DI LINH 1890

PEOPLE AND PLACE

 CHAPTER I : THE DI LINH PLACE NAME1

1
Fr. J.M Phung Thanh Quang, Lạc quan trên miền Thượng, p. 45-75
2
 I. From Djiring to Di Linh
DJIRING: What a weird name! Where on earth is it?
Djiring is an administrative division founded in 1899
by the French government in the Highland Region where
Montagnard Tribes resided. The main focus of this
administrative division was the strategic nuance rather
than economic and social aspects. At that time, it was
established with the aim of supporting the development of
Lam Vien wellness center which is Da Lat nowadays.
Why the name Djiring? Using two syllables "DJ" to
transcribe phonetically "~DJ" is the writing style of the
Montagnard Rhade people in Ban Me Thuot, not the
pronunciation of the Montagnard K'ho people in Di Linh.
Some people say it's the name of an village owner
who was credited with founding this Highland Village.
Some state that the name Djiring is referred to
beeswax (Jrềng), as this area has a lot of bees. The
Montagnards forced to transport materials to build the first
administrative facility here, or to build roads for the
Department of Civil Engineering, stayed to found the
village. They first made their living by collecting honey;
so people call them the Jrềng, then misspelled as Djiring.
Some say it's the name of an oak tree growing in Di
Linh, called "~jrêng". It is a malleable plant, so the
Montagnards use it for many purposes such as making fork
3
teeth to collect straw, or splitting it into small pieces to
weave the bottom of gùi (a kind of rattan basket that the
Montagnards wear on their backs) so that the basket stays
upright whenever it is placed on the ground.
In 1958, the Djiring place name was changed to Di
Linh by the Ngo Dinh Diem government. Blao, Dran, Lien
Khang were also changed to Bao Loc, Don Duong, Lien
Khuong respectively.
Di Linh is a region in the Central Highlands called Di
Linh Plateau.
Di Linh Plateau
Di Linh Plateau is located in the Southwest of
Truong Son Mountain Range. Its shape has irregular
protrusions and concavities, is divided into many deep
valleys and many steep slopes.
This Plateau occupies from the foot of Bao Loc pass
to Da Nhim river near the Gougah waterfall.
The terrain is eroded in many places due to the rapid
flow of rainwater, and soil erosion. The areas not eroded
are usually even and flat, but they are not much.
The altitude of Di Linh is 1,000 meters, while that of
Da Lat is 1,500 meters and Bao Loc's is 850 meters; the
slope is from East to West.
This location is about 60 kilometers from the sea, in the
bird's flight direction.
4
 This is a fertile mountainous area, discovered thanks
to Plissements Terriens phenomenon in the Truong Son
Mountain Range. The soil here is composed of variations
of Basaltes rock spewed by volcanoes; and due to the
permeation of carbon dioxide, it breaks down to form a red
soil (Latosols rouges). This soil is mixed with sandstone
(Grès) from volcanic eruptions since the Third Epoch,
forming a uniform layer of rich crimson soil; it is suitable
for growing industrial crops such as tea, coffee, etc. for
large-scale production. On the slopes, when the trees
above are cut bare, this fertile red soil gradually becomes
dried and hardened into brown, poor laterites (Latérites),
and only those with deep roots like jackfruit can be grown.
In the valleys, during the rainy season, flood water
brings down a rich alluvial layer suitable for growing rice
and secondary crops.
Although the soil on this Di Linh Plateau is slightly
acidic (PH: 4.5-5), it's relatively good. However, it has not
been properly exploited.
The Montagnards here only know how to cultivate
rice and a few minor crops such as: corn, cucurbits, beans,
potatoes, etc. However, the yield is not considerable as the
Plateau has a lot of rain but the ground is rough, so it
cannot hold water; and rice requires a lot of water.
On average, Di Linh's climate is neither too hot or too
cold, the average temperature is about 20 o8, and often
5
changes in the right season of the year, so trees are less
affected. Usually in May - the month of Our Lady, the
temperature is the hottest, but it only reaches its peak at
22o72. The coldest weather is in January, the lowest
temperature is often drops to 18o7. However, the air
pressures often producing wind in Central Vietnam are
always shifting, so sometimes during the cold winter, there
are some very hot days as the warm South wind blowing
from the sea replaces the cold North wind.
Insolation averages around 4:34. The weather is
usually clear around noon; but after noon, especially in
February and March, the clouds are gray and gloomy, the
landscape is full of sadness and sluggishness.
Like other regions in Vietnam, Di Linh Plateau is a
land of monsoons and rough seas, so it has two distinct
seasons in the year.
The dry season coincides with winter wind from
November to April. The North wind is dry during this
season, with an average speed of 8 to 9 kilometers per
hour, blowing from the Northeast to the Southwest and
bringing cold air. In the dry season, the landscape is dry as
the rugged soil cannot hold water. People's livelihood at
this time seems difficult, except for the coffee gardener.
Many malaria cases take place during this dry season.
2
According to Địa phương Chí Lâm Đồng 1973, the maximum and
minimum temperatures recorded at Bao Loc during the 1960s-1970s were:
Maximum = 33o On April, 1964/ Minimum = 4o5 On February, 1963
6
 The rainy season coincides with summer wind from
May to October. This is the South wind season, with an
average speed of 12 kilometers per hour, blowing from the
sea to the mainland, from the Southwest to the Northeast
and bringing rain. In the rainy month, it rains a lot here.
Average rainfall is 2,600 to 2,700 mm. There are 160
rainy days. July, August, and September are the rainiest,
sometimes lasts for a whole week. The relative humidity is
quite high; fog is common, and as the temperature drops,
the humidity increases. In the dry season, the minimum
humidity is 20%, but in the rainy season, the humidity can
reach 90 to 100%. Therefore, it's muddy everywhere, trees
are prone to fungal diseases; furniture is damp, mouldy, rot
and become prey for termites.
Natural resources
Located next to Brah Yang mountain (1874 meters),
Yang Doan mountain (1812 meters) and Pantar mountain
(1654 meters), Di Linh abounded in many wet forests. The
forest covers the high mountains like a giant water tank
holding rainwater, making the Plateau always soaked with
water to gradually leak throughout the year to increase the
flow of rivers, refill water for wells in the dry season.
Nowadays, because of war and the lax control of
forest products, people indiscriminately destroy forests for
timber, especially the burning of forests for farming,
leaving the mountains bare. Precious wood varieties such
7
as Rosewood, Red Apitong, Courgun, Techicai Sitan,
Golden Oak, Mukulungu, Doussie, etc. are now
increasingly rare.
Again, the mountains and hills without trees will be
eroded by flood water; the fertile layer will be washed
away or later become barren due to laterization, gradually
degraded so that it's unable to cultivate anything. This will
cost a fortune to recover.
At present, those burned-and-abandoned lands have
become wasteland. When the weather is dry; forest
bamboos, alang grasses, reeds, especially wild herbs with
seed clusters covered by fine hairs will be spread far by the
wind and quickly take over the lands, destroy soil fertility,
and become combustible targets during the dry season.
At first, the light forest was covered with vines and
thorns tall enough to cover human's head; but when that
layer died down, lower grasses started to invade. Because
of that, the soil gradually became bare, barren and lose the
water absorption capacity, What a disaster for the Plateau.
Di Linh Plateau used to be one of the most ideal
hunting areas in Vietnam, especially for big hunting.
Before 1930, when there was no National Route 20,
this area had very few visitors, so wild animals were bold.
There were a lot of elephants, bison, gaur, deer, muntjac;
and even tigers which cause a lot of troubles for people
reside here.
8
 In 1957, a group of Montagnards using a dug-out
canoe to hunt on the Da-Dung river saw a rhinoceros
which perhaps strayed from Laos. The animal got injured
by the Montagnard's javelin, but managed to swam across
the Da-Dung River and disappeared into the forest, and
has not been seen since then3.
The dry season from November 1 to May 1 is an
ideal season for hunting. The remaining six months are the
rainy season, hunting is less interesting due to wet weather
and leeches attached to the body causing discomfort.
However, in May, June, September, and October, skilled
hunters can show their talents, as the footprints of wild
animals are clearly imprinted on muddy ground, so it is
easier to track them. By July, especially in August, most of
the rivers and streams are affected by water flow falling
down from the high rapids, causing the water to run very
fast. Di Linh Plateau is again dense with clouds and rain,
become muddy everywhere. Hunting is no longer possible.
Beauty spots
Di Linh has majestic beauty spots such as Da-Trump
pass (1,235 meters high) 15 kilometers to the South and
Yan-Kar pass (1,017 meters high) 19 kilometers to the
Southeast of Di Linh district. From Yan-Kar pass, people
can look to the direction of Phan Thiet to see the South
China Sea.

