thedrifter
01-03-04, 07:27 AM
Nam’s Jargon Headed for History
by Paul J. Constantino
‘You had to have been there . . .’
During the past decade, most of the Vietnam-era veterans in the U.S. Army have retired. I can no longer say to a soldier, “Do you remember back when . . .” because chances are the soldier was born after the war. It was his father or uncle who served in Southeast Asia. The Vietnam veteran is becoming a retiree. It seems uncool or unhip to recollect anything prior to (insert year). Nevertheless, I recently asked some Army officers/noncommissioned officers (NCOs) whether they knew what a donut dollie was, what “REMF” meant, or what going home through Hamilton referred to. I received blank stares from the soldiers, and I felt apologetic for asking. Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be . I also felt a sense of diminishment in that some very colorful military language and expressions were unfamiliar to today’s soldiers. I decided, therefore, to share with you some of the Vietnam War (or “American War” as the Vietnamese now call it)-era military acronyms and jargon from down memory lane. These oldies are going, going, and may only be remembered by those of us who served over “there,” or in “Nam.” Marine Vietnam veterans will also recognize most of these expressions as well.
AK–47—Also called an AK; standard infantry weapon used by Viet Cong/North Vietnamese (VC/NVA) soldiers; a 7.62mm assault rifle originally produced by Kalashnikov Company in the Soviet Union; made a signature sound and fired green tracers.
APC—An armored personnel carrier.
ARVN—Army of the Republic of Vietnam; the former South Vietnamese Army.
Agent Orange—A toxic chemical herbicide used (abused) on a wide scale and designed to defoliate vegetation/jungle and to deprive VC/NVA soldiers of natural cover.
Amerasians—Name for children born of union between Vietnamese women and American servicemen during the war.
Ao Dai—Attractive long dress worn by Vietnamese women.
Arc Light—Saturation or blanket bombing by B–52s (carrying up to 58,000 pounds of conventional bombs) and when done at night, a burst of light stretched across the horizon . . . like an arc light.
Arty—Artillery.
Beaucoup—Pronounced “boo coo” by the Vietnamese. A French word and one of the most common Vietnamese expressions. It means many.
Beehive—Rounds (shells) filled with small metal flechettes (darts) that were deadly direct fire antipersonnel weapons. (One of the most devastating weapons used by Marines, the 106mm recoilless rifle, fired these rounds.)
Berm—Fortification; a sandbagged or earthen wall/parapet to protect soldiers, buildings, artillery pieces.
Bird—A helicopter that was also called a slick or chopper; some 4,869 helicopters were lost in the Vietnam War, which many called a helicopter war. A “birddog” was a small, fixed-wing observation aircraft.
Body Count—Casualty count. With few frontlines or territorial objectives, the numbers of enemy killed became one measure of U.S. military success; e.g., the famous quote, “We had to destroy the town to save it.”
Boonies—Out in the field; jungle or countryside of South Vietnam, also called “Indian Country.”
Boot—Slang for a newly arrived soldier; a soldier just out of boot camp; untested soldier, also called a “cherry,” “newbie,” or “greenie.”
Bouncing Betty—A landmine designed to spring an explosive 60mm mortar round upward to waist level before detonation.
Boxie—Pronounced “bac-si.” Vietnamese word for doctor; U.S. military physicians were also commonly called by this term.
Bro—A comrade, friend; a soul brother or black soldier.
Bronco—A twin-engine OV–10 propeller aircraft equipped with minigun(s)/rockets and used by aerial observers (AOs) who were called “Red Barons.”
Brown Bar—A second lieutenant, aka “Butterbar.”
Bug Juice—Mosquito repellent.
Bush—In the field or in a nonpermanent military position; in the soldier’s language, “In the grass up to your ass.”
C–4—Plastic explosive; although intended for detonating, it was known to heat C-rats.
C-Rats or Chow (Also known as Cs)—Standard U.S. Government field meal inside a cardboard container that contained cans of rations (C-rats) and, yes, packets of coffee and cigarettes. There were some colorful—unprintable—expressions describing them.
CAP—Civil Action Program, whereby individual units/soldiers helped the South Vietnamese build/rebuild public facilities, such as roads, schools, orphanages, medical clinics. There also was a MedCAP (Medical Civil Action Program) that provided South Vietnamese villagers with U.S. medical care.
Cammies—Camouflaged jungle fatigues, also called cammo.
