Lac Long Quan

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According to the creation myth of the Vietnamese people, Lac Long Quan (also Lạc Long Quân) was the father of the Vietnamese people. Lac Long Quan's name means King Dragon of the Land of Lac and he was the son and sole successor of Tam Nguyen, the first king of the country then called Xich Quy (Red Devil).

Lac Long Quan’s wife, Au Co, gave birth to a sac containing 100 eggs from which 100 children were born. One day Lac Long Quan told Au Co: “I am descended from dragons, you from fairies. We are as incompatible as water is with fire. So we cannot continue in harmony.” This said, the husband and wife parted. The man went seawards with 50 of their children, while his wife went to the mountains with the other half of the clan. The eldest son, who followed his mother, later installed himself as Vietnam’s first monarch, Hung Vuong.

It is a common misconception that Asian dragons and European dragons are of the same ilk. In Asian traditions dragons are river spirits/gods and have nothing at all to do with scaly fire-breathing lizards in western mythology. Rather, being water spirits they are dependent on water and must stay close to their source.