Phạm

Phạm (范) is the fourth most common Vietnamese family name. It may be rendered as Fàn in Chinese or Beom/Pom/Pem (범) in Korean.

Phạm

Pronunciation	International Phonetic Alphabet Hanoi: [faːm˧˨ʔ] Saigon: [faːm˨˩˨]
Language(s)	Vietnamese
Other names
Variant form(s)	Fan, Huan, Fam, Hwang, Fung (from Chinese), Beom/Pŏm/Pem (Korean)

It is not to be confused with Phan (潘), another Vietnamese surname.

Origin

Phạm is the Sino-Vietnamese reading of the Chữ Hán: 范.

According to traditional sources, the character Phạm in ancient Sanskrit means "Pha" or "Pho," signifying "leader." When translated into Chinese (Han language), it became the character "Phạm" of the Phạm surname.

Phạm arose in historical sources from around the third century CE. It was the title prepositions before names of kings of Lâm Ấp, kings of Funan, the eight chiefs of Jiao, and several tribal figures along the Annamite Mountain between the third to the seventh century CE. American historian Michael Vickery (1998) links the reconstructs the pronunciation of 范 as *buam and *bĭwɐm in Early Middle Chinese (c. 650 CE) with Old Khmer title poñ which was recorded in various 7th-century Cambodian inscriptions.^[1] Later, a Phạm family emerged on the coastal side of the Red River basin in the 10th century. Vickery argues that the term was certainly of Mon-Khmer (Austroasiatic) origin, and the described demographics associated with the term (*bĭwɐm < *krum ~ prum, krom, khom) are strong linguistic indications of Mon-Khmer.^[2] The term is still preserved in few Austroasiatic languages today, such as Temoq *puang (ritualist) ~ puiyang (shaman, + nominalizing infix -iy-) < pauñ < poñ, suggesting a pre-Buddhist native Mon-Khmer institution of leadership who possessed both shamanistic ritual and political roles.^[3]

Frequency

Phạm is a very prevalent last name in Vietnam. Among the global ethnic Vietnamese population, it is the fourth-most common name, accounting for 5% of the approximately 75 million people. It is also quite common in the United States, shared by around 82,000 citizens.^[4] It is the 951st most common surname in France^[5] and the 455th most common in Australia.^[6][7]

Phạm (范) family Vietnamese Five Colours Flag

Historical figures

Champa Kingdom

The surname Phạm was prominently associated with the rulers of the ancient Champa kingdom (formerly Lâm Ấp):

• Phạm Hùng (Champa) - King of the first dynasty (192-336) of Lâm Ấp, reigning from 270-282. He was defeated by general Đào Hoàng of the Western Jin dynasty.
• Phạm Duật (Champa) - Son of Phạm Hùng, reigned from 283-336.
• Phạm Văn - Chancellor of Lâm Ấp who ascended the throne after Phạm Dật's death, founding the second dynasty (336-420), reigning from 336-349.
• Phạm Phạn Chi - Reigned from 577-629. In 605, he was defeated by general Lưu Phương of the Sui dynasty, forcing him to retreat to the mountainous forests of Trà Kiệu (present-day Quảng Nam). The end of his reign marked the emergence of the Champa state.

Vietnamese Dynasties

Trần Dynasty

• Phạm Ngũ Lão (1255-1320) - Famous general under Trần Hưng Đạo, instrumental in repelling Mongol invasions.
• Phạm Sư Mạnh - Scholar of the Trần Dynasty, distinguished student of Chu Văn An, renowned alongside Lê Quát.
• Phạm Hữu Thế (Yết Kiêu) - General during the Trần period who helped defeat the Mongol armies.

Later Lê Dynasty

• Phạm Thị Ngọc Trần - Empress Consort, wife of Emperor Lê Thái Tổ and mother of Emperor Lê Thái Tông.
• Phạm Đôn Lễ - Also known as Trạng Chiếu, achieved the highest academic honor (Trạng nguyên) in the examination of 1481 during the reign of Lê Thánh Tông.
• Phạm Đình Hổ - Writer and poet of the Later Lê period.

Nguyễn Dynasty

• Phạm Phú Thứ - High-ranking mandarin of the Nguyễn dynasty.
• Phạm Thế Hiển - Distinguished minister during the reign of Minh Mạng.
• Phạm Thị Hằng (Thái hậu Từ Dụ) - Empress Dowager of the Nguyễn dynasty.

