Vietnam ETHNIC GROUPS AND LANGUAGES
Tonkinese woman, late nineteenth century
Courtesy New York Times, Paris Collection, National Archives
Montagnard tribesman
Courtesy United States Army
The ethnic Vietnamese are concentrated largely in the
alluvial deltas and in the coastal plains, having little in
common with the minority peoples of the highlands, whom they
historically have regarded as hostile and barbaric. A homogenous
social group, the Vietnamese exert influence on national life
through their control of political and economic affairs and their
role as purveyors of the dominant culture. By contrast, the
ethnic minorities, except for the Hoa, are found mostly in the
highlands that cover two-thirds of the national territory. The
Hoa, the largest minority, are mainly lowlanders. Officially, the
ethnic minorities are referred to as national minorities.
Data as of December 1987
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