Languages spoken in Vietnam
Asia · Capital: Hanoi · Population 105.8 million
The official language of Vietnam is Vietnamese. An estimated 86% of the population speaks it as a first or additional language, or roughly 91 million people. After Vietnamese, the most widely spoken are Hmong Daw at 1.4% and Chinese at 1.1%. Vietnamese belongs to the Austroasiatic language family. Vietnamese is not recorded in any of Vietnam's three neighbours. In total, three languages are recorded in Vietnam, and their shares add up to 88.5% of the population, which implies the average resident speaks about 0.9 of them.
What languages are spoken in Vietnam?
| Language | Share of population | Status | Estimated speakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| VietnameseAustroasiatic | 86% | Official | 91 million |
| Hmong DawHmong-Mien | 1.4% | Spoken | 1.5 million |
| ChineseSino-Tibetan | 1.1% | Spoken | 1.2 million |
Percentages are the share of the population that speaks each language, including as a second language, so they add up to well over 100% in multilingual countries. Speaker counts are estimates derived from the percentage and the country's population, not counted figures.
What is the official language of Vietnam?
The official language of Vietnam is Vietnamese. Vietnamese is spoken by an estimated 86% of the population, or roughly 91 million people, counting both first-language and additional speakers.
Official status comes from Unicode CLDR. It distinguishes languages that are official nationwide, those used as de facto official without being named in law, and those official only in particular regions or territories.
How many people speak Vietnamese in Vietnam?
An estimated 86% of Vietnam's 105.8 million people speak Vietnamese, which works out at roughly 91 million speakers. That figure is derived from the population and the reported share, and it counts second-language speakers, so it is an estimate rather than a census count.
Key facts about Vietnam
- Capital
- Hanoi
- Population
- 105.8 million
- Continent
- Asia
- Area
- 331,212 km²
- Currency
- VND
- Languages recorded
- 3
- Land borders
- 3
- ISO codes
- VN / VNM / 704
Which countries border Vietnam?
Vietnam shares a land border with three countries: China, Cambodia, and Laos. None of them records Vietnamese, the most widely spoken language in Vietnam, so the land borders here are also language borders.
Explore more
Language shares, population, and official status: Unicode CLDR. Capital, area, borders, and currency: mledoze/countries (ODbL 1.0). Flag image: flagcdn.com. Speaker counts are estimates derived from population and reported share.