Tiếng Việt · Proverb Attested

làm thần đất ta, làm ma đất người

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In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

A god on home soil, a ghost on foreign — talent's rank drops at the border.

Literally: deity in our land, specter in theirs

Examples

Về nước thì oai, ra ngoài lại thường, làm thần đất ta làm ma đất người.A titan at home, a nobody abroad — god on our soil, ghost on theirs.

Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)

Sources & notes

Discovered via Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897). Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.

Common questions

What does “làm thần đất ta, làm ma đất người” mean?

A god on home soil, a ghost on foreign — talent's rank drops at the border. Literally: deity in our land, specter in theirs

Is “làm thần đất ta, làm ma đất người” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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