Definition

1. Noun (archaic):
   • The common people, the masses, the rabble: A collective term used in classical Vietnamese literature to refer to ordinary, uneducated, or ignorant people. It carries a somewhat pejorative or condescending tone, implying a lack of sophistication or knowledge.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Trong xã hội phong kiến, giai cấp thống trị thường coi thường ngu phụ. (In feudal society, the ruling class often looked down upon the common people.)
  • Câu chuyện ngụ ngôn đó nhằm giáo huấn ngu phụ. (That fable aims to educate the ignorant masses.)

Advanced Usage

• This term is almost exclusively found in historical or literary texts. Its usage in modern Vietnamese is extremely rare and would be considered archaic or deliberately stylistic to evoke a classical or historical context.
• It often appears in contexts discussing social hierarchy, governance, or moral instruction from a pre-modern perspective.

Variants and Related Words

• Ngu phu (archaic noun): A synonymous term, also meaning "the common/ignorant people." The terms ngu phu and ngu phụ are often used interchangeably in classical texts.
  • Bậc quân tử phải dẫn dắt ngu phu. (A gentleman must lead the common people.)

Synonyms

• Bách tính (noun): The hundred surnames; the common people (a more neutral, classical term).
• Thường dân (noun): Commoners, ordinary people (a neutral, modern term).
• Dân đen (noun): The common folk (colloquial, can be slightly pejorative).

Notes on Meaning

• The word ngu (愚) means "foolish" or "ignorant."
• The word phụ (夫/婦) in this compound can mean "man" or, in this archaic context, "person/people." The variant phu (夫) also means "man/person."
• Therefore, the term literally translates to "ignorant people." Its historical usage reflects a paternalistic or elitist view of society common in pre-modern Confucian-influenced discourse. It is not a polite term to describe people in contemporary language.

1. (từ cũ) Ngu phu ngu phụ
2. The common people, she rabble