Hùng king

King Hùng (Chinese: 雄王; Vietnamese: Hùng Vương (雄王) or vua Hùng (𤤰雄); both Vương and vua mean "king") is the title given in many modern discussions to the ancient Vietnamese rulers of the Hồng Bàng period.

It is likely that the name Hùng Vương is a combination of the two Sino-Vietnamese words Hùng, which means "brave" and Vương, which means "king". The name Hùng Vương might have originally been a title bestowed on a chieftain. The Hùng Vương would have been the head chieftain of Văn Lang/ Âu Lac which at the time was composed of feudal communities of rice farmers (similar to the way the Holy Roman Emperor was elected to rule by fellow German princes).

In antiquity this title began to be used for the ruler who was the religious and political leader of united ancient Vietnam. They were kings of Văn Lang.

The first Hùng king, Kinh Dương Vương, came to power in 2879 BC, ruling an area covering what is now North Vietnam and part of southern China. He founded the Hồng Bàng Dynasty, whose members ruled Vietnam until 258 BC. So much of the vestiges from this time is now lost to the ages. The second dynasty of Hùng kings was founded by Lạc Long Quân, son of Kinh Dương Vương.

The descendants took the title of Hùng Vương after the first king, and many Vietnamese folktales include mention them. Stories tell of the heroics of eighteen different dynasties of Hùng Vươngs (one explains the introduction of the watermelon with the help of Hùng Vương X) but fail to account for the numerous unknown rulers of Vietnam during their two and a half millennia of sovereignty.

The Hồng Bàng Dynasty was overthrown by An Dương Vương, but his regime fell first to Triệu Đà (pinyin: Zhao Tuo) and later to the Han Dynasty.

The Vietnamese government in 2007 announced that there was a new public holiday in Vietnam called the Hùng Kings' Festival at the Hùng Temple. It celebrates the Hùng kings on the 10th day of the third lunar month. However King Hùng Vương is not universally known among the younger generation.