3
Cited from Địa phương Chí Lâm Đồng 1973, p. 9
9
 Di Linh also has a beautiful waterfall: the Bobla
waterfall (6 kilometers to the South of the town) located at
kilometer 213, 300 meters away from the national route.
This waterfall has a fairly strong flow of pouring water
from a height of 30 meters that can be used to produce
electricity.

10
11
 II. Brief history
The Champa Kingdom
From the beginning of the 11th century until the
Southern advance of the Later Le Dynasty, the Southern
Highlands was a contested area for influence between
Funan and the Champa Kingdom.
At the end of the 13th century, King Che Man
(Simhavarman III), who befriended King Tran Anh Ton to
marry Princess Huyen Tran (1306), expanded Champa's
territory to Di Linh Plateau thanks to his power and
invaded this territory up to kilometer 16, ie Dinh Trang Ha
commune nowadays. The Montagnard tribes such as Sre,
Cil, Roglai, etc. were placed under the domination of the
Champa, so they had to bring annual gifts such as ivory,
velvet buds, wax, honey, agarwood, precious wood, etc. …
to Phan Rang to pay tribute to the Champa king4.
In 1470, during the "South advance to Binh Chiem"
war, King Le Thanh Ton defeated the Champa army,
merged Do Ban Dai Chiem and Co Luy into Quang Nam.
The Champa army mostly withdrew to the Plateau and
gathered the Montagnard ethnic groups directly under
them for resistance. Upon failing, they tried to ally with
the Ma tribe (in Bao Loc), a tribe that used to slow down
the Khmer's invasion to the East, to get their support.

4
Nvt., p. 5

12
 The Ma's legend described that: the Prum (Champa)
held a festival on the Sre tribe's land (Di Linh of Champa)
and invited the Ma chieftains to participate. That place was
Ddor Nroa hill, a bare hill next to Njanda-Riam village.
The Ma chieftains, with a scimitar on shoulders and a
majestic spear in hands, squatted on the wide-opened
bamboo logs called "Rlá" brought by their underlings from
the Ma land and discussed enthusiastically. The Ma agreed
to cooperate temporarily with the Champa, with the
condition that the Champa must commit not to invade
through the East and Northeast, which was throughout the
Ma land located on the upper reaches of Da Rnga River.
The Champa accepted and the two sides marked bamboo
grove along the hillside as an evidence5. After that, the
bamboo grove was called "Ddor-Korla-Nroa", the holy
bamboos saved the Ma from invasion. As no one dared to
touch it, it has now turned into a dense bamboo forest6.
During the domination of the Champa, the Sre tribe
in Di Linh often rebelled against the Champa army. They
also recounted that the revolutionary named Leng-Ler of
the Sre tribe raised his army to fight the Champa, but lost
and was severely injured, had to hide in the forest and then
disappeared. Currently, only the bloodied sword remains
in
5
A special type of long bamboo with wide-opend knot. This bamboo was
unique in the Ma land under Bao Loc pass. Thanks to this meeting, the Sre
brought the seeds and planted them in one or two places in Di Linh.
13
6
Cited from Jean Boulbet “Modes et techniques du pays Maa”, p. 171

14
Konyam Dariam village in Dinh Trang Ha region
(Kilometer 16).

15
 Vietnam's Imperial Dynasty
In 1786, when the Tay Son army revolted to hold
Binh Thuan province, the descendants of Leng-Ler joined
force with the Tay Son to drive the Champa out of the land
of the Montagnard tribes, and liberated Di Linh from being
colonized by the Champa. The tribes of this region later
became "Thuy Man" of the Vietnamese court. The central
government still respected the self-determination of these
localities, and only exercised guardianship. The
Montagnard chieftains held direct leadership of their
people and were considered as representatives on behalf of
the central government to govern the people. They
collected taxes and paid tribute annually to the central
government through Interpreters in Phan Ri (Binh Thuan).

16
 French domination
The French colonial government, after occupying
Vietnam, began to infiltrate the Vietnamese Highland
Regions in 1850. But until 1899, the lands of Lam Vien
and Di Linh Plateau still remained unchanged.
The Montagnards in this region, whenever there was
a matter of labouring, stringing, or legal proceedings, they
still went down to Phan Ri to contact Vietnamese court
mandarins.
However, due to the contact with Western
civilization, this region began in 1885 through the Priests
of the Mission.
The first Missionary to glimpse this region probably
was Father Gonzague Villaume, the Priest that Doctor
Yersin mentioned in the Indochine article No. 99 in 1942,
"The First Contact with the Lands of Annam"7. (Cuộc tiếp
xúc đầu tiên với các xứ Mọï Annam)

7
Revue Indochine No. 99, 1942 – p. 1-3
17
III. Explorer Yersin's Footprints on Di Linh
Plateau

18
 From 1890 to 1894, Truong Son mountain range of
the Central Vietnam suddenly filled with expeditions
moving intensively from the coast.
Dr. Alexandre John Emile Yersin was a Swiss with
French nationality. When he was still a medical assistant
for a shipping line at the Saigon trading port, during his
business trips along the coast of Central Vietnam, he was
fascinated to stare at the great mountain range with
dreaming, mysterious, blue high peaks. He wrote: "The
mountain range with high peaks keeping along the valley
in the West created a real attraction in me. I then came up
with a bold plan, that was, to try moving to the West until I
hit Truong Son mountain range, climbed it and kept
walking to the Southwest to return from Nha Trang to
Saigon through a completely unknown wild area. I
predicted this pathway may take a few dozen days."8
July 1890, when the "Saigon" ship that he cooperated
with docked in Nha Trang, Yersin was allowed to go
ashore and asked someone to guide him to meet Father
Villaume in Phan Rang with the purpose of asking for
directions to go to Truong Son mountain range. The old
Villaume, due to his deafness and illness, could only tell
Yersin to go to Phan Ri to ask someone there to guide him
to the Plateau along the trail that the Montagnards in this
area used to follow.
8
Yersin : “Premier contact avec les pays mois de L’Annam” Revue
Inđochine no 99 Juillet 1942.
19
 That very afternoon, Yersin and his guide set out on
the road, just as the sky pulled dark clouds foreshadowing
a huge storm that was about to fall.
Perhaps Yersin took the Tamon road, the trail that the
Montagnards in Di Linh calls "Gun Phori", from Phan Ri
up to Tam Bo hamlet near Phu Hiep parish, Di Linh
district nowadays; or followed the small road from Phan
Ri, upstream the Mao River, to Lang Hanh to gradually
move towards Di Linh.
The two walked in pouring rain, had to spent the
night in a thatched hut outside a Montagnard field, and
took nearly a day to reach a hilltop about 1,200 meters
high. From there, they could see a few hundred meters
below the valley, and Yersin could see a vast field with
many Montagnard villages scattered around. They finally
reached the vicinity of Di Linh, with a tired posture, torn
shoes and socks.
The sudden appearance of Westerners surprised the
Montagnards so they came to see them. Thanks to an
interpreter, the Montagnards told Yersin that it was
possible to get to Saigon from here, but it would take nine
or ten days on foot. They also added that if Yersin go from
here without stopping, it may take less than a day to reach
Phan Thiet.
Time was tight, so Yersin had to return to Phan Thiet
the next day to catch his train to Hanoi.

