This site is open for test purposes only.  Not all functions work yet, and dictionary content, organization, and phonetic transcription will change.

About the SEAlang Library Vietnamese Dictionary Resources

These resources are primarily based on William Peter Hyde's A New Vietnamese-English Dictionary (2008, Dunwoody Press, 928 pages; ISBN 978-1-931546-43-0

The dictionary includes more than 15,000 Vietnamese words, compounds, and phrases.  It is based on a million-word corpus consisting of 75% printed text, and 25% recorded conversation.  There is a special focus on modern terminology, including computing, business, science, medicine, and technology.  Entries are labeled Hyde08.  The dictionary is corpus-based and high-quality translated, full-sentence examples are provided for all entries.  These may be searched independently as part of the SEAlang Vietnamese bitext corpus.

A second major source is based on lexicographical material developed by Prof. Bui Phung, Hanoi University, and provided by Stephen O'Harrow of the University of Hawai'i (persuant to grants from the Hawai'i Office of Technology Transfer and Economic Development, and the US Dep't of Education).  These are marked Bui1992, and have not yet been fully processed.

Additional materials are provided by the Free Vietnamese Dictionary Project.  Entries are labeled as FreeDict04.  Entries are also provided by Baamboo Tra Tu, a Wiki-style dictionary managed by VC Corp, which kindly provided the raw data.  Entries are labeled as Baamboo08.  The Baamboo dictionary uses FreeDict as its core; it has many corrections and additions, but as a Wiki it is not supervised, and introduces many new errors (such as long, inaccurate lists of English glosses; e.g. search for Vietnamese bao as a complete word).  Both dictionaries have many errors, but they also have extensive specialized vocabulary not found elsewhere.  We are trying to see if we can clean up the problem areas.

Both FreeDict and Baamboo include many thousands of phrasal and sentence-length examples.  Despite problems, this provides a valuable resource that, as above, may be searched independently in the SEAlang Vietnamese bitext corpus.

Please see the Features for Teachers and Features for Students sections at the SEAlang Library for tips on using the dictionary and corpus tools. Input methods For Vietnamese input methods see VIQR and VNI. JavaScript converter thanks to Tran Anh Tuan. Font requirements Any standard Unicode font that includes the Vietnamese character set will work with this text.   IPA input and display prefers Charis SIL or Doulos SIL for proper rendering. Phonetic search The most interesting feature of the dictionary tool is its ability to find words by sound, using the IPA phonetic alphabet.  Vietnamese has marked regional accents; North and South are the most widely spoken, but Central is also important for research in linguistics.  Note that:

- tone is optional,

- dialect N, C, S, or any must be specified.

Thanks Many thanks to James Kirby, Mark Alves, Paul Sidwell, and the ADRPhone Project for their assistance. Copyright notices Hyde Source material is copyright 2008 Dunwoody Press.