Binh Nguyen name info?

[Da Git]

So after a google search on this so far all I've come up with is this:

Definitely Vietnamese, which means we're finally seeing a character from the third of the 3 Kingdoms (Japan & China being the other two... Not sure what happened to Korea...)

Seems to be both a boy's name or a girl's name, but from the "Syndicates and you" Update, we know it's a he (and a ghost).

Other than that, couldn't really find anyone that would provide inspiration for this character... the closest seems to be this guy, but I kinda doubt it (if you have a morbid sense of humour though it would be cool!)

http://www.slate.com/articles/life/history/features/2013/skyjacker_of_the_day/nguyen_thai_binh_picked_the_wrong_plane_to_hijack.html

Basically, he was a young Vietnamese had his visa revoked during the Vietnamese war for unsurprisingly disagreeing with it (who'd have thought!) and tried to hijack the plan returning him to Vietnam.  The pilot, naturally unhappy with this turn of events, informed a policeman who was on the flight and packing a magnum and long story short, Binh got five bullets in him at short range and (literally!) booted out the door! 

Otherwise there's this but this time, it's a she:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nguyễn_Thị_Bình

Nguyễn Thị Bình (born Nguyễn Châu Sa; 26 May 1927) is a Vietnamese communist leader who negotiated at the Paris Peace Conference on behalf of the Viet Cong, or National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam.

Thoughts?  Anyone else have any theories?

[Akai]

I am not sure how much of Wyrd's characters are based on real people; however, the image of the "ghost" Binh reminds me of a fox.

In Chinese mythology there are stories about nine-tailed fox demons or spirits. The fox spirit or demon seems to be common in east Asian cultures as I also see stories about them in Japan and Korea. I am not sure if the fox spirit/demon is in Vietnamese culture, but I do know Chinese culture had a strong presence in Vietnam. 

[MetaphoricDragn]

12 hours ago, Akai said:

I am not sure how much of Wyrd's characters are based on real people; however, the image of the "ghost" Binh reminds me of a fox.

In Chinese mythology there are stories about nine-tailed fox demons or spirits. The fox spirit or demon seems to be common in east Asian cultures as I also see stories about them in Japan and Korea. I am not sure if the fox spirit/demon is in Vietnamese culture, but I do know Chinese culture had a strong presence in Vietnam. 

I agree my first thought was a Kumiho or Kitsune as well.  Though at least the former tends to be always female.

[Inefficiency_Expert]

My Vietnamese myth-history is a little rusty but I don't recall any foxes of note. There was the 1000 year white spirit chicken. That's not actually relevant, I just wanted to mention it because it's awesome. 

[Mike Wallace]

Ho Chi Minh, famed leader of the Viet Cong, was born in 1890 as Nguyen Sinh Cung, in the province of Binh Khe (now Binh Dinh).

On the other hand, Nguyen is the most common surname in Vietnam (taken from the Mandarin Ruan, after a state in China), making up 40% of its population. As surnames are rarely used by the Vietnamese--even in formal occasions--this doesn't cause as much confusion as it does with cultures that put greater emphasis on them.

"Binh" means "Section" in Vietnam, and is used to name several of its provinces. "Nguyen Binh" could literally mean "the province of Nguyen." 

So it's possible that Binh himself is a wholly unique character, and his name is a deliberate use of those commonly found in his country (like naming someone "Alan Smith") to avoid specific comparisons. Or maybe it's an alias to fit the themes of the subterfuge-errific Court of Two. Or maybe it's not. 

Time will tell.

Maybe.

/grin

[Akai]

Binh can be the Vietnamese spelling of Chinese characters.  Three Chinese characters of the same pronunciation (actual character is built off of each other) that is translated to Binh in Vietnamese - Peace -> Apple -> Floating Plants...I don't think Binh Nguyen refers to any of them though.