20
 As a result of this adventure, Yersin got seriously ill
with malaria. The time the train arrived in Hai Phong
station, he was bedridden.
Without fear, after quitting his job at the shipping
line, Yersin was assigned to the Colonial Health field, and
continued to survey the Highland Regions in Truong Son
mountain range for four consecutive years.
March 1893, Yersin began a five-month expedition
(March to July 1893).
From Nha Trang, he went up to the mountain,
followed the valley of Da Nhim river, came to Don
Duong, then went through Fimnon to Prenn pass. Yersin
found Lam Vien, Da Lat nowadays, at 15:30 on June 21,
18939. Standing in front of the majestic landscape at an
altitude of 1500 meters above sea level, he expressed his
feelings as follows: “My feeling was very profound when
moving through the pine forest; I faced a vast plateau,
treeless and desolate, looked like a sea strongly stirred by a
series of azure billows. Lam Vien mountain range stood
majestically in the Northwest horizon of the Plateau,
making the landscape more beautiful and noticeable on a
beautiful background”10; “The coolness of the air made me
forget my fatigue and recalled the joy I felt when I sprinted
9
Noel Bernard “Yersin, Pionner – Savant-explorateur” Paris, la Colombi
1955, P. 59
10
Genevray : Indochine, No 133, 18 Mars 1943, p. 4

21
up and down the hills like a little schoolboy.” 11
This expedition was accompanied by Father Robert,
manager of the Paris Foreign Missions Society at the Far
East, to study the terrain for the future operation and
development of the Congregation. A few days later, Yersin
and his entourage explored the lower hills between Dran
and Djiring, then detoured Tram Hanh, Cau Dat, and
Bosquet to return to Lang Biang.
After this survey, Yersin proposed to Governor-
General Paul Doumer to turn Lang Biang into a resting
place for French public employee working in Indochina.

11
Noël Bernard, Yersin, Pionner-Savant-Explorateur, Paris, La Colombe,
1955, p. 59
22
IV. Di Linh in 1899 and the program of the
development of Lam Vien wellness center

23
 Four years later, due to a report of Dr. Yersin, the
French colonial government paid attention to Lam Vien
Plateau. After learning that Lam Vien has a suitable
altitude, a temperate climate as well as abounds in water
and has a vast area, it was possible to establish an
important wellness center in Indochina. At the end of
October 1897, after the rainy season, Governor-General
Paul Doumer appointed a military delegation led by
Thouard, the captain of the artillery, to resurvey and study
the program to open a road from Nha Trang to Lam
Vien.12
In the delegation, there was Cunhac as a surveyor.
They camped at Dankia near a Montagnard village, and
stayed there for 11 months to complete the work.
Thouard then appealed to the Governor-General that
it was difficult to make the road to Lam Vien directly from
Nha Trang; instead, it should go from Phan Rang through
Don Duong to Go village, along the valley of Da Nhim
River (in Lac Lam's direction nowadays), the section of
climbing Prenn pass to Lam Vien. Thouard also suggested
that Lam Vien Plateau is mostly surrounded by tributaries
of Da Dung River, a strong river that flows directly to
Dong Nai, so a road from Da Lat to Saigon through Bien
Hoa along the valley of the river could be established, in

12
A. Baudrit “La naissance de Dalat” Revue Indochine no 100, Février
1944, p.23
24
order to avoid the high passes over 800 meters in the
direction of Phan Rang.
The following year, in the year of 1899, another
larger delegation13 led by Guynet, captain of the artillery,
was also sent to Lam Vien to chart an 120-kilometer
unpaved pathway from Phan Rang to Da Lat through Don
Duong. It took them 13 months to complete.
In the same year, Ernest Outrey was commissioned
to launch another expedition to Di Linh Plateau, to explore
the supply possibilities of this region, and try to chart a
pathway connecting this region with the coastal area of
Phan Thiet (Binh Thuan). The delegation of Outrey put
their headquarters in the place which is Di Linh nowadays
and found out the trail from Di Linh to Phan Thiet through
Ma Lam.
For the next three years, the Oddera, Carnier, and
Bernard delegations (1898-1900) were also sent from
Saigon to study the road from Saigon to Lam Vien at the
request of Thouard and planned a great program for a
trunk road nearly 300 kilometers long from Bien Hoa to
Da Lat through Di Linh.14
13
The delegation consisted of 20 French people, 70 trainees, and about
1500 road workers. Cunhac was the secretary of Captain Guynet of the
delegation, later became the first envoy of Lam Vien province, then. This
delegation included a doctor named Etienne Tardif who suggested
choosing Da Lat as the center instead of Dankia.
14
Constantin “Le Senatorium du Lang Biang”, Revue Indochinoiss No 3-4
(1916), p. 306
25
Dong Nai Thuong province (Province du Haut Donnai)
1899

26
 To support the establishment of Lam Vien wellness
center, Governor-General Doumer established Dong Nai
Thuong Province on November 1, 1899 and Ernest Outrey
himself was appointed as the first envoy for this province;
the township was located in Di Linh.15
The province was called Dong Nai Thuong as it was
located in the upstream area of Dong Nai River. This
province at that time was very large, including Tuyen Duc,
Lam Dong and Dinh Quan nowadays. The land was
mostly forest, the population was only the Montagnards.
Outrey's job was to set up the administrative base for
the new province. The construction of the first building
here was assigned to the surveyor and architect Cunhac.
Building materials were taken from Phan Thiet and it was
necessary to deploy a large number of Montagnard people
to carry materials on their backs (about 50 kilograms each)
15
"The French condescended to the Plateau because it was a fertile
mountainous region, which, according to geologists, was created by
Plissements terrients of Truong Son mountai range, which formed a very
fertile red land favorable for forming plantations. Moreover, the youth of
Rade, Jarai, Bahnar, Sedang, K'ho are a significant human resource for the
economic exploitation and governance of the French motherland. It was for
the sole reason of monopolizing exploitation of the Plateau that in 1898 the
Envoy of Central Vietnam, Boulloche, proposed to the conclave to request
that the mountainous regions be placed under the direct control of the
French. This request was approved and from 1899 the Southern
mountainous regions began to come under the direct rule of the French
through agency buildings..." Therefore, although the Hue court still placed
a governor to handle security and order issues in the township, but in reality
it was just a symbolic title towards the French government.
(Cited from Le Dinh Chi “Vấn đề đồng bào sơn cước VNNH”, p. 291)
27
or carry and go on foot 71 kilometers from Phan Thiet,
passing Gia Bac pass (i.e. the current inter-provincial road
No. 8 to Di Linh).

28
 The administrative building was completed in 1900
(later turned into the administrative office of Di Linh
District). Envoy Outrey, in charge of the Da Lat wellness
center in its infancy, built a wooden house with corrugated
iron roof in Da Lat (also in 1900 to replace the thatched-
roofed tana built by Garnier, Envoy of Phan Thiet, in
1898). Outrey's mission (since 1901) was to ensure regular
supplement of this facility through Phan Rang crossroads.
During that period, among the Montagnards having
the most merit in converting the population to establish Di
Linh hamlet and urging Montagnard laborers to transport
building materials to the administrative building; Mr. Dam
Trang, an elderly and prestigious village owner, was the
most important person. The government was grateful to
him; so a street next to Di Linh district nowadays is still
named Dam Trang to commemorate this person.
Becoming the township of Dong Nai Thuong, Di
Linh at that time had nothing. Its business only contains 2
Chinese shops; but after a while, they also move their
business to other places as they couldn't stand the weather.
Dong Nai Thuong did not last long, as after Governor-
General Paul Doumer was recalled to France (1901), all
projects on Da Lat wellness center were stalled, or were
carried out very slowly because of limited budget. From
1901, Dong Nai Thuong province was abolished. The
reason for the abolition was described by H. Maïtre in his
book "Les Junggles Moïs" (Paris 1912) that because the
29
French authorities at that time were still indifferent to the
Montagnards. Moreover, the fragmentation in the policy of
controlling Highland Regions caused "many garrisons and
townships to be established and then abolished."
Therefore, when the project of establishing the Da
Lat railway line through Cung Xom 16 on the Darang River
was deemed impossible, Dong Nai Thuong province
(established 1899) had to be merged with Binh Thuan
province, while Da Lat became a district (Délégation)
direclt under the newly established Phan Rang province
and Cunhac was assigned as the first District Chief there.

