Compared to the characters that had been in use for centuries, Quoc Ngu is far easier to learn. - Photo: Nhac Nguyen
HANOI: At a calligraphy class in Hanoi, Hoang Thi Thanh Huyen slides her brush across the page to form the letters and tonal marks of Vietnam's unique modern script, in part a legacy of French colonial rule.
The history of romanised Vietnamese, or "Quoc Ngu", links the arrival of the first Christian missionaries, colonisation by the French and the rise to power of the Communist Party.
