Vietnam's General Secretary Leads Worship of Ancestor 'Hung Kings': Myths Reinforce Nationalism
General Secretary To Lam personally participated in the Hung Kings festival rituals, leveraging the myth of the 'founding ancestor' to strengthen Vietnamese national identity and regime legitimacy.
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- 📰 Published: April 28, 2026 at 13:06
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Central News Agency
(CNA, Hanoi, 28th) April 27th was a compensatory holiday for Vietnam's 'Hung Kings Festival,' to commemorate the 'Founding Ancestor' of Vietnamese mythology. Vietnamese people pride themselves as descendants of the 'Hung Kings.' This concept initially appeared to counter Central Plains (Chinese) culture and emphasize Vietnamese autonomy. Successive rulers have used the 'Hung Kings' narrative to strengthen national identity, unite the nation, and grant legitimacy to their rule.
To Lam, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and State President, walked into the Hung Temple ruins in Phu Tho Province, northeastern Vietnam, on the 26th to personally offer incense and flowers. Surrounded by thousands of people, they worshipped the common ancestor of the Vietnamese people together.
The establishment of a nation-state is often condensed through myths, constructing the concept of 'compatriots' among multiple ethnic groups. Chinese people use Yan Emperor and Yellow Emperor as distant memories, calling themselves 'descendants of Yan and Huang.' Vietnamese people also have their own mythical ancestors, the 'Hung Kings.'
But unlike Yan and Huang, who remain in historical narratives, Vietnam's Hung Kings entered the lives of the people in a more practical way due to the promotion by Ho Chi Minh, the founding father of the CPV. In 1946, Ho Chi Minh signed a decree to make the 10th day of the 3rd lunar month, the Hung Kings Commemoration Day, a national holiday, which remains one of the few national holidays in Vietnam today.
According to ancient records such as the 'Complete Annals of Dai Viet,' in Vietnamese mythology, Au Co, representing the 'mountain' and land civilization, and Lac Long Quan, representing 'water' and ocean civilization, combined to give birth to a hundred sons, rumored to be the ancestors of the Baiyue (Hundred Yue).
The two finally decided to separate due to 'incompatibility between water and fire.' Au Co took 50 sons to establish a country on land. The eldest son was the Hong Bang clan, with 'Van Lang' as the national title, and the capital in Phong Chau, today's Viet Tri City, Phu Tho Province, initiating the origin of the rule of the Van Lang Kingdom from 2879 BC to 258 BC, which is legendarily the first dynasty in Vietnamese history.
The leaders of the Van Lang Kingdom were all called 'Hung Kings' (Hung Vuong). Today, when Vietnamese people worship the Hung Kings, they are actually remembering early immigrant ancestors. The so-called Hung King does not refer to a single monarch but to this Hong Bang clan, with 18 dynasties down from Kinh Duong Vuong, covering more than 2,000 years of rule.
Interestingly, the Hung King is actually a descendant of the Yan Emperor. Legend has it that the third-generation grandson of the Yan Emperor was named De Minh. While inspecting the south, he married Vu Tien and gave birth to a son named Loc Tuc, titled Kinh Duong Vuong. Later, Kinh Duong Vuong married the daughter of the Lord of Dongting and gave birth to Lac Long Quan.
The Hung Kings are regarded as the common ancestors of the Vietnamese, giving the Vietnamese people the blood concept of 'compatriots' (dong bao), meaning born from the same sac, uniting the Vietnamese people from different regions into 'one family.'
In To Lam's speech at the Hung Temple yesterday, the word 'compatriot' also appeared, calling the Hung Kings Day a 'festival of gratitude and a celebration of compatriots.' He also quoted Ho Chi Minh: 'The Hung Kings built the country, we must work together to guard it.'
Every year on this day, Mt. Hung holds grand worship ceremonies and celebrations. Locals wear traditional costumes to carry sedan chairs up the mountain, and many people from other provinces flock to join the celebration. The 'Hung Kings Worship Belief' was also officially included in UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on December 6, 2012.
It is said that the Hung Kings belief now spread throughout Vietnam actually began to appear during the reign of Le Thanh Tong in the second half of the 15th century. He ordered the creation of the 'Hung King Jade Genealogy,' establishing him as Vietnam's 'Founding Ancestor.'
Relevant data shows that during Vietnam's feudal period, influenced and invaded by Central Plains culture, rulers used the Hung Kings legend to emphasize the autonomy of 'Southern Mountains and Rivers,' countering the Central Plains' 'distinction between Hua and Yi,' and establishing their legitimacy as 'Kings' rather than 'Marquises.'
The birth of a nation is often constructed through the power of myth. By shaping the 'Hung Kings' as the common ethnic ancestors and combining them with strong ritual ceremonies, Vietnam successfully transformed myths into national cohesion. The Hung Kings worship belief is not only a tradition of 'remembering the source while drinking water' but has also been elevated to a cornerstone for consolidating national unity and cultural identity.
