What is the meaning of the name Pha Din Pass?

There are many explanations for the meaning of the name Pha Din Pass; some people say that this name comes from Chinese, while others claim that it comes from Thai.

Pha Din is one of the " four great mountain passes " of Vietnam, along with Ma Pi Leng, Khau Pha and O Quy Ho. Although dangerous, the majesty and magnificence of Pha Din always fascinates adventurers.

What does Pha Din mean?

Currently, there are still many different explanations about the meaning of the name Pha Din Pass. Some say that the name Pha Din comes from the Black Thai ethnic language, originally "Pha Din". "Pha" means sky, "Din" means earth, implying that the pass covered with white clouds is the place where heaven and earth meet. Thai people living around the foot of the pass often call "Pha oi" (oh my god).

However, some researchers explain that the name “Pha Din” is of Chinese origin. “Pha” means a high, steep cliff…

Pha Din Pass. (Photo: VNA)

In the Petrotimes newspaper, scholar An Chi stated his opinion: Indeed, in Chinese there is a word read in Sino-Vietnamese as “pha”, which means hillside, mountainside, sloping land; there is also a word “pha” which means rocky mountainside. In the end, these are two words with the same origin (same origin) but both of these words are absolutely not related in terms of etymology to the word “pha” in the place name “Pha Din”. In the Northwest region, if it is a Sino-Vietnamese place name, it was created by the Kinh (Vietnamese) people, while “Pha Din” is a place name in the Thai language.

Scholar An Chi said that Thai people have a linguistic habit of using the word "pha" right before proper names to call steep cliffs such as: Pha Li, Pha To, Pha Dam, Pha Deng, Pha Ha, Pha Luong...

But if “Pha” is cliff here, then what is “Din”? “Din” is “soil”. “Din danh” is clay; “din dam” is black soil; “din ha” is alluvial soil; “din hua” is wasteland; “din xoi” is sandy soil… So “Pha Din” is “soil cliff”.

Pha Din is a cliff of red soil mountains, prone to collapse and landslides in the rainy season, not solid like other mountains in the region, which are limestone mountains. This is a geological feature of Pha Din Pass. It is surrounded by cliffs; it alone is a “soil cliff”.

Many people compare Pha Din Pass to a long rope connecting mountains and hillsides together. (Photo: VS).

What is beautiful about Pha Din Pass?

Pha Din Pass is located about 100km from Dien Bien Phu city, Dien Bien province. Located at an altitude of 1,000m above sea level, visitors coming here will be able to enjoy the winding roads before their eyes, with sharp turns and dangerous mountain ravines, but also many beautiful and poetic scenes.

Many people compare Pha Din Pass with a length of about 32m running like a rope connecting mountains and hillsides together, suspended between the surrounding land and sky.

Spring at Pha Din Pass. (Photo: kinhtemoitruong).

In summer, the weather in Pha Din Pass is quite cool and pleasant with the mist still lingering after a long night. In winter, the temperature drops low enough to make people feel the typical cold feeling in the high mountains. Looking down from above, the mist looks like a wonderful work of nature. In the far valley below are peaceful villages, stilt houses and green rice and corn fields.

Spring comes, when the flowers of the Northwest forests compete to show off their bright colors. The white of apricot and plum blossoms, the pink of peach blossoms and the faded pink of bauhinia flowers paint a poetic picture across the mountain slopes.

According to VTC

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/ten-goi-deo-pha-din-co-y-nghia-gi-a466700.html