Charlie—The nickname for the VC; a Vietnamese Communist and enemy soldier; a follower of the National Liberation Front.
Chieu Hoi—Means “open arms” in Vietnamese and referred to the leaflet and rehabilitation program encouraging enemy soldiers to surrender/defect to the South.
Chop Chop—Chinese for fast or to hurry up; not to be confused with a “chopper,” which is a helicopter.
Co—Vietnamese for a girl or unmarried woman.
Cobra—Name for a snake, but also for a heavily armed attack helicopter.
Concertina Wire—Rolls of barbed wire rolled out and stretched along your perimeter to prevent/slow a ground attack by VC/NVA soldiers.
Connex—Large corrugated metal container used for shipping or storage that sometimes was sandbagged at fire bases to act as a bunker.
Counterpart—A South Vietnamese soldier of equal rank with whom you might train or work.
Cowboy—A gambler and mistrusted individual; one who viewed the war as a passport for valor and was more interested in self-aggrandizement (medals) than the welfare of the troops.
Cyclo—Name for pedicab or bicycle rickshaw.
DEROS—The sweetest word in Vietnam; referred to date of expected return from overseas service or when a soldier’s tour of duty was over. Not to be confused with ETS which referred to your estimated time of separation from military service.
DMZ—A demilitarized zone, as a result of the Geneva Accords of 1954, was established. It divided North and South Vietnam along the 17th parallel and, in the words of the soldiers, “There ain’t any ‘D’ in DMZ.”
Di Di Mau—Vietnamese expression for hurry up or fast, or “Let’s get out of here.”
Dear John Letter—A letter that you hoped you would never receive; namely, one from your sweetheart back home saying goodbye and that she was going with someone else.
Dinky-Dao—Vietnamese expression for “crazy.”
Donut Dollie—An affectionate expression for Red Cross or USO (United Service Organization) ladies who always had a friendly smile and fresh snacks for the soldiers.
Draft—A five letter word that is not an acronym. In the 1960s it was one of the most terrifying of words, but also a real motivator for many Americans to attend college and graduate school(s), and/or live abroad. During the Vietnam War approximately 1.8 million men were drafted into the U.S. Army. (And for a brief period draftees were also Marines. As they stood in line in the induction center, a Marine recruiter would walk down the line pointing to those “lucky” men who would go to Marine boot camp.)
Dustoff—Medical evacuation of wounded soldiers by helicopter.
E-Tool—Standard military issue entrenching tool; a small shovel.
FIGMO—Expression meaning, “Fu__ it, got my orders.”
Firebase—or FB—A temporary artillery base set up in hostile territory that supported the infantry operating in the AO.
Flak Jacket—Heavy but necessary fiber-filled vest worn for protection from shrapnel wounds or low-velocity bullets, but when flying in helicopters, you sat on it.
Flechette—Antipersonnel rounds containing darts and usually fired from an M79 grenade launcher or field artillery; deadly effective against a direct attack by enemy soldiers.
FNG—”Fu_____ new guy,” or new boot in the unit. Because the tour of duty was for 1 year (13 months for Marines), there was a constant departure of experienced soldiers and arrival of new recruits.
Frag—A fragmentation hand grenade.
Fragging—Assault on a fellow soldier/officer with a grenade.
Freak—A soldier who uses marijuana or narcotics.
Free Fire Zones—Areas with no restrictions on firing. Areas designated by the South Vietnamese military as being under enemy control that permitted indiscriminate use of artillery and airpower (i.e., Con Thien, DMZ, A Shau Valley, along the Laotian border, etc).
Freedom Bird—Name given to the contract commercial jet airliner that brings in new soldiers and winged back to the world with soldiers who completed their tours.
Friendlies—People who supported the South Vietnamese Government.
Friendly Fire—Air, artillery, or small arms fire mistakenly directed at U.S. or friendly forces.
FSB—Fire support base.
FUBAR—Derogatory expression meaning that something was “fu____ up beyond all recognition” that this soldier learned from Saving Private Ryan was actually a World War II expression.
Gaggle—A group of helicopters flying on a mission; the troops within were sometimes called “sky soldiers.”
Gook—A Korean word for “person,” but a derogatory word for enemy soldiers; used by American soldiers in Korea and Vietnam.
Grunt—An infantryman. In World War II soldiers were called GIs (government issue) or dog faces, but in Vietnam a soldier was a “grunt;” some called themselves “boonie rats” or “legs.”
