart and welcoming. It is not right for anyone to be isolated despite the fact that one might be coming from a different race. This is mainly attributed to the fact that the Vietnamese believe in simplification. There is no way one could be excluded based on gender since the Vietnamese culture acknowledges the beauty of a lady. One would only be exempted if he or she has gone against the community traditions, for instance, not putting on the conical hat or Non la.