Knowra Vietnamese diaspora Vietnamese diaspora The Vietnamese diaspora comprises people of Vietnamese origin living outside Vietnam. Its communities formed through migration, especially the large-scale displacement following the Vietnam War.
Fall of Saigon : The capture of Saigon by North Vietnamese forces on April 30, 1975, which ended the Vietnam War. Its aftermath drove a major wave of Vietnamese departures.
Refugee : A person outside their country who cannot safely return because of persecution, conflict, or serious harm. Many early postwar Vietnamese arrivals were recognized and resettled as refugees.
Little Saigon : A common name for Vietnamese commercial and cultural districts outside Vietnam, especially in the United States. These districts make Vietnamese language, businesses, and public life visible abroad.
Overseas Vietnamese : A broad term for Vietnamese people living outside Vietnam, often corresponding to the Vietnamese term Việt Kiều. The label can emphasize continuing ties to Vietnam rather than displacement alone.
Vietnamese boat people : Vietnamese refugees who fled the country by sea, especially after 1975. Their dangerous journeys became a defining part of the diaspora’s formation.
Refugee resettlement : The process of transferring refugees to a country that agrees to admit them and provide permanent protection. Resettlement programs established Vietnamese communities across several countries.
Vietnamese language : The Austroasiatic language spoken by most people in Vietnam and by communities abroad. Language schools, media, and family life help sustain Vietnamese heritage across generations.
Việt Kiều : A Vietnamese term commonly used for overseas Vietnamese, with meanings shaped by context and speaker. Its changing connotations reveal how diaspora identity is discussed within Vietnam.
Orderly Departure Program : A program established in 1979 to arrange legal emigration from Vietnam, including family reunification and refugee resettlement. It enabled some Vietnamese to leave through regulated channels rather than flee clandestinely.
Family reunification : Migration policies and processes that allow people to join close relatives living in another country. Family sponsorship extended Vietnamese communities beyond the first refugee arrivals.
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