16
Cung Xom, also known as Cung Son at the end of 8th Street in M'Drack
district, Phu Yen province. This is about a project to build a railway line
from Saigon to Phu Yen through Dong Nai Thuong province, but failed.

30
 Trunk road "Ma Lam - Di Linh - Da Lat"
While the program to establish Lam Vien wellness
center was suspended, the work of refurbishing the public
railway line for Indochina due to the law of December 25,
1898 was still allowed to continue as usual. The Saigon -
Nha Trang railway started construction in 1901 and was
completed in 1913.
At the same time, many research delegations were
still working slowly to draft a project to build roads on
Lam Vien Plateau. The delegation of Garnier and Cunhac
(1906-1907) also continued to survey to plan the opening
of Saigon - Da Lat highway through Di Linh.
When Cunhac directly controlled the administrative
machinery (1901), he strongly promoted the establishment
of trunk roads from environs to Da Lat wellness center.
From 1907, he made a great contribution in opening
the Da Lat - Di Linh - Ma Lam trunk road in accordance
with the project in 1901 proposed by Ernest Outrey, the
former Envoy of Dong Nai Thuong17.
Ma Lam, which means "Night" in Champa language,
is a village located 16 and a half kilometers from Phan
Thiet. The work of clearing this 54-and-a-half-kilometer-
long road is very challenging. Many laborer and public
17
Constantin “Le Sanatorium du Lang Biang” (Les rapports de l’Inspecteur
général des travaux publics.) Revue « Indochinoise » No 3-4 (1916), p. 316
18
Ma Lam Cham commune, Ham Thuan district, Binh Thuan province.
30
service specialists collapsed on Ma Lam - Di Linh street
(commonly known as Gia Bac) because of typhoid and
forest malaria. Two French public service specialists died
in this work because of typhoid fever. Their bodies were
buried in the cemetery for Europeans on the hill at the
entrance to Di Linh leper village.
The road from Di Linh to Da Lat through Prenn pass
was also strongly promoted during this period. 32 km from
Di Linh to Lang Hanh, the road was blocked by Da Nhim
River. In the past, to cross this river, one had to take a
floating ferry merged from many Montagnard canoes. The
boat was made of large Hopea trees 19, each was hollowed
out half a meter wide. By 1913, the head of Di Linh station
had used Montagnard laborers to build a firm wooden
bridge for cars to pass easily.
The period of expansion and repair of the Da Lat - Di
Linh - Ma Lam trunk road ended in 1910, and in 1913 it
was further repaired; costs were borne by the total budget,
so the work was strongly promoted. It was completed in
October 1914, but it also took four years and costed
700,000 of the old Franc, or 262,500 Vietnam Dong at that
time. Therefore, since the end of 1914, the traffic between
Saigon - Da Lat through Ma Lam - Di Linh direction took
less than a day and a half; and it took two days to go from

19
Hopea wood: Hopea ordorata et dealbata, Di Linh Montagnard called it
Bögir, the Ma called it nggir. It has a hard core, withstands moisture well.
The longer it's soaked in water, the harder it becomes and does not warp.
31
Phan Rang to Krong Pha, which had to pass through many
difficult stages. On the first day, passengers would take a
train departing from Saigon station at 6:50 am and arrive
at Ma Lam station at 13 pm. Here, passengers would
switch to car with a ticket of 5 Vietnam Dong to go to Di
Linh. The car stopped at Di Linh at 17 pm, and passengers
rented a place to stay overnight at an inn (existed since
1914). The next day, the car to Di Linh - Da Lat departed
from 7 am, the fare was also 5 Vietnam Dong and at 10
o'clock it arrived in Da Lat20.
At that time, Ma Lam - Di Linh - Da Lat trunk road
became important. Thanks to it, Sai Gon - Da Lat were
only 350 kilometers apart. It took 200 kilometers by train,
150 kilometers from Ma Lam station to Da Lat by car.
Therefore, this arterial trunk road was regularly
repaired. The Ma Lam - Di Linh road (Gia Bac street) was
named as the inter-provincial road No. 8, 54 and a half
kilometers long (from kilometer 43 to kilometer 97).
Although traveling by car on Gia Bac road was relatively
easy in the dry season, it was still very difficult in the rainy
season. By the end of 1915, traffic jams on Gia Bac Street
were still very common; but for young tourists who love to
rush, getting stuck in the rain, bogged down or stuck in
traffic was a small adventure adding special joyfulness to
the trip to the Plateau.
20
Constantin “Le Sanatorium du Lang Biang”, Revue « Indochinoise » No
3-4 (1916), p. 306-328
32
 The Ma Lam - Di Linh road, later extended to Quang
Duc through Kinh Da ferry (this road is also known as
Kinh Duc street), was called inter-provincial road No. 8
lasting 39 kilometers (from kilometer 108 to kilometer
147). This stretch of road is important not only in terms of
traffic but also in terms of economy and strategy.

33
Dalat in in its infancy, 1900

34
 The first mission has been operating on the Lam
Vien Plateau since 1897. But the main place of all
activities was still at Dankia, about 13 kilometers
northwest of Da Lat nowadays, where, four years ago on
June 21, 1893 Yersin and the expedition camped for the
first time when they had just found this cool land.
At that time, there was only one tana (administrative
agent station)21, a meteorology department and an
agricultural experimental place for analysing weather and
land condition. In Da Lat, there was only a temporary
military post (un poste commandé par une garde principale
de la milice) stationed on the land of the old Town hall, Da
Lat library nowadays. Administratively, this area at first
belonged to Phan Thiet, then it was directly under Dong
Nai Thuong province, until it was abolished.
In 1889, Dr. Tardif22, an employee of the second
delegation of Captain Guynet in charge of opening a
temporary road from Phan Rang to Lam Vien, after 13
months of meticulous research, submitted directly to
Governor-General Doumer advantages and disadvantages
of the two lands Dankia and Da Lat for the authorities

21
The French colonial government set up "Administrative agent" posts
(Commissaire du gouvernement) on each Montagnard lands; these posts
were under the authority of the communication Envoy. The Administrative
agent post in Dankia was under the authority of the Envoy of Dong Nai
Thuong from 1899 when this province was established.
22
Dr. Etienne Tardif “La naissance de Dalat” (1889-1990), Vienne, Jernet,
Martin, 1949, p. 144 - 148
35
decide to choose. According to Dr. Tardif, being located
on high, well-ventilated terrain and having many pine
forests, Da Lat will be better than Dankia in that the air
was fresh and healthy, less humid, less foggy. The
problem of water and traffic road was solved thanks to the
less bumpy ground. Moreover, Dankia had a thick clay
layer, making it difficult for water to penetrate, while Da
Lat had a thin clauy layer just enough for planting.
After reading the report, Governor-General Doumer
was so confused that, around January or February 1900, he
go to Da Lat himself to survey the land and decided to take
Da Lat as the center instead of Dankia. Therefore, Outrey,
the Envoy of Dong Nai Thuong province, immediately
rebuilt the thatched-roofed military post from 1898 into a
wooden stilt building with corrugated iron roof, later
became Town Hall of the first City's mayor and Envoy23.
Seven years later, the establishments in Dankia was
moved to Da Lat, and from 1907, the first inn was found
here managed by Mr. De Santi. Since the Ma Lam - Di
Linh - Da Lat trunk road was completed (October 1914),
traffic to Lam Vien became easy. Da Lat wellness center
became increasingly well-known, especially in the midst
of the outbreak of the 1914-1918 great war, which made

23
A. Baudrit : “Naissance de Dalat” Revue Indochine, No 180 (1944), p.
23-24
24
This inn later became Hotel du Lac, and in 1972 it was Da Lat
Information Service. (Monographie de Dalat, Octobre 1952, p. 2)
36
all French public employee unable to return to their
homeland, so they rushed to Da Lat to rest on holidays
such as Easter, Pentecost Monday, Feast of the
Assumption of Our Lady, etc. (meaning from April to
September, the hot period of the tropics).
Da Lat's position became more and more important.
Then, on January 6, 1916, in the midst of the great war in
Europe, the French Governo-General in Indochina,
Roume, signed a decree to turn Da Lat from a sketchy
resort for the French into Lam Vien province, took Da Lat
as the township, and appointed Cunhac who had great
merit in establishing wellness center as the first Envoy
here.

