Áo dài (English: /ˈaʊˈdaɪ,ˈɔːˈdaɪ,ˈaʊˈzaɪ/; Vietnamese:[ʔaːw˧˦zaːj˨˩](North), [ʔaːw˦˥jaːj˨˩](South)) is a modernized Vietnamese national garment consisting of a long split tunic worn over silk trousers. It can serve as formalwear for both men and women. Áo translates as shirt and dài means "long". The term can also be used to describe any clothing attire that consists of a long tunic, such as nhật bình.
The predecessor of the áo dài was derived by the Nguyễn lords in Phú Xuân during 18th century. This outfit was derived from the áo ngũ thân, a five-piece dress commonly worn in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The áo dài was later made to be form-fitting which was influenced by the French, Nguyễn Cát Tường and other Hanoi artists redesigned the áo dài as a modern dress in the 1920s and 1930s. The updated look was promoted by the artists and magazines of Tự Lực văn đoàn (Self-Reliant Literary Group) as a national costume for the modern era. In the 1950s, Saigon designers tightened the fit to produce the version worn by Vietnamese women. The áo dài dress for women was extremely popular in South Vietnam in the 1960s and early 1970s. On Tết and other occasions, Vietnamese men may wear an áo gấm (brocaderobe), a version of the áo dài made of very thick fabric and with sewed symbols. (Full article...)
Image 2Water puppetry, lit. "Making puppets dance on water") is a tradition that dates back as far as the 11th century when it originated in the villages of the Red River Delta area of northern Vietnam.
Image 8The painting depicts the retired emperor Trần Nhân Tông who has now become a monk and returned to Hanoi from his hermitage in Vũ Lâm.
Image 9Hồ Chí Minh attended French Communist Congress in Marseilles in 1921 under the name Nguyễn Ái Quốc.
Image 10Dong Ho painting is a line of Vietnamese folk painting originating in Đông Hồ village (Song Hồ commune, Thuận Thành District, Bắc Ninh Province.
... that a proposed footbridge connecting the Asian Garden Mall to another Vietnamese-American shopping center met opposition because it was deemed "too Chinese"?
... that Charles Larson became one of the first Americans to teach African literature, after working in Nigeria for the Peace Corps to avoid the Vietnam draft?
... that "Arnold's Christmas", now considered one of the most memorable episodes from the animated series Hey Arnold!, was almost rejected by network executives because it depicted the Vietnam War?
... that war correspondent Jurate Kazickas financed her plane ticket to Vietnam in 1967 with a US$500 win on the game show Password?
The following are images from various Vietnam-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1A trio of Vietnamese musicians performing together. The man on the far left plays kèn đám ma, the man in the middle plays the đàn nhị and the man on the right plays the trống chầu. (from Culture of Vietnam)
Image 1119th-century manuscript of "Mysterious tales of the Southern Realm" (Lĩnh Nam chích quái), a copy of 15th-century original tale. (from Culture of Vietnam)
Image 12A Kinh Vietnamese woman with blackened teeth. (from Culture of Vietnam)