The Hoa people, also known as Chinese Vietnamese (Vietnamese: người Hoa, ; or ), are an ethnic minority in Vietnam composed of citizens and nationals of full or partial Han Chinese ancestry. The term primarily refers to ethnic Chinese who migrated from southern Chinese provinces to Vietnam during the 18th century, although Chinese migration to the region dates back millennia. While millions of Vietnamese may trace distant Chinese ancestry due to centuries of migration during periods when Vietnam was under Chinese rule, the Hoa are defined by their continued identification with Chinese language, culture and community. They remain closely connected to broader Han Chinese identity when compared to their Kinh counterparts. "Chinese-Vietnamese" usually refers to these individuals, in contrast to those who have assimilated into Vietnamese society and are no longer regarded as culturally Chinese.
The Hoa have historically maintained a prominent role in Vietnam's commercial and urban life. Under French Indochina, colonial authorities often favoured the Hoa for their commercial acumen. From the late 19th century to the early 1970s, the Hoa dominated the private sector, with estimates attributing 70 to 80 percent(some industries) of pre-1975 Saigon's privately owned businesses to them. After 1975, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) seized power and nationalised many Hoa businesses and properties for confiscation, regardless. Hoa individuals universally were accused of political disloyalty and collaboration with foreign powers. The situation worsened in the period preceding and throughout the Sino-Vietnamese War, prompting a mass exodus of Hoa as boat people fleeing persecution and anti-Chinese policies.
Vietnam's adoption of economic liberalisation from 1987 gradually allowed the Hoa to reestablish a presence in the business sector. Although their influence today is not as pronounced as before 1975, the Hoa remain a commercially resilient group within a diversified Vietnamese economy now open to foreign corporations and global competition.
Classifications +ClassificationDefinitionHoaRefers to those who are fully southern Chinese by blood, specifically those who maintain cultural traditions and may or may not maintain community structures that differentiate them from completely assimilated individuals of Chinese ancestry (gốc Hoa).Gốc HoaAlso referred to as "Người Việt gốc Hoa", it refers to mixed Vietnamese people who recognize their Chinese heritage, usually those who are assimilated. Considered an umbrella term for Hoa, but is ambiguously used by the Vietnamese government.Hoa kiềuRefers to overseas Chinese Vietnamese. Also can be referred as "Việt Hoa Kiều" or "Hoa Kiều Việt Nam".
History
Early history Vietnam was governed by the early Chinese leniently and indirectly with no immediate change in indigenous policies.
Chinese presence was first felt in modern day Vietnam in 179 BC, when Âu Lạc was conquered by Nanyue. However, this was minimal due to Nanyue leaving indigenous chiefs mostly in control of the population.
In 111 BC, Han conquered Nanyue and continued the Nanyue policy of relinquishing control to indigenous chiefs for the next several hundred years. "Recognition" was often bestowed upon the local leaders as a symbol of legitimacy of rule and in return they paid tribute as a form of "tax". The first form of "Chinese Vietnamese" were newly settled Han Chinese officials. In fact, indigenous ways of life and ruling class did not experience major Sinitic impact, into the first century CE.
While enough immigrants existed to form a coherent Han-Viet ruling class, not enough existed to administratively or culturally dominate the indigenous society. Furthermore, throughout Han rule, Han imperial officials typically adopted local customs and intermarried in efforts to maintain the peace and stability. Due to this, sinicization did not happen.
A noteworthy Chinese Vietnamese of this time was one of the Giao Chỉ prefects, Shi Xie, who was a sixth generation Chinese Vietnamese (fully Han Chinese descent) and ruled Vietnam as an autonomous warlord for forty years. He was posthumously deified by later Vietnamese monarchs. In the words of Stephen O'Harrow, Shi Xie was essentially "the first Vietnamese." His rule gave "formal legitimacy" to those identifying with interests of the local society than with Chinese hegemony. And while the Chinese saw Shi Xie as "frontier guardian", the Vietnamese considered him the head of regional ruling-class society. According to Taylor (1983): Another noteworthy Chinese Vietnamese was Ly Bon who led a rebellion against the Liang, frustrated with the corruption in the government and hostility toward the local population. Ly Bon's ancestors were among the Chinese who fled south to escape the disorders of Wang Mang's usurpation, in the fifth century.
The Chinese of Vietnamese ancestry became assimilated, while still maintaining their Chinese identity, and were absorbed into the "social, economic and political environment" in Northern Vietnam. The insight, skills, customs, and ideas brought in by the Chinese rule and limited migration allowed the native to develop a sense of independence and identity. The strength of localization in ancient Vietnam has thus been widely noted.
The first truly Vietnamese Ngô dynasty deported some 87,000 Chinese, with a minority applying for permanent residency in Vietnam. The Chinese Vietnamese who remain in Vietnam ended up fully assimilated.
Those of mixed heritage, from previous Han-Vietnamese intermarriages, later became gentry and ruling class of Vietnam.
This generation of "Chinese Vietnamese" has long been assimilated into the modern day Vietnamese identity or vice versa. Vietnamese identity was heavily inspired by the Chinese customs and technology at this time.
After independence
Sporadic Chinese migration into Vietnam continued during the 9th–15th century AD. The Vietnamese court during the Lý and Trần dynasties welcomed Chinese scholars and officials to fill into its administrative and bureaucratic ranks. These ranged from Chinese refugees, consisting of civilian and military officials with their family members, seeking asylum from turmoil or opportunities. They were required to adopt and adhere to the customs of the administration.
