Origin of the Word "lãnh sự"
From: Thach Nguyen
Date: Thu, Apr 2, 2009 at 12:22 PM
Dear list,
Could anyone in the list explain to me the origin of the word "lãnh sự" (consul, consulate, consular). I understand that "sự" means affairs, but why "lãnh"? The chinese dictionary explains that "lãnh" means "to lead", but this does not make it clearer. it seems that the meaning of "lãnh" as to lead explain the meaning of the word "lãnh đạo", "lãnh tụ" but not "lãnh sự". Anyone has explanation?
Many thanks
Thach Nguyen
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From: Daniel C. Tsang
Date: Thu, Apr 2, 2009 at 12:40 PM
It is another term from the Chinese original, where Lanh would mean lead, in charge etc.
dan
--
Daniel C. Tsang
Social Science Data Librarian
Bibliographer for Asian American Studies,
Economics, Political Science & Business (acting)
University of California, Irvine
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From: Sidel, Mark
Date: Thu, Apr 2, 2009 at 2:54 PM
To confirm, in Chinese (not knowing if the Chinese characters will come through) 领事 = lingshi = consul/consular, with ling (third tone) meaning lead.
Mark Sidel
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From: Thach Nguyen
Date: Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 8:49 AM
the question is that "leading" seems to have nothing to do with "consul". so why ling shi??
Thach
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From: George Dutton
Date: Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 9:11 AM
Hucker's _Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China_ gives linh-shih (領事）as "controller of affairs" though usually with reference to a particular type of affairs. Thus, if considered as one "in control of (diplomatic) affairs" this would make some sense. Perhaps the term might be a contraction, perhaps of something like 領 外國事 (lãnh ngoại quốc sự). Just an idea . . . .
George
________________________________
George Dutton
Chair, Southeast Asian Studies IDP
Associate Professor
UCLA Department of Asian Languages and Cultures
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From: Bradley Davis
Date: Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 10:13 AM
Dear Thach and list,
It seems that Lãnh/領 also has the (most likely much older) meaning of 'collar' or 'neck,' according to Matthews. This might explain how lãnh sự/領事 can be understood as Consulate, as the authority in charge of various affairs or as the office that houses the Consul (lãnh sứ/領使) or the person at the head of the consulate. Since it is not necesarily, in the classical sense, limited to use as a verb onIy, the lãnh in lãnh sự could just be a noun modified by sự, in keeping with Hán-Việt word order. George is probably right about this being an abbreviation or a relative neo-logism. Đỗ Văn Ninh's handy dictionary of titles can probably let you know of other usages of this term in Vietnamese history.
Incidentally, the term Consul originally comes into English from a Latin term that denoted one of the two chief magistrates for the Roman Republic.
Bradley Davis
Eastern Wasington University
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From: John Kleinen
Date: Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 12:20 PM
Without having a clue of the origin, I only know that nowadays a Consul-General (head of mission) in Vietnam is addressed as Tong Lanh su quan. A "normal' consul (who is lower in rank) is only responsible for the issuing of passports. Can it be that Lanh belongs to Tong? Sorry, my Thunderbird doesn't support diacritical marks.
John Kleinen
John Kleinen Ph.D
Associate Professor of Anthropology
University of Amsterdam
Department of Anthropology and Sociology
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From: Bradley Davis
Date: Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 1:02 PM
Hello John and list,
In this case, the tổng modifies the lãnh sứ, tổng lãnh sứ = 'Consul General.' In an administrative sense, the Tong Lanh Su would be in charge of the Lanh Su, but they both work at the Consulate, the lanh su/lãnh sự. I hope that answers the question.
Bradley Davis
EWU
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From: Sidel, Mark
Date: Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 3:19 PM
In Chinese, as many VSGers know, the equivalent term for the head of the Consulate, the Consul General, is "zong lingshi" = 总领事, who heads the Consulate = "lingshiguan" = 领事馆 (or, in the case of a larger consulate, "zong lingshiguan" = 总领事馆). Working under the Consul General are the Consuls = 领事.
Mark Sidel
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From: John Kleinen
Date: Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 11:31 PM
Marc et all,
Yes consuls in a CG work under a Consul-General if the country in question maintains such an office as is the case in Vietnam for the Dutch in Saigon (French; Americans also). The CG has its own budget (e.g. for cultural projects) and he/she is the second in command after the Ambassador. In other countries (e.g. Germany) we have an Embassy in Berlin and Consulates in e,g. Hamburg and Duesseldorf. The Consul at the CG is responsible for passport issuing and some assigned tasks. He is of course the second in command in such a setting.
Cheers,
John. Sidel
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From: Philip Taylor
Date: Sun, Apr 5, 2009
To go back to Thach's original question, 'why "lãnh"?', is it possibly a translation of 'Chargés' as in Chargés d’affaires?
Philip
Dr Philip Taylor
Department of Anthropology
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies
Australian National University
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From: NGUYEN THE ANH
Date: Mon, Apr 6, 2009 at 12:00 AM
One of the meanings of "la~nh" (or "li~nh", according to Northern pronunciation") is "to receive", "to accept", "to take charge of". So "lanh su" means "in charge of the affairs", which could be in fact translated as the typical term in French diplomatic language "chargé d'affaires".
Nguyen The Anh
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From: John Kleinen
Date: Mon, Apr 6, 2009 at 1:13 AM
In the Dutch system, the charge d'affaires existed parallel with the consul: the charge was appointed for diplomatic missions between states; the consul was appointed to serve the interests of the citizens who lived in the foreign country where the consul was located. After WWII the diplomatic and consular functions merged, but in China and in Vietnam we maintain CG's and in Germany we do not. It has probably to do with logistics and jurisdictions. In Saigon we had consuls before WWII (because in colonies one would never appoint a charge d'affires). In the 1950s and 1960s it became complicated: while in Saigon the functions merged, in Hanoi the Dutch appointed in 1973 a charge d'affaires to establish diplomatic relations with the DRV. I have to check the Nhan Dan article of that date to know how the charge d'affaires was called in Vietnamese.
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From: NGUYEN THE ANH
Date: Mon, Apr 6, 2009 at 1:44 AM
I just wanted to make it short in showing out the etymological meaning of the word "lanh su". Nowadays, a "lanh su" is the person in charge of consular affairs under the ambassador representing a country, whose seat is called "su' qua'n" or "da.i su' qua'n", and the term "lanh su" has come to designate a consul, whereas in the olden times a "chargé d'affaires" could be in charge both of diplomatic and consular affairs. So a consulate is called "Toà Lanh su", a general consulate "Toà Tông Lanh su", although the term "su qua'n" could be generally used to designate the seat of the representative abroad of a country.