37
 Dong Nai Thuong Province was re-established in 1920
Twenty years after being abolished, Dong Nai
Thuong was re-established. The Eastern boundary started
from La Nga bridge (kilometer 105 on National Route 20)
to the foot of Prenn pass and the South started from the
foot of Gia Bac pass, to the other side of Kinh Duc ferry,
that was, included Don Duong, Duc Trong, Di Linh, Bao
Loc and part of Dinh Quan district nowadays.
It was Cunhac Envoy who assigned the first « Senior
Lieutenant Colonel », Det Dam Kroe, for Di Linh. The
Montagnards here also mentioned that Mr. Kroe did not
know a word, could neither speak Western language nor
Vietnamese, he was promoted to that position by the
Western mandarin as he had a long and bushy beard.
Also in 1920, when the route from Phan Rang to Da
Lat through Ngoan Muc Pass was completed, the cog
railway from Gon hamlet to Da Lat was started
immediately, but it was not completed until 1933.

38
 The missionary experimental place of Di Linh
Thanks to the development of Da Lat wellness
center, Di Linh was noticed and increasingly expanded.
Along Ma Lam road (Gia Bac road), Kinh people
from Phan Thiet flocked to Di Linh to start business; but
only a few dared to stay here eternally as they feared
malaria and were rarely allowed to stay that long.
In order to preserve this trunk road, the Department
of Overseas Roads was established in Di Linh township
and was looked after by a public works engineer, Mr.
West. For the supply of materials for road construction,
Boyon, a retired French officer housed in Phan Thiet,
contracted completely. His communication station at Di
Linh was entrusted to Mr. Muoi Ngo Chau Lien to control.
Thanks to his prosperous business, Mr. Muoi Lien
bought a parcel of land from an influential Montagnard in
Di Linh at that time, named K'Brai. This land was 7,000
square meters wide, located on the end of a hillside (1,000
meters) next to the national route. The thalweg near the
edge of the Montagnard field had soft clay, so Mr. Muoi
Lien built a brick kiln and assigned Mr. Duong from Phan
Rang to take care of it.
In 1925, Mr. Muoi Lien planned to open a hotel to
welcome tourists to hunt in Di Linh, so he ordered Mr.
Duong and Mr. Huong, a carpenter, to build a houses
raised on stilts (stilt house) made of solid wood, with a
39
corrugated iron roof, modeled after the Western house
style. However; on October 13, 1926, because of his
circumstances, Mr. Ngo Chau Lien immediately sold
everything to the Paris Foreign Missions Society under the
name of Father Dumortier, Bishop of Saigon, to serve as a
missionary base for Di Linh with the price of 10,000 Dong
including land, house and furniture.
Since then, this land has become the first
Montagnard missionary site on the Southern Central
Highlands.

40
 CHAPTER II

THE DI LINH NATIVES

41
INTRODUCTION
Who is K'Ho people? Where did they come
from? Those are questions that both domestic and
international anthropologists are enthusiastically trying
to answer during their beneficial research. But the
K'Ho themselves have no idea about their background,
and they do not really care about that. Their ancient
origin is still covered by dreamlike fog.25
Scientists have conducted various research
efforts to find out the origin of the Montagnards in the
Highland Regions of Vietnam in general and the K'Ho
in the Southern Highlands in particular. These results
may be different from each other, but it has initially
revealed traces of the origin of the Montagnards in
general and the K'Ho ethnic group in particular.

25
J. M. PHUNG THANH QUANG, Lạc quan trên miền thượng, 1974, p. 91

42
 The following are the achievements of
archaeologists, anthropologists, linguists, and
researchers; in sequential order:
I. Professors of Ho Chi Minh City University of
Pedagogy
II. Nguyen Khac Ngu & Pham Dinh Tieu
III. Ho Van Dam
IV. Binh Nguyen Loc
V. Dominican Priest Nguyen Huy Trong

43
I. PROFESSORS OF HCM CITY UNIVERSITY OF
PEDAGOGY26

The Lat are the Indonesian ethnic groups belonging

to the Mon-Khmer group in the Lam Vien Plateau,
including the Sre, Ma, and Cil varieties, influenced from
the Mien. The K’ho are often mistaken for an ethnic group
in this Mien-influenced group, as people think that the
name "K'ho" is just the Champa people's language
(Kahov) used to refer to all of the Montagnard ethnic
groups; or the word "mọi", "thượng" in Vietnamese as
well as "montagnard" in French. Therefore, in terms of
anthropology, there is no ethnic group called the K'Ho.
Additionally, people usually refer K'Ho language to a type
of language commonly used among the ethnic groups
living in Lam Vien Plateau.

II. NGUYEN KHAC NGU & PHAM DINH TIEU27

Unlike the ethnic minorities in the North, who only

live in the mountains, their Southern counterparts also live
in the plains.
The area of the Southern ethnic minorities is located
from Ngang Pass onward to the South; some live on the
Highland Regions (the Montagnards), others who were the

26
HAN NGUYEN, Lịch sử phát triển Đà Lạt in Tập san Sử địa: Đặc khảo
Đà Lạt, Nha Địa Dư Quốc Gia, 1971, p. 272
27
NGUYEN KHAC NGU & PHAM DINH TIEU, Địa lý Việt Nam, Cơ Sở
Xuất Bản Sử Địa, 1970, p. 126-137
44
ancient ethnic groups founding the country on this land live
under the plains such as the Champa and the Cambodia.
From the point of view of anthropology, scientists can divide
the Southern ethnic minorities into two groups: the Malay-
Polynesian group and the Mon-Khmer group.

1. The Malay-Polynesian group

According to anthropologists, this ethnic group

contains the Southern islanders. They speak Malay -
Polynesian; therefore, if one race speaks, other races in the
group can understand. Those in this Malay - Polynesian
group all follow matriarchy. In this society, a woman
brings her husband to her home; children follow their
mother's surname; and property is only passed on to
daughters.
The level of civilization of these groups is decently
good; their clothes are discreet, their jewelry is splendid,
and their customs are pure-mixed.
Those belong to this ethnic group are: the Champa,
the Rhade, the Jarai, the Raglai, the Churu and the H'roi.

45
2. The Mon-Khmer group

According to anthropologists, the Mon-Khmer

group is an ethnic group from the Western part of the
Indochina Peninsula coming to the Southern plateau
before the Malay-Polynesian group. However, due to their
lack of influence, they have lost their lands to the hands of
the Malay - Polynesian group; more specifically, the plains
(taken by the Champa), the affluent plateaus (taken by the
Rhade in Dak Lak and by the Jarai in Pleiku). Therefore,
there are only 3 areas left.
The Northern region of the Southern plateau is
inhabited by the Bahnar and Sedang ethnic groups. The
Southern region of the Southern plateau has the Maa, Sre,
and Mnong ethnic groups; and the Southern Vietnam has
the Khmer, Stieng, etc. These ethnic groups speak Khmer
in Cambodia, and Mon in Southern Myanmar and
Thailand.
The level of civilization of these ethnic groups is
still low; their clothes are very sketchy, most of the people
are still upper half-naked.
The Northern region is decently more developed
than its Southern counterpart; but all in all, compared to
the Malay - Polynesian group, they are still far behind.
The Mon - Khmer group follows patriarchy.