Gung Ho—An enthusiastic soldier, from the Chinese word “kung ho” or “work together.”
continued......
by Paul J. Constantino
‘You had to have been there . . .’
During the past decade, most of the Vietnam-era veterans in the U.S. Army have retired. I can no longer say to a soldier, “Do you remember back when . . .” because chances are the soldier was born after the war. It was his father or uncle who served in Southeast Asia. The Vietnam veteran is becoming a retiree. It seems uncool or unhip to recollect anything prior to (insert year). Nevertheless, I recently asked some Army officers/noncommissioned officers (NCOs) whether they knew what a donut dollie was, what “REMF” meant, or what going home through Hamilton referred to. I received blank stares from the soldiers, and I felt apologetic for asking. Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be . I also felt a sense of diminishment in that some very colorful military language and expressions were unfamiliar to today’s soldiers. I decided, therefore, to share with you some of the Vietnam War (or “American War” as the Vietnamese now call it)-era military acronyms and jargon from down memory lane. These oldies are going, going, and may only be remembered by those of us who served over “there,” or in “Nam.” Marine Vietnam veterans will also recognize most of these expressions as well.
AK–47—Also called an AK; standard infantry weapon used by Viet Cong/North Vietnamese (VC/NVA) soldiers; a 7.62mm assault rifle originally produced by Kalashnikov Company in the Soviet Union; made a signature sound and fired green tracers.
APC—An armored personnel carrier.
ARVN—Army of the Republic of Vietnam; the former South Vietnamese Army.
Agent Orange—A toxic chemical herbicide used (abused) on a wide scale and designed to defoliate vegetation/jungle and to deprive VC/NVA soldiers of natural cover.
Amerasians—Name for children born of union between Vietnamese women and American servicemen during the war.
Ao Dai—Attractive long dress worn by Vietnamese women.
Arc Light—Saturation or blanket bombing by B–52s (carrying up to 58,000 pounds of conventional bombs) and when done at night, a burst of light stretched across the horizon . . . like an arc light.
Arty—Artillery.
Beaucoup—Pronounced “boo coo” by the Vietnamese. A French word and one of the most common Vietnamese expressions. It means many.
Beehive—Rounds (shells) filled with small metal flechettes (darts) that were deadly direct fire antipersonnel weapons. (One of the most devastating weapons used by Marines, the 106mm recoilless rifle, fired these rounds.)
Berm—Fortification; a sandbagged or earthen wall/parapet to protect soldiers, buildings, artillery pieces.
Bird—A helicopter that was also called a slick or chopper; some 4,869 helicopters were lost in the Vietnam War, which many called a helicopter war. A “birddog” was a small, fixed-wing observation aircraft.
Body Count—Casualty count. With few frontlines or territorial objectives, the numbers of enemy killed became one measure of U.S. military success; e.g., the famous quote, “We had to destroy the town to save it.”
Boonies—Out in the field; jungle or countryside of South Vietnam, also called “Indian Country.”
Boot—Slang for a newly arrived soldier; a soldier just out of boot camp; untested soldier, also called a “cherry,” “newbie,” or “greenie.”
Bouncing Betty—A landmine designed to spring an explosive 60mm mortar round upward to waist level before detonation.
Boxie—Pronounced “bac-si.” Vietnamese word for doctor; U.S. military physicians were also commonly called by this term.
Bro—A comrade, friend; a soul brother or black soldier.
Bronco—A twin-engine OV–10 propeller aircraft equipped with minigun(s)/rockets and used by aerial observers (AOs) who were called “Red Barons.”
Brown Bar—A second lieutenant, aka “Butterbar.”
Bug Juice—Mosquito repellent.
Bush—In the field or in a nonpermanent military position; in the soldier’s language, “In the grass up to your ass.”
C–4—Plastic explosive; although intended for detonating, it was known to heat C-rats.
C-Rats or Chow (Also known as Cs)—Standard U.S. Government field meal inside a cardboard container that contained cans of rations (C-rats) and, yes, packets of coffee and cigarettes. There were some colorful—unprintable—expressions describing them.
CAP—Civil Action Program, whereby individual units/soldiers helped the South Vietnamese build/rebuild public facilities, such as roads, schools, orphanages, medical clinics. There also was a MedCAP (Medical Civil Action Program) that provided South Vietnamese villagers with U.S. medical care.
Cammies—Camouflaged jungle fatigues, also called cammo.
Charlie—The nickname for the VC; a Vietnamese Communist and enemy soldier; a follower of the National Liberation Front.
