FROM LANGUAGE TO CULTURE: A STUDY ON WORDS FOR “DRAGON” IN VIETNAMESE CULTURE

Abstract

The article studies the words for “dragon” in Vietnamese language and
culture. The survey materials include medieval Vietnamese (through Nom
texts and old dictionaries), literary works, and Sinitic sources for comparison
and explanation of the etymology. In addition, the article also uses some
Muong language materials and some dialects of Vietnamese to compare
history and culture. The research results show that the words for “dragon” can
be divided into many different types including (1) Rồng - long - thuong luong
- giao long; (2) Cù, khù - sấu; (3) chằn tinh - bà chằn - bà giằn - bà Dần;
(4) Thần/ thìn. The comparative study of language will also contribute to the
comparison of the cultural origin of the dragon symbol in Vietnam.