46
 The Ma land (Jaya Sinhavarman III) (The Ma
land in the Southern part)
The Ma people, who were originally the Funan and
Chenla people in the West, migrated to this land.
Before the 7th century, the Ma lived in a kingdom
led by the king Jaya Simhavarman III. This kingdom
submitted to King Chan Lap.
The ancient Ma kingdom consisted of many ethnic
groups such as K'Ho, Sré, Noang, Nop, Lat, Tring.
In 1970, there were 64,770 people living in Di Linh
plateau , from Da Lat to Xuan Loc.
Their common language is K'Ho - a family
language with Khmer.
The Ma in general live a rudimentary life; men only
wear loincloths, and women wear a sarong.
On summer days, when going outside, they wear a
simple shirt made by a piece of cloth cut in the middle to
put their head through. Men and women both have long
hair, which is arranged in a knot at the back of their head.
Both wear earrings and many necklaces, or bracelets and
anklets.
The Ma still keep the custom of rubbing their teeth
and stretching their ears with large rings.

47
 The Ma live in stilt houses. In the land of the Sre
(Bao Loc and Di Linh), the houses are narrow and long
with thatched roofs for many families. In the land of the
Ma (from Bao Loc to Xuan Loc), large houses for each
family usually have thatched roofs.
There are places where the houses have neither
floor nor wall; their iron roofs are down to the ground.
The Ma people cultivate rice and maize, raise
livestock for food; they also grow cotton, spin thread and
weave cloth themselves. Their fabric is often weaved in
squares or oval, filling with colorful colors such as black,
blue, red.
The Ma also know how to fish by boat on rivers
such as Da-Dung river and La-nha river. They're also good
in hunting.
Among the ethnic groups in the Ma land, the Sre
and the Noang were greatly affected by the Champa. For
instance, they follow matriarchy whereas the other ethnic
groups still follow patriarchy.

48
49
III. HO VAN DAM28

According to the European-Western researchers, the

Montagnards in the Central Highlands nowadays were
formerly the Indian lineage and could be divided into two
groups:
The group that came first were: the Rhade, the
Jarai, and the Churu. The group that came later were: the
Ma , the M'nong ,the Bahnar, and the Sedang.
The Rhade live in the center of the Central
Highlands. The Jarai, the Bahnar, and the Sedang in the
North. The M'nong, the Ma, the K'Ho, and the Churu live
in the South. All these races, in the past, had nearly the
same habits and customs; although their languages were
different, they had the same origin. Their activities and
clothes were similar, and they all had strange fairy tales
and equally complex faiths.
After being separated from each other, without
convenient communication for a long time, they become
more and more different every day.

28
HO VAN DAM, Phong Quang tỉnh Darlac, 1967, p. 13-14. 75
50
 Tracing the origin of the Montagnard ethnic groups
in Central Highlands, many European - Western
researchers believe that most of them were originally from
India, gradually overran from ancient times; and the other
was the Champa migrated from Trung Chau. This theory,
from the Middle Ages on, is somewhat plausible.
But in 1933, Dr. Join, a Montagnard ethnographer,
traced back to the archaic way, and put forward a theory:
the Rhade were probably a hybrid of the Négritos
aboriginal because their general nature and customs are
similar. The original Négritos, originally from the South
China sea archipelago, have been mixed with other ethnic
groups, no longer in the original state. There is still a few
of that group in Philippines, Java island and Singapore.
Because the Rhade sang a verse that "Ih dê Djiê lan
engao plao K’si" which means "when you come to our
land, an island in the middle of the sea" etc. And the
stories of the Rhade once reminded that in the beginning
time of mankind, their people had gone through 5 periods :
1/ Earth was plagued by fire, 2/ Extreme famine, 3/
Flood , 4/ Earthquake , 5/ Find way to live on land. For
these reasons, the doctor thinks that an ethnic group in the
deep mountains and valleys, but also reminds the song on
a remote island in the sea, is most likely the ancient ethnic

51
group on the island, straying to the continent and then
moving to the mountainous ares, because of natural
disasters.29

29
HO VAN DAM, Phong Quang tỉnh Darlac, 1967, p. 13-14

52
IV. BINH NGUYEN LOC30

In our territory, there are two ethnic groups that are

not known exactly by science, namely the Vietnamese
Montagnard and the Muong.
We imagine that the Vietnamese Montagnard
consists of many ethnic groups: Sedang, Bahnar, Rhade,
etc. but in fact they are just the tribes of a single race, so
we say there are two unknown ethnic group, including the
Montagnards. Without detailed explanation, people will
get the wrong idea as they thinks there are two or three
dozen ethnic groups in the Highland Regions.
We call them compatriots with many reasonable
explanations, not being demagogic at all, as science has
recognized that the Montagnards are Indonesians for half a
century, and people think Indonesians are the Mọi. Now
we know that Indonesia is Malay, and we have just proven
that Vietnam is Malay, so they are our compatriots.
We need to know who the Vietnamese Montagnard
are. Are they the Cambodian like the Westerners said or
not?
Westerners see whose nouns are similar to those of
Cambodia, they indiscriminately assume that they are
borrowed from the Cambodia or are a subsidiary of the

30
BINH NGUYEN LOC, Nguoàn goác Maõ Lai cuûa daân toäc Vieät
Nam, Baùch Boäc, 1971, p. 712-717
53
Cambodia, just because they don't know that there are two
Malay strains in Southeast Asia. There were two groups of
the Malays, and the first groups have the same language.
When comparing Kinh and Montagnard languages,
we found that there are many nouns shared by both the
Kinh and the Montagnards, while Cambodia does not. But
those comparison tables don't say much. It is necessary to
know the entire Cambodian and Montagnrad languages to
see that they are indeed closer to Vietnam than Cambodia.
In the world, only two French people know that the
Vietnamese Montagnard is the Malay, not the Cambodia
(although Cambodia is also Malay). They are Antoine
Cabaton, a professor of Malay language at the School of
Oriental Languages in Paris, and Mr. Louis Charles
Damais, a scholar of Malay studies. But the first man was
not heard by anyone; and the second man died in 1966, did
not have enough time to write about the Montagnards.
Mr. A. Cabaton has found that the basic language of
the Montagnards is Malay language. But knowing that the
Montagnard is the Malay is not enough, it is better to
know that they are either the first or second Malay groups.
This can be known, based on the language. The Jarai and
the Rhade were definitely the second Malay groups. All
the other groups are the first Malay groups because they
use the first Malay groups' nouns, and there are two groups

54
that are very close to us, namely Kha La Vang because we
can understand one of their sayings, and then the Ma that
we have studied the words "Con" and "Cái", thanks to
their language. And the third thing we need to know is that
the first groups are from Central Vietnam to the Highland
Regions, or from Cambodia to the Highland Regions.
Let's imagine whether the first Montagnard Malays
went to the East Indies and then turned to Indochina like
the Mon people, or from Central Vietnam to the Highland
Regions.
We can say right away without fear of mistake that
they came from Central Vietnam to the Highland Regions.
If that proves to be the case, then the Western
theories about the Vietnamese Montagnard are wrong.
Westerners think that the Vietnamese Montagnard is a
sub-race of the Cambodian, so they have to go from
Cambodia to the Highland Region.
By proving that, the ancient history of Champa will
be clearer. The Champa are, by their language, a mixed
Malay just like Vietnam. But where did the first Malay
element come from? Was it because they came later, drove
the Montagnards to the Highland Regions, but they
couldn't drive them all out. Being the second Malay
groups, they used up to 30% of nouns of the first Malay
groups, precisely because the former landowners, some of

