Bonjour Vietnam

A song about a young woman longing to see a country where her ancestral roots are

Hi all,

Thank you for joining me for this week’s song, “Bonjour Vietnam”, sung by Pham Quynh Anh. If you’d like to hear the song before you read the background, I’ve included a YouTube video below the article.

Below, you’ll find my interpretation of the lyrics (written in italics). Comments and questions are welcome. For Japanese students, vocabulary words in bold are provided in Japanese below. TOEIC (PBT) 450+, Eiken 2, CEFR B1.

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(672 words)

The Background

The Vietnam War was between North, which was communist, and South Vietnam, which was not. The United States helped South Vietnam, but in 1975, North Vietnam won the war. When the war ended, the country became communist, and many people were scared of what would happen next. Many people fled Vietnam during and after the Vietnam War because it was a dangerous time.

Some people who supported South Vietnam or worked with the U.S. feared they would be punished. They worried about being sent to prison or even being killed. Because of this, they decided to leave Vietnam and start a new life somewhere else.

These refugees escaped Vietnam in different ways. They traveled in small, overcrowded boats, often in dangerous conditions, hoping to find safety in another country. Others escaped by land to neighboring countries like Thailand and Cambodia.

The refugees from Vietnam settled in many places around the world. A large number went to the United States, where they were welcomed in cities like Los Angeles, Houston, and San Jose. Others settled in Canada, Australia, France, and other countries.

When they arrived in their new countries, the Vietnamese refugees faced many problems. They had to learn a new language, find jobs, and get used to a different culture. Many had lost everything in Vietnam, so they had to start all over again with very little money. It was especially hard for older people who found it difficult to learn a new language and adapt to the new culture. Some faced discrimination because they looked different or spoke a different language.

In spite of these challenges, many Vietnamese refugees worked hard to build new lives. They started businesses, sent their children to school, and became part of their new communities. 

Pham Quynh Anh's parents immigrated to Belgium from Vietnam after the Vietnam War, probably in the late 1970s or early 1980s. Pham Quynh Anh was born in 1987 in Liège, Belgium. She was 19 when she recorded the song.

The song

Bonjour Vietnam is a beautiful song about a young woman longing to see a country where her ancestral roots are.

Tell me all about this name, that is difficult to say

It was given me the day I was born

Want to know about the stories of the empire of old

My eyes say more of me than what you dare to say

All I know of you is all the sights of war

A film by Coppola, the helicopter's roar

Apocalypse Now, for example, is a film about the Vietnam War. It was produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

One day I'll touch your soil

One day I'll finally know your soul

One day I'll come to you

To say hello... Vietnam

Sampan on Mekong River (Flickr Photo by manhhai)

Tell me all about my color, my hair and my little feet

That have carried me every mile of the way

Want to see your houses, your streets, show me all I do not know

Wooden sampans, floating markets, light of gold

And Buddhas made of stone watch over me

My dreams they lead me through the fields of rice

In prayer, in the light... I see my kin.

I touch my tree, my roots, my begin

Vietnamese devotional statue of the historical Buddha (Wikimedia Commons, public domain)

One day I’ll walk your soil

One day I'll finally know my soul

One day I'll come to you

To say hello... Vietnam

To say hello... Vietnam

To say xin chào… Vietnam

In an article for a Vietnamese magazine (1), she talked about how the song became popular:

"Marc Lavoine wrote my first songs, including Bonjour Vietnam - this song actually created its own story. By chance, the demo recording was posted on the Internet. A few days later, the Vietnamese community around the world probably heard it and was very moved by the message of the song. This experience is beyond imagination for a young singer like me" Quynh Anh confided, and expressed her hope: "The story will continue and bring me to many other places, other people. Maybe it will also bring me to you... I hope so". 

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Question

Do you know your ancestral roots well? 

Is there a place that you long to see?

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Vocabulary

fled 逃げた ( v. flee)

communist 共産主義者

be punished 処罰される

refugee 難民

overcrowded 過密

adapt 適応する

discrimination 差別

ancestral roots 先祖のルーツ

roar 轟く

kin 親族

soil 土地

confide 信頼する  (何かを説明し、話している相手を信頼する)

The song was originally written in French by Marc Lavoine and Yvan Coriat. The English lyrics were translated by Guy Balbaert.

In English and Vietnamese

In French and Vietnamese:

Sources

(1) Trung Nghĩa - Công Khanh. (2017, August 25). Quỳnh Anh: TỪ “Bonjour” đến “hello Vietnam.” TUOI TRE ONLINE. https://tuoitre.vn/quynh-anh-tu-bonjour-den-hello-vietnam-248667.htm Accessed 6 Sep 2024. Translated with Google Translate.

Nguyen Ngoc Trung. (2006, February 11). “Bonjour vietnam” Tune Tugs Expat Heartstrings - OhmyNews International. https://web.archive.org/web/20140426214735/http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?no=273609&rel_no=1 Accessed 6 Sep 2024. 

For an article that compares this song and Hello Vietnam by Tom T. Hall in 1965, see:

https://chaohanoi.com/2020/08/12/hello-vietnam-bonjour-vietnam-a-tale-of-two-songs/