After graduating in Computer Electronics Technology from the Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology in Ho Chi Minh City in 2014, Aya, a Ba Na girl, decided to return to her village and work at the Culture and Information Department of Dak Doa district (now the Culture, Information and Sports Center of Dak Doa commune).
In 2019, when assigned to translate and read the Ba Na language news bulletin for her unit, Ms. Aya began to delve deeper into her ethnic group's writing system. From there, she realized that her knowledge of the Ba Na language was quite limited and enrolled in a Ba Na language class at the Dak Doa District Continuing Education Center (before the merger). 
Ms. Aya delved deep into the writing system and pronunciation of the Ba Na ethnic group through dictionaries and documents. Photo: Ngoc Thu
Aya said, “Before going to school, I didn't think the Ba Na people had so many different groups. These groups have different languages, and without researching, it would be impossible to know them. I borrowed a paper-based Kinh-Ba Na dictionary to copy. It was quite thick, not widely available, and inconvenient to carry around, so I suddenly thought of creating a digital application that could use the dictionary on computers and phones, accessible anywhere, and usable by anyone.”
Without hesitation, in August 2024, Aya began writing the "Kinh - Ba Na Dictionary" application. Her knowledge of modern technologies, including programming languages, provided her with a foundation in digital technology . However, because technology has changed significantly since her studies, Aya had to learn new programming languages from many friends. Furthermore, writing applications requires a lot of time, and Aya could only work on them in her free time after finishing her work at the office and at home.
The "Kinh - Ba Na Dictionary" app, containing nearly 6,000 words written by Aya, includes pronunciation guides. Photo: Ngoc Thu
To complete this digital dictionary, Aya had to input raw data from the printed Kinh-Ba Na dictionary published in 1994 by the Gia Lai Department of Education and Training, with Siu Pet as the editor-in-chief. This dictionary is relatively comprehensive, containing over 3,000 common words for different Ba Na ethnic groups.
In addition to manually importing data from paper documents into the computer, Aya also had to add many new words, real-life examples, and write code to transfer the data to the application, totaling nearly 6,000 words.
In particular, Aya personally recorded the pronunciations for nearly 6,000 words and integrated them into the digital dictionary. Aya said: “Most words in the paper dictionary already have their pronunciations noted, but not everyone understands and pronounces them correctly. Therefore, I took advantage of digital technology to integrate the pronunciations into each word. Although it took a lot of time, I persevered because it is my favorite job.”
After a period of hard work, in August 2025, Aya completed this project. The application allows for quick lookup of Kinh and Ba Na languages, integrates pronunciation functionality, and operates stably on Android and iOS operating systems. Currently, Aya has provided a link for everyone to access and search quickly, conveniently, and completely free of charge. The application has received many positive reviews from readers.
The "Kinh - Ba Na Dictionary" app, containing nearly 6,000 words written by Aya, includes pronunciation guides. Photo: Ngoc Thu
Mr. Y Minh Son, a civil servant in Dak Doa commune, said: "I am very happy that a Kinh-Ba Na dictionary application has been created. This application not only helps me and the younger generation easily look up, learn, and use our ethnic language correctly, but also contributes to preserving the cultural identity of the Ba Na people in the digital age."
Khao, an 8th-grade student at Vo Thi Sau Secondary School in Dak Doa commune, shared: "Through the Kinh-Ba Na dictionary application, I can easily look up words I don't fully understand, pronounce them more accurately, and it's convenient for my studies at school."
Aya was honored with the title of "Outstanding Young Person Following Uncle Ho's Teachings" in Gia Lai province. Photo: Ngoc Thu
With her enthusiasm and efforts, in May 2025, Aya was honored to receive the title of "Advanced Youth Following Uncle Ho's Teachings" awarded by the Gia Lai Provincial Youth Union. Ms. Mai Thi Nhu Ngoc, Secretary of the Dak Doa Commune Youth Union, commented: "Aya is a very dynamic and enthusiastic young person who actively participates in youth union and team movements focused on community service. In particular, Aya is very dedicated to preserving the cultural beauty of the Ba Na people. In particular, creating a digital dictionary application for the Kinh-Ba Na language is very useful not only for the Ba Na people but also for officials and civil servants working in Ba Na ethnic minority areas, allowing them to easily access, learn, and communicate, thereby achieving better work efficiency."
Speaking about her aspirations, Aya expressed: "I hope that a government agency or organization will take over the project to develop this application more widely so that more people can access it. I am willing to hand over all the data I have collected so far, with the hope that the language of the Ba Na ethnic group will be preserved forever."
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/co-gai-ba-na-giu-van-hoa-dan-toc-bang-tu-dien-so-2466865.html
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