The Hung Kings legend, as Vietnam's founding myth, creates a community of destiny and condenses national cohesion. Through paths such as building local history, strengthening patriotism, and cultural identity, it has been used by successive Vietnamese rulers as a tool to consolidate the legitimacy of rule and resist foreign invasive forces. But undeniably, it has also become the soul of the Vietnamese nation and a bond connecting Vietnamese people at home and abroad. (Editor: Tang Sheng-yang) 1150428
(CNA, Hanoi, 28th) April 27th was a compensatory holiday for Vietnam's 'Hung Kings Festival,' to commemorate the 'Founding Ancestor' of Vietnamese mythology. Vietnamese people pride themselves as descendants of the 'Hung Kings.' This concept initially appeared to counter Central Plains (Chinese) culture and emphasize Vietnamese autonomy. Successive rulers have used the 'Hung Kings' narrative to strengthen national identity, unite the nation, and grant legitimacy to their rule.
To Lam, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and State President, walked into the Hung Temple ruins in Phu Tho Province, northeastern Vietnam, on the 26th to personally offer incense and flowers. Surrounded by thousands of people, they worshipped the common ancestor of the Vietnamese people together.
The establishment of a nation-state is often condensed through myths, constructing the concept of 'compatriots' among multiple ethnic groups. Chinese people use Yan Emperor and Yellow Emperor as distant memories, calling themselves 'descendants of Yan and Huang.' Vietnamese people also have their own mythical ancestors, the 'Hung Kings.'
But unlike Yan and Huang, who remain in historical narratives, Vietnam's Hung Kings entered the lives of the people in a more practical way due to the promotion by Ho Chi Minh, the founding father of the CPV. In 1946, Ho Chi Minh signed a decree to make the 10th day of the 3rd lunar month, the Hung Kings Commemoration Day, a national holiday, which remains one of the few national holidays in Vietnam today.
According to ancient records such as the 'Complete Annals of Dai Viet,' in Vietnamese mythology, Au Co, representing the 'mountain' and land civilization, and Lac Long Quan, representing 'water' and ocean civilization, combined to give birth to a hundred sons, rumored to be the ancestors of the Baiyue (Hundred Yue).
The two finally decided to separate due to 'incompatibility between water and fire.' Au Co took 50 sons to establish a country on land. The eldest son was the Hong Bang clan, with 'Van Lang' as the national title, and the capital in Phong Chau, today's Viet Tri City, Phu Tho Province, initiating the origin of the rule of the Van Lang Kingdom from 2879 BC to 258 BC, which is legendarily the first dynasty in Vietnamese history.
The leaders of the Van Lang Kingdom were all called 'Hung Kings' (Hung Vuong). Today, when Vietnamese people worship the Hung Kings, they are actually remembering early immigrant ancestors. The so-called Hung King does not refer to a single monarch but to this Hong Bang clan, with 18 dynasties down from Kinh Duong Vuong, covering more than 2,000 years of rule.
Interestingly, the Hung King is actually a descendant of the Yan Emperor. Legend has it that the third-generation grandson of the Yan Emperor was named De Minh. While inspecting the south, he married Vu Tien and gave birth to a son named Loc Tuc, titled Kinh Duong Vuong. Later, Kinh Duong Vuong married the daughter of the Lord of Dongting and gave birth to Lac Long Quan.
The Hung Kings are regarded as the common ancestors of the Vietnamese, giving the Vietnamese people the blood concept of 'compatriots' (dong bao), meaning born from the same sac, uniting the Vietnamese people from different regions into 'one family.'
In To Lam's speech at the Hung Temple yesterday, the word 'compatriot' also appeared, calling the Hung Kings Day a 'festival of gratitude and a celebration of compatriots.' He also quoted Ho Chi Minh: 'The Hung Kings built the country, we must work together to guard it.'
Every year on this day, Mt. Hung holds grand worship ceremonies and celebrations. Locals wear traditional costumes to carry sedan chairs up the mountain, and many people from other provinces flock to join the celebration. The 'Hung Kings Worship Belief' was also officially included in UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on December 6, 2012.
It is said that the Hung Kings belief now spread throughout Vietnam actually began to appear during the reign of Le Thanh Tong in the second half of the 15th century. He ordered the creation of the 'Hung King Jade Genealogy,' establishing him as Vietnam's 'Founding Ancestor.'
Relevant data shows that during Vietnam's feudal period, influenced and invaded by Central Plains culture, rulers used the Hung Kings legend to emphasize the autonomy of 'Southern Mountains and Rivers,' countering the Central Plains' 'distinction between Hua and Yi,' and establishing their legitimacy as 'Kings' rather than 'Marquises.'
The birth of a nation is often constructed through the power of myth. By shaping the 'Hung Kings' as the common ethnic ancestors and combining them with strong ritual ceremonies, Vietnam successfully transformed myths into national cohesion. The Hung Kings worship belief is not only a tradition of 'remembering the source while drinking water' but has also been elevated to a cornerstone for consolidating national unity and cultural identity.
The Hung Kings legend, as Vietnam's founding myth, creates a community of destiny and condenses national cohesion. Through paths such as building local history, strengthening patriotism, and cultural identity, it has been used by successive Vietnamese rulers as a tool to consolidate the legitimacy of rule and resist foreign invasive forces. But undeniably, it has also become the soul of the Vietnamese nation and a bond connecting Vietnamese people at home and abroad. (Editor: Tang Sheng-yang) 1150428