Vietnamese “Onomatopoeia”

Onomatopoeia is that characteristic which is inherent in words that imitate or suggest the source of the sound they describe (those words are themselves known as onomatopoeias). Onomatopoeia exists in all languages. We have such words as buzz, hiss, roar, whoosh, etc, in English, and siffler, cracher, cliquer, etc, in French.

In the Vietnamese language, onomatopoeia is carried to a higher level. Not only the word imitates the sound it describes, the pronunciation of Vietnamese onomatopoeias requires the speaker to “perform” the act the words describe. When a Vietnamese says “phun”, he actually ejects a small stream of air from his mouth. When he says “khạc”, he actually “crache” if he is French, otherwise he clearly seems to clear his throat, and is ready to spit. When the Vietnamese “hút”, his British counterpart sucks. The Vietnamese cannot say “há” (as in há miệng) without opening his mouth. Similarly, he cannot say “ngậm” without closing his lips.

Should we conclude then that the Vietnamese language is highly descriptive? And that to speak the language is to perform its meaning? I think not. Rather, it appears that that portion of the Vietnamese language that is not influenced by the Chinese has not evolved much from its primitive form. As to that portion of the language which is borrowed from the Chinese vocabulary, the sounds of those borrowed words, known as chữ Hán Việt, are hardly descriptive of their meanings. They may be when pronounced by Chinese, but not when they have already been transliterated into Vietnamese. Rousseau may be mispronounced by Chinese as “Loo-Soh” but in Vietnamese he is known as “Lư Thoa,” and no French person would be able to recognize the name of that famous Genevois philosopher when announced in such manner by a Vietnamese.

The fact is that the more advanced a language becomes, the further it drifts from its original and primitive state. The Vietnamese used the Chinese language and later the Latin alphabet to enhance their language, without really making any effort to change their non-Chinese related vocabulary, leaving such vocabulary practically in its primitive form. In such form, pronouncing words sometimes requires the speaker to actually perform their meanings.

Whatever the case may be, that part of the Vietnamese language remains interesting and worth exploring.