When I take your hand,
Your hand so strong and fair,
I suddenly feel the sky
Higher, bluer, endless there.

I love your hands, my dear,
Your hands full of labor,
Like the dream of our parents,
Like the hope of our homeland.

Oh Vietnam, Vietnam,
Since ancient times,
The spirit and the hands of men
Have built life and strength,
For a thousand years, forever green.

When I take your hand,
I feel from far away —
The bitter salt of the Eastern sea,
The scent of ripe rice in the fields,
And even the smell of oil from distant roads —
All reborn within your hands.

Oh my beloved country,
Through a thousand paths,
Nothing in the world is more beautiful
Than these noble, wondrous hands —
The hands that guide me
On the roads of tomorrow.


Hoàng Vân's song ‘Đôi bàn tay anh’ (My Lover's Hands) is both tender and proud, blending the love between two people with love for one's country. Using the simple image of hard-working hands, the author turns them into a symbol of vitality, confidence and aspiration to build the country. In each melody, one can sense the breath of the East Sea, the scent of rice in the countryside, and the vibrant noise of booming construction sites — all elements that make up a proud, persevering and verdant Vietnam.

We have not yet been able to determine the year this work was composed, but based on the tape number preserved at Voice of Vietnam, it is likely that it was recorded at the end of 1974.