tỉnh

See also: tinh, tính, tình, tĩnh, and tịnh

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

t.

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [tïŋ˧˩]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [tɨn˧˨]
(Saigon) IPA^(key): [tɨn˨˩˦]

Etymology 1

Sino-Vietnamese word from 省, from Literary Chinese 省 (“government department; province”). The same classical Chinese word still keeps its original meaning in North Korean 성 (seong) and Japanese 省 (“ministry”). China and South Korea now use 部 (bộ, “ministry”). Japanese prefectures are natively called 県 (ken), which is a cognate to huyện (“suburban district”).

A more regular SV reflex of 省 (MC srjaengX) "province" should be **sảnh; this attested reflex likely arose from confusion with 省 (MC sjengX) "to inspect; to understand; to greet; to visit".

Noun

tỉnh

one of the highest administrative divisions in Vietnam, translates to English province, opposed to a ung ương; itself is divided into its tỉnh lị/thành phố trực thuộc tỉnh (“provincial capital”) and huyện (“provincial district”)
tỉnh lẻ ― provinces, as places that are not as developed as thành phố trực thuộc trung ương and therefore more humbling

dân tỉnh lẻ ― "small town" folks

tỉnh Vĩnh Phúc ― Vĩnh Phúc Province

lệnh của tỉnh đưa về xã ― a decree handed down to the commune from the province

Họ Hồ có nguồn gốc từ làng Quỳnh Đôi, xã Quỳnh Đôi, huyện Quỳnh Đôi, tỉnh Nghệ An.
The Hồ clan hails from Quỳnh Đôi village, Quỳnh Đôi commune, Quỳnh Đôi district, Nghệ An province.
an administrative division that translates to English province in other countries
tỉnh Hồ Bắc ― Hubei Province
an administrative division that translates to English prefecture, for example in French or Japanese territories
tỉnh Gifu ― Gifu Prefecture
(metonymically) provincial capital
lên tỉnh mua hàng ― going into town to buy goods

Usage notes

Tỉnh is the usual term for "province", especially for provinces within a unitary state. Tỉnh bang is used to refer to the confederated provinces of Canada.

Synonyms

(province): tỉnh bang
(provincial capital): tỉnh lỵ, tỉnh lị

Derived terms

Related terms

bang; huyện; quận; tiểu bang

Etymology 2

Sino-Vietnamese word from 醒 (“to awake”).

Verb

tỉnh

(intransitive) to be alert, to be conscious
Sốt nhiều nhưng vẫn tỉnh.
Running a high fever but still alert.

tỉnh lại ― to regain consciousness, to regain mental clarity, to come to one's senses
(intransitive) to awaken
- 1820, Nguyễn Du, Truyện Kiều [The Tale of Kiều]:
  Tỉnh ra mới biết là mình chiêm bao
  It was when I woke up did I know I had been dreaming
(intransitive) to sober up
to remain unconcerned or unfazed
tỉnh như sáo ― to be completely unfazed

Synonyms

(to be alert): sáng suốt
(to awaken): thức dậy, ngủ dậy
(to sober up): tỉnh rượu

Derived terms

tỉnh táo (“to be alert”) (reduplication)
tỉnh rượu (“to sober up”)

References

"tỉnh" in Hồ Ngọc Đức, Free Vietnamese Dictionary Project (details)