The Chinese-Cham In 1050, the Cham dedicated Chinese slaves to their goddess Lady Po Nagar at the Po Nagar temple complex, along with Thai, Khmer and Burmese slaves. It has been speculated by Professor Kenneth Hall that these slaves were war captives taken by the Cham from the port of Panduranga (modern day Phan Rang) after the Cham conquest and enslavement all inhabitants, including foreigners.
In modern day southern Vietnam, the Daoyi Zhilue mentioned Chinese merchants who frequented Champa and started families with Cham wives. One notable example of such intermarriages was Chinese merchant from Quanzhou, Wang Yuanmao, who in the 12th century traded extensively with Champa and married a Cham princess. Chinese prisoners were exchanged for captured districts in 1078 after China defeated Đại Việt and overran Cao Bằng. The descendants of these intermarriages, who took on a distinct "Chinese" identity, precedes the Vietnamization of modern day southern Vietnam.
Ly Dynasty The founder of the Lý dynasty, Lý Thái Tổ, has been ascribed of having origins from Fujian Province in his paternal bloodline, but little is known about his maternal side except that his mother was named Phạm Thị. His Chinese ethnicity has been wildly accepted by Vietnamese historians like Trần Quốc Vượng. During the Min-Chinese led Lý dynasty, Vietnam had raided Song dynasty China and forcefully conscripted the captured. The distinct Chinese last names are found in the Tran and Ly dynasty Imperial examination records. Furthermore, the ethnicity are also recorded in Tran and Ly dynasty records of officials.
Tran Dynasty and the Song remnants in Vietnam The fishing Min Chinese Tran family had usurped the Min Chinese Ly dynasty through marriage.
The ancestors of the Trần clan originated from the province of Fujian and had migrated under Trần Kinh () to Đại Việt, where their descendants established the Trần dynasty which ruled Đại Việt. The descendants of the Trần clan who came to rule Đại Việt were of mixed-blooded(Unsure, Min-Chinese + Min-Chinese results in mixed?) descent due to many intermarriages between the Trần and several royal members of the Lý dynasty alongside members of their royal court as in the case of Trần Lý and Trần Thừa, the latter whose son Trần Thái Tông would later become the first emperor of the Trần dynasty. Their descendants established the Tran dynasty, which ruled Vietnam (Dai Viet). Some of the mixed-blooded(like-wise claim) descendants and certain members of the clan could still speak Chinese, as when a Yuan dynasty envoy met with the Chinese-speaking Tran Prince Trần Quốc Tuấn in 1282. The first of the Trần clan to live in Đại Việt was Trần Kinh, who settled in Tức Mặc village (now Mỹ Lộc, Nam Định) who lived by fishing.
Professor Liam Kelley noted that people from Song dynasty China like Zhao Zhong and Xu Zongdao fled to the Tran dynasty ruled Vietnam after the Mongol invasion of the Song. The Daoist cleric Xu Zongdao, who migrated from Fujian province to Vietnam, recorded the Mongol invasion and referred to them as "Northern bandits". He quoted the Đại Việt Sử Ký Toàn Thư which said "When the Song [Dynasty] was lost, its people came to us. Trần Nhật Duật, the king at that time, took them in. Zhao Zhong had even served as his personal guard. Therefore, among the accomplishments in defeating the Yuan [i.e., Mongols], Trần Nhật Duật's was outstanding".
Southern Song Chinese military officers and civilian officials left to overseas countries, went to Vietnam and intermarried with the Vietnamese ruling elite and went to Champa to serve the government there as recorded by Zheng Sixiao. Southern Song soldiers were part of the Vietnamese army prepared by emperor Trần Thánh Tông against the second Mongol invasion.According to Vietnamese Folk-lore, Phạm Nhan (Nguyễn Bá Linh), born to a Yuan(Mongol Chinese) official/merchant and a women from Dong Trieu, is often portrayed as a villainous character or "evil god" for supporting the Mongols against the Vietnamese/Chinese. The culture, clothing, food and language were all Chinese dominated in Van Don, where the Tran had migrated to from Fujian. The Min Chinese language would still be spoken by the Tran in Vietnam. The Red River Delta and along the coast of Vietnam, located to the capital's southeastern area, was home to numerous settlers, including the Tran, from Fujian and Guangdong. Van Don port was developed ad founded as a result of this interaction. This was in largely as a result of commerce and trade.
Ho Dynasty China's province of Zhejiang around the 940s was the origin of the Chinese Hồ/Hú family from which Hồ dynasty founder Emperor Hồ Quý Ly came from.
15th–18th centuries Lê dynasty
After the Fourth Chinese domination of Vietnam it was recorded that the union of Vietnamese women and Chinese (Ngô) men produced offspring which were left behind in Vietnam and the Chams, Cẩu Hiểm, Laotians, and Vietnamese natives who collaborated with the Ming were enslaved by Le government in the Complete Annals of Đại Việt.
The return of the Ming Chinese to China was commanded by the Ming and not Lê Lợi. The Trai made up the supporters of Le Loi in his campaign. He lived among the Trai at the border regions as their leader and seized the Ming-ruled lowland Kinh areas after originally forming his base in the southern highland regions. The southern dwelling Trai and Red River dwelling Vietnamese were in effect locked in a "civil war" during the anti-Ming rebellion by Le Loi.