Vietnamese mythology () comprises folklore, national myths, legends, or fairy tales from the Vietnamese people with aspects of folk religion in Vietnam. Vietnamese folklore and oral traditions may have also been influenced by historical contact with neighbouring Tai-speaking populations, other Austroasiatic-speaking peoples, as well as with people from the region now known as Greater China.
The mythology of the ethnic Vietnamese people (the Viá»Ât,) has been transferred through oral traditions and in writing. The story of Lạc Long Quân and ÃÂu Cá has been cited as the common creation myth of the Vietnamese people. The story details how two progenitors, the man known as the Lạc Long Quân and the woman known as the ÃÂu Cá, gave birth to a "hundred eggs, fifty of which hatched, settled on land and eventually became the Vietnamese people".
However, the story, dubbed Con rá»Âng cháu tiên ("Descendants of the Dragon and the Immortal"), is labeled as a truyá»Ân thuyết ("legend"), a "type of folkloric tale about historical characters and events, usually embellished with fantastical elements," and is more akin to other fantastical legends, such as the story of Lê Lợi discovering a mythical sword from a magical turtle.
ÃÂại Viá»Ât sá» ký toàn thð (Complete Annals of ÃÂại Viá»Ât) proposed more details on the origins of the two progenitors, for example on how Lạc Long Quân was the son of Kinh Dðáng Vðáng, who was in turn descended from the or Yan Emperor/ or Shennong.
Additionally, Ngô Sé Liên, the author of the text, cited elements from Lénh Nam chÃÂch quái. Thần Nông and their descendants leading to Kinh Dðáng Vðáng, Lạc Long Quân and ÃÂu Cá, and even commented on the potential familial bond between this couple (Lạc's father Kinh Dðáng Vðáng and ÃÂu's grandfather ÃÂế Nghi were brothers, both of descent).
The myth of Thần Trụ Trá»Âi tells that when the world was just a dark and chaotic area, a god with extraordinary appearance and strength appeared. God raised his head to the sky, dug the earth himself, and smashed rocks to form a pillar to support the sky. The work went on like this, and soon heaven and earth were divided. When the sky was high and dry, the god broke the pillars and threw rocks and stones everywhere, turning them into mountains, islands, high hills, and wide seas. So today, the ground is not flat.
Figures in Vietnamese mythology include The Four Immortals: the giant boy Thánh Gióng, mountain god Tản Viên Sán Thánh, Chá» ÃÂá»Âng Tá» marsh boy, princess Liá» u Hạnh.
One of the Four Immortals also reemerges in the fighting between Sán Tinh and Thủy Tinh ("the god of the mountain and the god of the Water"). Historical legend occurs in the story of the ThuáºÂn Thiên ("Heaven's Will") magical sword of Emperor Lê Lợi.
Folk mythology includes figures such as the mðá»Âi hai bàmụ "Twelve Midwives", twelve goddesses who teach one-month-old babies skills such as sucking and smiling.
A list of some popular fairy tales or Vietnamese myths and legends includes but is not limited to:
The king of the gods in Vietnamese mythology is ÃÂng Trá»Âi ("God of heaven"), then due to the influence of China, he was identified with Jade Emperor so he was also called Ngá»Âc Hoàng Thðợng ÃÂế, commonly referred to as Ngá»Âc Hoàng.
East Asia
Southeast Asia/East Asia