55
the Vietnamese Montagnards, stayed to live with them
instead of leaving, turning into the Champa.
The evidence below shows that the Vietnamese
Montagnard is the Malay, not the Cambodian, although
the Cambodian is also the Malay, but different groups of
Malay, not of the groups migrating by sea.
In 1949, at a construction site in Daklak, a public
laborer dug up and found some antiques of grinding stone
having the same age as those of Bac Son. Prehistoricist A.
Schaefaer identified it as a stone instrument whose sound
is similar to a Malay copper instrument, and different from
a Chinese jade instrument.
It is a proof that the Vietnamese Montagnards were
the first Malay groups because the second Malay groups
only arrived about 500 years ago, so it is impossible to
have an antique of the old Bac Son period, which was
5000 years old. And this proves that they are not the
Cambodian as the Cambodian just arrived in Central Laos
at the end of the Zhou Dynasty, so it is impossible to have
5000-year-old antiques.
Is there likely that they come from East India to the
Vietnamese Highland Regions, before the Cambodian?
No. The Chuy Malays do not make stone musical
instruments. And if the Montagnards had come from East
India, they would have stayed in the land of Cambodia,

56
which is now fertile lands, rather than going to the
Highland Regions, where both the climate and lands are
not good. The lands of the Sedang are full of rocks and
mountains, they annually get hungry for many months.
Therefore, they would likely settle down here in Cambodia
rather than look for such a miserable land. They also could
not be chased by the Funan or the Cambodian later
because they were very skilled and warlike. The other two
ethnic groups; at that time, they could be oppressed by
them, but they could not be driven out by them.
The ancient land of Cambodia, i.e. Central Laos, or
the land of Cambodianowadays, both are fertile and have a
better climate than those of the Highland Regions.
So if they were the Cambodian, they would not
have gone to the Highland Regions because Cambodia
always had plenty of fertile lands.
They are at best friends with the Cambodian, not
the Cambodian themselves. They also stay in Cambodia
with the Cambodian because the Cambodian did not drive
them out; the proof is that the Pnong could still stay in the
Cambodian territory without being driven out.
We can only understand that the Montagnards are
the first Malay groups who migrated by sea, at the same
time as us, and occupied the Central Vietnam because the
North of Vietnam was already occupied by us.

57
 History of Champa says that the Champa drove out
the aborigines in Central Vietnam and established a
country there. But no one knew who the aborigines were,
and where they went.
When we learn that the Champa are the second
Malay groups, we must realize that they are the
Vietnamese Montagnards.
Based on the musical instruments of the Bac Son
period in Dak Lak, we can conclude that the Vietnamese
Montagnard has occupied Central Vietnam and the
Highland Regions for a long time. The reason for not
finding traces of the first Malay groups in Central Vietnam
was that French archaeologists were busy exploring
Champa, and there was no significant excavation in
Central Vietnam. However, they had encountered traces of
the first Malay groups outside without expecting it.
That is the trace of Tam Toa. Tam Toa station
cannot be a vestige of the second groups because there are
only grinding stones and no farming tools, nor can it be a
vestige of two strains of Mêlanê and Négrito because those
two strains are too poor. The Négrito strain couldn't make
the grindstone, and the Mêlanê strain in Vietnam was not
progressing to the grinding stone age.
Only one group of people can be the author of Tam
Toa antiquities, that is the first groups of Malays. Dak Lak

58
musical instruments and Tam Toa grinding stone, though
being the only two poor traces, are enough to draw
pictures about the whole route of the first groups of
Malays.
The other first Malay groups such as the Ma, the
Stieng , and the K'Ho did not appear to have come from
Central Vietnam, but from Funan. According to Bourotte's
and our own study of the Ma: Cochinchina and Cambodia
were the lands of the first Malay groups (with handy axes),
but were also taken by the second groups of Malays to
establish Funan. The Funan had the language of the second
Malay groups; and had bronze drums. That is why the Ma,
the Stieng, the K'Ho, and the Pnong had to run to the
mountains and forests, but not immediately like Bahnar
and Sedang, only after the Funan empire disintegrated.
This is because the Funan were too sparse, and they need
someone to cooperate; therefore they did not drive out the
first groups.

59
60
V. DOMINICAN PRIEST NGUYEN HUY TRONG31

It's a large topic requiring many scientific subjects

and skilled experts.
First of all, the name K'Ho, or the Ko Ho ethnic
group, must be mentioned. The word jơi-nòi means
lineage, ethnic group.
The word Ko is an article or personal pronoun.

The word Ho refers to someone's name.

But according to the customs and traditions of the
K'Ho ethnic group, this is a nickname, not a family name.
This Ho word is synonymous with the word Ờ, which
means no. Many K'Ho villages now use the word Ho
instead of the word Ờ.
For example: Instead of saying : Ờ git (don't know),
they say ho git which also means don't know . Thus, K'Ho
is a title; or rather, the name of an ethnic group. There
were several ancient stories about this character. The
content of the story can be used to describe the name of
the K'Ho ethnic group.

31
O.P. NGUYEN HUY TRONG, Phaùc hoaï chaân dung daân toäc Kô Ho
qua nieàm tin cô baûn vaø phong tuïc taäp quaùn, Phöông Ñoâng, 2017, p.
18-23

61
 In Vietnamese language, there are many ways to talk
about an ethnic group or the K'Ho. For example, the
Montagnard ethnic group, the mountainous ethnic group,
the highland ethnic group, the Central Highlands ethnic
group, etc. But the K'Ho call themselves Kòn - cau, which
means human or child, or the Montagnards. When The
K'Ho say Kòn - cau he, it can be understood that: We the
Montagnards.
Where did the K'Ho come from to the Southern
Central Highlands?
Many French researchers in the past, even the Priest
Jacques Dournes, in the preface to the K'Ho - French
dictionary, clearly mentioned or alluded to them coming to
this region from a remote island in the Pacific Ocean.
Some people even state that the name of the island is
Indonesian archipelago or Indonesia. Some people even
think it is in the waters of the Philippines.
Personally, I think the word "Indonesian archipelago"
is the most reliable. An argument for an excuse: The
French missionary priests came to the Central Highlands
and the Southern Central Highlands to mission, when they
had to leave because of an accident, most of them went to
the Indonesian archipelago to resettle and work. I think
there must be some organic connection here, which I
haven't known yet. It is possible that there have been some
studies describing such issues, for example: In terms of

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language, skin, color, face, even some customs and habits.
However, the historical distance from the island to the
present is not mentioned in any documents. So I'll stop
here.
In contrast, the documents of the K'Ho ethnic group
that I have collected mentioning a lot of related events. For
example, in the ancient stories, all kinds of verses, epics,
even in many prayers to God nowadays, these events are
still interjected.
The main sentence often mentioned is:
Bônoà oør nau, Koøn-cau he : Once upon a time, we
are the Montagnards
Bôh boàt daø loâ : From the remote island
Bôh toâ daø-leàng : From the deep sea
Bôh keàng lik tôngai : From where sun rises
mô tus ndo : we came here
According to the Gô Plom Kòn Yồi epic, a K'Ho
mother (considered the first mother of the ethnic group)
called herself Me Bò Me Bla, which means White Mother,
Nga Mother.
Me Boø gôs ka : White Mother became fish

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 Me Bla gôs boh : Nga Mother became salt
To nourish the whole K'Ho from the early days.
At the end of this epic, this Mother's last words was
to tell her son to bury her body in her homeland. But he
couldn't, so this son returned to the border between Di
Linh and Phan Thiet to bury his mother, whose grave
faced the sea.
A common event taken place every 5 or 10 years is
that the elder of the main family, takes the chieftains of all
K'Ho villages on a picnic towards Phan Thiet, called: Lòt
mù, lòt dơng. There are many purposes for this, but the
main purpose is to remember their origin. The epic Gơ
Plom Kòn Yồi also describes that this journey is to find all
the feelings of the ethnic group.
Let's go back to the story: This indigenous ethnic
group has drifted from a remote island to this land
according to many theories.
- According to geological history, in the past, islands
were only separated by narrow and shallow seashores,
which could be waded through or used rafts.
- Maybe this ethnic group lived on a certain
“floating” island, gradually drifting closer to the mainland.

