Eunuchs in Vietnam: what’s missing?

Abstract

ABSTRACT In comparison with other historical courts of South East Asia, in which eunuchs had minimal presence, Vietnamese courts were outliers in the large numbers, in-country origins, administrative importance and long duration of their use of eunuchs, lasting into the early twentieth century. Given their importance in Vietnamese courts, it is remarkable that eunuchs have received little explicit attention. For scholars who are not specialists of Vietnam, it would be easy to overlook the important historical role eunuchs have played. Divided into four sections, this essay provides an overview of the literature on eunuchs in the Vietnamese court. The first section describes the importance of eunuchs within the palace, in national administration and in international relations. The second section discusses the sourcing of eunuchs, noting possible differences in the Vietnamese and Chinese patterns with regard to age, social status and hermaphrodism. The third section reviews the evidence of historical shifts over time. The final section suggests that the more deliberate inclusion of eunuchs presents additional avenues by which to better understand the political logics and dynamics of Vietnamese history.