Definition

1. Noun (Archaic):
   • Country neighbour: Refers to a neighbour from the same village or rural locality. This term evokes the traditional, close-knit community bonds in old Vietnamese villages.
   • The neighbourhood / the vicinity: Denotes the collective group of neighbours or the surrounding area of a village.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Tiếng thơm của cụ đồ đã lan tới hương lân. (The scholar's good reputation had spread to the country neighbours.)
  • Nhà ấy sống rất có tình có nghĩa với hương lân. (That family lives with great kindness and obligation towards their neighbourhood.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "hương lân" is primarily used in literary, historical, or poetic contexts to describe traditional rural social relations. It is not common in modern everyday speech.

Variants and Related Words

• Láng giềng (n): Neighbour. This is the modern, commonly used equivalent.
  • Chúng tôi sống hòa thuận với láng giềng. (We live harmoniously with our neighbours.)
• Xóm làng (n): Hamlet and village; the local community.
  • Tình nghĩa xóm làng rất đáng quý. (The sentiment of the village community is very precious.)

Synonyms

• Neighbours: People living near one another.
• Vicinity: The area near or surrounding a particular place.
• Community: A group of people living in the same place.

Related Idioms

• Tình làng nghĩa xóm / Tình làng nghĩa nước: Village sentiment and national duty; refers to the deep bonds within a community and one's duty to the country.
  • Câu chuyện ấy là một bài ca đẹp về tình làng nghĩa xóm. (That story is a beautiful ballad about community solidarity.)

1. (từ cũ; nghĩa cũ) Country neighbour