Catholicism in Vietnam

Christianity is the common name for religions that worship Jesus Christ. Catholicism is a branch of Christianity, as are Orthodox, Protestant, and Anglican. When it was first introduced into Vietnam, it was referred to as Gia To or Co Doc as Jesus was transcribed into Gia To, and Christ was transcribed into Co Loi Tu Doc (Co Doc in short) in the old Chinese script. Then came its other name, Thien Chua or Thien Chu, which also originated in old Chinese script. During the early stage of its life in Vietnam, Catholicism was also called Hoa Lang (a Vietnamese transcription of Holland) by the Vietnamese as it was introduced into Vietnam by a Dutch company, Vereenigte Eastern India Company (Vercenigte Oost Indische Compagnie). Later, it was officially called Catholicism. This branch of Christianity is also known as Ki To as Christ is pronounced Ki To by the Vietnamese. Later, when Protestantism was introduced into Vietnam, Ki To was used to refer to both Catholicism and Protestantism. In this book, the development of Catholicism in Vietnam religions and beliefs is presented in three periods: from its introduction to 1884, then from 1884 to 1954, and finally from 1954 to the present day.