Chieu Hoi—Means “open arms” in Vietnamese and referred to the leaflet and rehabilitation program encouraging enemy soldiers to surrender/defect to the South.
Chop Chop—Chinese for fast or to hurry up; not to be confused with a “chopper,” which is a helicopter.
Co—Vietnamese for a girl or unmarried woman.
Cobra—Name for a snake, but also for a heavily armed attack helicopter.
Concertina Wire—Rolls of barbed wire rolled out and stretched along your perimeter to prevent/slow a ground attack by VC/NVA soldiers.
Connex—Large corrugated metal container used for shipping or storage that sometimes was sandbagged at fire bases to act as a bunker.
Counterpart—A South Vietnamese soldier of equal rank with whom you might train or work.
Cowboy—A gambler and mistrusted individual; one who viewed the war as a passport for valor and was more interested in self-aggrandizement (medals) than the welfare of the troops.
Cyclo—Name for pedicab or bicycle rickshaw.
DEROS—The sweetest word in Vietnam; referred to date of expected return from overseas service or when a soldier’s tour of duty was over. Not to be confused with ETS which referred to your estimated time of separation from military service.
DMZ—A demilitarized zone, as a result of the Geneva Accords of 1954, was established. It divided North and South Vietnam along the 17th parallel and, in the words of the soldiers, “There ain’t any ‘D’ in DMZ.”
Di Di Mau—Vietnamese expression for hurry up or fast, or “Let’s get out of here.”
Dear John Letter—A letter that you hoped you would never receive; namely, one from your sweetheart back home saying goodbye and that she was going with someone else.
Dinky-Dao—Vietnamese expression for “crazy.”
Donut Dollie—An affectionate expression for Red Cross or USO (United Service Organization) ladies who always had a friendly smile and fresh snacks for the soldiers.
Draft—A five letter word that is not an acronym. In the 1960s it was one of the most terrifying of words, but also a real motivator for many Americans to attend college and graduate school(s), and/or live abroad. During the Vietnam War approximately 1.8 million men were drafted into the U.S. Army. (And for a brief period draftees were also Marines. As they stood in line in the induction center, a Marine recruiter would walk down the line pointing to those “lucky” men who would go to Marine boot camp.)
Dustoff—Medical evacuation of wounded soldiers by helicopter.
E-Tool—Standard military issue entrenching tool; a small shovel.
FIGMO—Expression meaning, “Fu__ it, got my orders.”
Firebase—or FB—A temporary artillery base set up in hostile territory that supported the infantry operating in the AO.
Flak Jacket—Heavy but necessary fiber-filled vest worn for protection from shrapnel wounds or low-velocity bullets, but when flying in helicopters, you sat on it.
Flechette—Antipersonnel rounds containing darts and usually fired from an M79 grenade launcher or field artillery; deadly effective against a direct attack by enemy soldiers.
FNG—”Fu_____ new guy,” or new boot in the unit. Because the tour of duty was for 1 year (13 months for Marines), there was a constant departure of experienced soldiers and arrival of new recruits.
Frag—A fragmentation hand grenade.
Fragging—Assault on a fellow soldier/officer with a grenade.
Freak—A soldier who uses marijuana or narcotics.
Free Fire Zones—Areas with no restrictions on firing. Areas designated by the South Vietnamese military as being under enemy control that permitted indiscriminate use of artillery and airpower (i.e., Con Thien, DMZ, A Shau Valley, along the Laotian border, etc).
Freedom Bird—Name given to the contract commercial jet airliner that brings in new soldiers and winged back to the world with soldiers who completed their tours.
Friendlies—People who supported the South Vietnamese Government.
Friendly Fire—Air, artillery, or small arms fire mistakenly directed at U.S. or friendly forces.
FSB—Fire support base.
FUBAR—Derogatory expression meaning that something was “fu____ up beyond all recognition” that this soldier learned from Saving Private Ryan was actually a World War II expression.
Gaggle—A group of helicopters flying on a mission; the troops within were sometimes called “sky soldiers.”
Gook—A Korean word for “person,” but a derogatory word for enemy soldiers; used by American soldiers in Korea and Vietnam.
Grunt—An infantryman. In World War II soldiers were called GIs (government issue) or dog faces, but in Vietnam a soldier was a “grunt;” some called themselves “boonie rats” or “legs.”
Gung Ho—An enthusiastic soldier, from the Chinese word “kung ho” or “work together.”
continued......