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 - According to K'Ho ancient stories, the K'Ho lived
in the back of a giant whale named Me-dòng (a precursor
of matriarchy). The back of this whale emerged on water
surface, its belly was close to the bottom of the sea. Just
like that, it crawled slowly (drift island).
- There were legends telling that the K'Ho were
under the leadership of a skilled, talented patriarch.
- When the whale crawled near the coast (around
from Vung Tau to Phan Thiet), the K'Ho went together to
the shore.
From here, they followed the forest path and went
up. After a few days and nights, they encountered an
incident (didn't mention clearly, just said: Geh jơnau,
means that something happened), so they split up into
small groups (ten people each) and continued their journey
in different directions (Western Highlands or Southern
Highlands). Again, this was based on legends and ancient
stories.
The K'Ho ethnic group now found their "cradle" to
reside, which could be the Dà Ryông-tô region (from Duc
Trong to the border of Dak Lak) nowadays (According to
the Gơ Plom Kòn Yồi Epic).
According to this document, some verses were found
that were closely related to this historical period:

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 Bônoà oør nau he Jreâ Buêp sôl : Once upon a
time, we were also Dai Da
Neh pôrlôê he wôl Jreâ Baøng : Turned us into
Trung Da
Neh sôrplaøng he wôl Jreâ Taøp : We struggled
and became Tieu Da
Me koøn baøp pôrlôê diê cau : Children of
mother and father became people's servants
The four short verses above were able to describe a
very long history of an ethnic group. At the same time, it
also suggested many different topics for researchers to
study. If we know how to link it to the following passage
of verses, it can also describe many other big problems.
Jreâ Buêp lôgar Koøn Paøng : Dai Da is the
homeland of the Ancestors
Jreâ Baøng lôgar Koøn Oh : Trung Da is the
land of my Juniors
Jreâ Poh Tôøm lôgar Koøn Heàn: Tieu Da is the
country of our Children

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 These were periods of time when the division of the
different K'Ho regions and districts took place.
These two passages of previous dynasty verse were
also responsible for different topics, and must be studied
separately. For example:
- Many legends and ancient stories has told about the
story of the Dai Da tree (JreâBuêp) until 2015. Please read
through the documents and extract the main ideas directly
related to the history of the K'Ho ethnic group from the
beginning.
- The story of separating into different K'Ho villages,
regions, and districts also arouses curiosity for researchers.
For example: there is a mechanical expansion of
population (lands are narrow, people are crowded). More
attention should be paid to the living conditions of the
K'Ho ethnic group, i.e. water and forests, with natural food
sources, requiring a fairly large area for each family, clan.
There have been cases where each family thought,
discussed, and then went to find a new land to live in, even
if they were close to each other.
- There were the migration, the population expansion
due to a certain incident. The problem became
complicated as there were many different situations, it was
very difficult to find the reasons and arrange them in a
reasonable order. I think many other indigenous ethnic

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groups, with their current residences, were all the same,
even if there were either recorded historical notes or
detailed maps.
Specific example: The Vietnamese, with 4000 years
of civilization, are scattered throughout an S-shaped
territory, excluding islands. That's something I learned by
heart in kindergarten, and still believe it. But when I
search through history, I read many authors saying that is
not the case. Specifically, Da Lat has just been celebrated
more than a hundred years that Doctor Yersin discovered
it. Saigon has also recently been celebrated more than 300
years of history. And there are many other similar lands. It
is called expanding the territory, exploring new lands.
Those with meritorious services are said to be the
meritorious official founding the nation. Of course, when
one person comes, the other must leave. The historical "the
Shame of Đồ Bàn" is well-recorded.
In Dinh Quan, there are a few villages of the K'Ho
ethnic group specializing in rice cultivation. In Di Linh,
many Montagnard villages are collectively known as
farmers. The distance from Di Linh to Dinh Quan is not
close to each other and not easy to travel. About a century
ago, it was clear that there was neither road or pathway.
Many people say that these villages of the K'Ho ethnic
group in Dinh Quan are the Ma emigrants; and they are
also the Ma, not the Sre. On the other hand, the ethnic
group in Di Linh said it were the K'Ho and the Sre who
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migrated from Di Linh. The evidence is that they also have
a lot of family exchanges, including marriage. Even until
2015, some K'Ho, Sre families in Krọt village in Ka La
still consider some of the K'Ho in Dinh Quan to be their
lineage.
As for me, it is reasonable to follow the handed-
down documents of verse, plus the legends that have been
circulated quite widely.
- It could possibly be a nomadic migration.
Depending on whether the elders and the notables find a
convenient and suitable land near or far away (Take from
one day to 5, 6 days to move).
- Migration because of accident, risk, disease or
something like that. Sometimes people have to leave very
far, because they can't stay close to the old village.
Sometimes they encounter troubles and scandals, and they
can't stand sneers.
- Similar incidents keep happening, so the migrations
are also constantly continuing. For thousands of years, the
K'Ho villages, regions, and districts have gradually been
fixed . Of course, due to the fact that they live far away
from each other and the different water sources, soil,
climate, etc., they have some differences with each other
such as voice, timbre, word usages, way of comparison,
etc. This also form different names and meanings to

69
distinguish something. For example: Cau Sre, Cau Mà, Mà
ale Sre alar, Cau Làc, Cau Cil, Cau Nồp, Cau Crồng, Cau
Nwàng, etc. But all of them identified themselves as the
K'Ho ethnic group.
- A strange thing is that, no matter what reasons
making people leave their place of residence, even if it is
because of the hatred for the old family, even the
supernatural forces devise thousands of schemes, etc. the
K'Ho people still love their homeland and nation. It means
that all the basic elements still exist, persist with time.
Even the structure of the house, decoration and
arrangement in each traditional family are still the same.
Not to mention the traditions and customs passed down
from generation to generation, the way of organizing
sacrifices to the gods, the rites of birth, marriage and
burial, etc. are still synchronized, unique everywhere,
anytime.
- This is the most special thing, the most remarkable
point that definitely must be respected and appreciated.
Moreover, it is also a very worthy example for all other
ethnic groups to follow and imitate in some way.
- One more thing that needs to be mentioned for
completeness is that the whole K'Ho ethnic group, each
and every person, throughout their history, all agree to
persevere in teaching and reminding both their children
and grandchildren to live with beliefs in Gods,

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and strictly observe all the customs and habits handed
down by their ancestors. In other words, the K'Ho ethnic
group has lived in harmony with the heaven and the earth,
in technical terms it is called "di tồr trồ, di tồr tiah".
Therefore, the Gods stay with the K'Ho to protect and take
care of them.

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72
CONCLUSION

According to the research results of the above

scholars in terms of archeology, language, customs,
traditions, and oral literature, the K'Ho belong to one of
two ethnic groups, namely Mon-Khmer or Malay-
Polynesia.
The Mon-Khmer group migrated from the Western
part of the Indochina Peninsula to the Souhthern Central
Highlands of Vietnam. They were the Indian that spilled
over, possibly in the direction of Cambodia to the
Vietnamese Highland Regions, or the descendants of
Funan and Chenla people migrated from the West.
The Malay-Polynesian group migrated by sea,
occupied the Central Vietnam, then were chased by the
Champa and had to flee to the mountains and dispersed
throughout the Highland Regions. However, there are also
opinions that they did not come from the Central Vietnam,
but from Funan. It is likely that they were the first groups
of Malays who migrated to the South of Vietnam, then
were later attacked by the second groups of Malays who
established the country of Funan and drove them to the
mountains.
Although there is no consensus among scholars about
the origin of the K'Ho in Di Linh in particular and that of
the Montagnards in the Highland Regions in general, their

73
discoveries have provided important indications that open
a the right direction to find out the true origin of the K'Ho
as well as all other ethnic groups in the beloved country of
Vietnam.

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