People

Notable people with the surname Phạm include:

Politics and military

• Phạm Công Trứ (1600–1675), Lê dynasty Vietnamese scholar-official and historian
• Phạm Ngũ Lão (1255–1320), general of the Trần Dynasty
• Phạm Văn Đồng (1906–2000), Prime Minister of North Vietnam (1955-1976) and Vietnam (1976-1987)
• Phạm Hùng (1912–1988), Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of Vietnam
• Phạm Minh Chính (born 1958), current Prime Minister of Vietnam (2021-present)
• Hung Pham (born 1963), Vietnamese Canadian politician
• Phạm Ngọc Thảo (1922–1965), Vietnamese communist sleeper agent of the Việt Minh
• Phạm Phú Quốc (1935–1965), Vietnamese fighter pilot and lieutenant in the South Vietnam Air Force
• Phạm Văn Phú (1928–1975), Vietnamese officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
• Phạm Quang Khiêm (born 1946), Vietnamese first lieutenant and co-pilot in the South Vietnam Air Force
• Phạm Thanh Ngân (born 1939), Vietnamese flying ace
• Phạm Gia Khiêm (born 1949), Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam
• Khanh Pham (born 1978), American politician and activist
• J. Peter Pham (fl. 2000s–2020s), American diplomat

Science and academia

• Phạm Tuân (born 1947), Vietnamese pilot and cosmonaut, first Asian in space
• Frédéric Pham (born 1938), Vietnamese-French mathematician
• Kathy Pham, Vietnamese American computer scientist
• Phạm Song (1927-2002), Minister of Health of Vietnam, academician and professor
• Phạm Ngọc Thạch (1909-1968), physician and former Minister of Health of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam

Arts and entertainment

• Phạm Duy (1921–2013), Vietnamese composer and songwriter
• Linh Dan Pham (born 1974), Vietnamese-born French actress
• Hoa Pham, Australian author
• Phi Nhung (1970–2021), Vietnamese-American singer, actress and humanitarian
• Quang X. Pham (born 1964), Vietnamese-American businessman and veteran
• Andrew X. Pham, Vietnamese-born American author
• Thái Thanh (1934–2020), Vietnamese-American singer
• Pham Thi Hoai (born 1960), Vietnamese writer, editor and translator
• Phạm Xuân Ẩn (1927–2006), Vietnamese journalist and communist spy
• Phạm Xuân Nguyên (born 1958), Vietnamese writer and literary translator
• Phạm Hương (born 1991), Vietnamese model and beauty pageant titleholder
• Đan Trường (born Phạm Đan Trường, 1976), Vietnamese singer and actor
• Thanh Hằng (born Phạm Thị Thanh Hằng, 1983), Vietnamese actress and beauty pageant titleholder
• Hanni Pham (born Phạm Ngọc Hân, 2004), Australian Vietnamese singer, member of girl group NewJeans
• Phạm Đoan Trang (born 1978), Vietnamese author and democracy activist
• Phạm Quỳnh Anh (born 1984), Vietnamese singer
• Hương Tràm (born Phạm Thị Hương Tràm, 1995), Vietnamese singer

Business

• Phạm Nhật Vượng (born 1968), Vietnamese businessman, Vietnam's first billionaire and founder/chairman of Vingroup

Beauty pageants

• Jennifer Phạm (born Phạm Vũ Phượng Hoàng, 1985), Miss Asia USA 2006
• Phạm Thị Mai Phương (born 1985), Miss Vietnam 2002
• Phạm Thị Hương (born 1991), Miss Universe Vietnam 2015
• Phạm Thu Hằng (born 1988), Miss Hanoi 2005, represented Vietnam at Miss Universe 2005
• Phạm Ngọc Phương Anh (born 1999), Miss Vietnam 2020 first runner-up

Sports

• Thierry Pham (born 1962), French retired tennis player
• Phạm Thành Lương (born 1988), Vietnamese football manager
• Phạm Đức Huy (born 1995), Vietnamese footballer
• Phạm Xuân Mạnh (born 1996), Vietnamese professional footballer
• Phạm Tuấn Hải (born 1998), Vietnamese professional footballer
• Phạm Như Phương (born 2003), Vietnamese artistic gymnast
• ana (gamer) (born Anathan Pham, 1999), Australian professional Dota 2 player
• Tommy Pham (born 1988), American professional baseball player

Religious figures

• Phạm Công Tắc (1890–1959), leader in the establishment and development of the Caodaism religion
• Phạm Minh Mẫn (born 1934), Vietnamese cardinal
• Thích Tuệ Sỹ (born Phạm Văn Thương, 1943), Vietnamese Buddhist scholar and monk
• Phaolô Giuse Phạm Đình Tụng (1919-2009), Vietnamese cardinal, former Archbishop of Hanoi
• Giuse Phạm Văn Thiên (1918-2011), Vietnamese bishop

Fictional characters

• Pham Tai, protagonist of the 18th century epic poem, Phạm Tải – Ngọc Hoa
• Pham Thi La, a character in the Muv-Luv spin-off series Schwarzesmarken

Chinese bearers

The surname is also found among ethnic Chinese populations, including:

• Phạm Lãi (Fan Li), strategist who helped King Goujian of Yue restore his kingdom and defeat the state of Wu
• Phạm Thư (Fan Sui), strategist during the Warring States period who served the state of Qin
• Phạm Trọng Yêm (Fan Zhongyan), minister and reformer during the Song dynasty
• Phạm Băng Băng (Fan Bingbing), Chinese actress
• Phạm Văn Phương (Fan Wenfang), Singaporean singer and actress

See also

• Fàn (surname)
• Vietnamese name