The Things They Carried

Glossary of Terms Used in the Story in order of Appearance:

Foxhole: Small pit dug by soldiers for protection in a combat zone
R&R: Rest and Relaxation
SOP: Standard Operating Procedure
RTO: Radio and Telephone Operator
PFC.: Private First Class
KIA: United States Killed in Action
Dustoff: Nickname for a medical evacuation helicopter or mission
AK-47: The standard rifle of communist, guerrilla, and non-U.N. nations
RPG: Rocket Propelled Grenade
Claymore antipersonnel: An explosive device that shoots out steel balls designed to mow down enemy troops
AO: Area of Operation
USO: United Service Organization – puts on entertainment venues for troops (Volunteer Entertainment and Morale)
Sterno: flammable hydrocarbon jelly packaged in a small can for use as a portable heat source
Psy Ops: Psychological Warfare (Ops = operations)
Freedom Bird: a plane that takes troops done with their service back home
VC: Vietcong – Communist supporters and fighters in South Vietnam
Poppa-san: the head male figure of a hamlet, village, or business establishment
Elephant grass: tall, sharp grass ubiquitous in the Vietnamese countryside that often concealed enemy soldiers
The Lone Ranger: Radio/Television show hero who is a masked Texas Ranger in the American Old West that rights
injustices
USS Maddox: A US naval destroyer that was “attacked” in the Gulf of Tonkin in North Vietnam, which gave President
Johnson the means to start full scale military action against North Vietnam
Gulf of Tonkin: Body of water off the coast of North Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh: Communist leader and icon of North Vietnam
Geneva Accords: The peace agreements made that ended the First Indochinese War between France and the Vietminh
SEATO: 1954-1977. The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. This organization was designed to prevent communism
from spreading any more in Southeast Asia. Americans felt more countries that were partners in it should
commit more troops to the war
Gene McCarthy: American politician who ran for president in 1968 under an anti-war platform
LBJ: Lyndon Baines Johnson, 37th vice-president of the US under President Kennedy from 1961-1963 and 36 th president
of the US from 1963-1969
Westmoreland: William Westmoreland was a general who commanded American military operations in the Vietnam War
from 1964-1968
Bao Dai: Chief of State of Vietnam from 1949-1955. He was closely connected to French Imperial efforts
Diem: Jean Baptiste Ngo Dinh Diem was the first president of South Vietnam. He was elected unfairly. (1955-1963)
Saint George: patron saint of England and of soldiers
Abbie Hoffman: Abbot Howard Hoffman cofounded the Youth International Party, was connected with the Chicago riots
at the 1968 Democratic Convention, and continuously campaigned against the war in Vietnam
Jane Fonda dressed up as Barbarella: Jane Fonda is an American actress and civil rights campaigner; she was a
staunch protestor against the war and even infamously went to North Vietnam where she visited North
Vietnamese antiaircraft sights. Barbarella was a movie she starred in that humorously depicted issues with
human sexuality.
LZ: Landing Zone where a helicopter can land
Rigged mortar round: A shell taken from a mortar artillery device and used as a booby-trap.
Quang Ngai: Area in central Vietnam near the demilitarized zone where a lot of fighting occurred.
Hanoi: The capital of North Vietnam
Nam: Abbreviation of Vietnam
Mama-san: the head female figure of a hamlet, village, or business establishment (often a massage parlor, bar or
bordello)
Haiphong: The city and harbor in North Vietnam
Napalm: A jellied substance mixed with gasoline that burns at a high temperature. Used to burn the jungle, enemy
troops
Cobras: An attack helicopter
F-4: The Phantom, the main fighter jet of the Vietnam War
Willie Peter: Slang term for (W)hite (P)hosporous – used in smoke, tracers and incendiary munitions
HE: Any explosive device
105 round: A large artillery shell 105 millimeters in diameter turned into a booby-trap or landmine
C Rations: Food supplies that soldiers carry with them
Tracer round: Bullets with pyrotechnic charges on them. When the round is fired the composition ignites and can be
seen by the naked human eye
Batangan Peninsula: Area of heavy fighting during the war
Chu Lai: A marine corps base during the war
South China Sea: a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean and encompasses an area from Taiwan to Singapore. In
the war, China Beach as it was called referred to a resort south of Saigon for wounded soldiers and soldiers on
R&R
Danang: A large city and major port and airbase for American military operations in the war. It was here that Marines
first landed in 1965
NCO: Non commissioned officer is an enlisted military member holding a position of some degree of authority who has
(usually) obtained it by promotion from within the non-officer ranks.
E-6: The 6th rank of an enlisted soldier beneath a noncommissioned officer. In the Army this would be a Staff Sergeant.
Darvon: An antiseptic, ointment
RF: South Vietnamese Regional Force, a militia formed during the war
PF: South Vietnamese Popular Force, a local defense militia formed by South Vietnam
Ruff-and-Puff: Derisive term to describe collectively the cowardliness of the RFs and PFs
ARVN: Army of the Republic of Vietnam. The South Vietnamese Army that fought alongside the U.S.
Green Berets: Special Forces unit of the Army
EM: Electronic Music
Trip flare: Used for defense of position. If an enemy combatant moves the tripwire a flare goes off to alert everyone
Gook: Racial slur for Asians
Montagnard: The French term Montagnard, meaning "from the mountain(s)" refers to an indigenous people group
generally from the Central Highlands of Vietnam. It includes individuals from multiple tribal groups, including
the Bahnar, Jarai, Hmong, Koho, Manong, and Rhade tribes. Many Montagnards came to North Carolina and
South Carolina in the late 1970s after the Vietnam War.
MP: Military Police
CID: Criminal Investigation Department
Bouncing Betty: A land mine that would bounce several feet into the air from its hidden position before exploding
Trung Sisters: were two 1st century Vietnamese women leaders who successfully rebelled against Chinese Han-
Dynasty rule for three years, and are regarded as national heroines of Vietnam.
Tran Hung Dao: (1228–1300) was a Vietnamese military Grand Commander of Thang Long during the Trần Dynasty.
He commanded the Đại Việt armies that repelled two major Mongol invasions in the 13th century. His
multiple victories over the mighty Mongol Yuan Dynasty under Kublai Khan are considered among the
greatest military feats in world history. General Trần Hưng Đạo's military brilliance and prowess is reflected in
his many treatises on warfare and he is considered one of the most accomplished generals in world history.
Le Loi: Famous and well-loved medieval general and ruler
Tot Dong: Battle where Le Loi routed the Chinese invaders
MIA: Missing in Action
LT: Lieutenant
Karl Marx: Writer of The Communist Manifesto, the origins/catalyst of communism
Chu Chi: Area where intricate underground caves shielded VC and NVA troops from American bombing raids and from
which they launched a number of operations
Gene Autry: A cowboy western movie actor who typically played the good guy coming in to save the day, with a white
hat on, and who rode off into the sunset after justice had been done
Gangrene: complication of cell death, characterized by the decay of body tissue, which become black (and/or green) and
malodorous
Summa Cum Laude: A level of academic distinction at the collegiate level
Audie Murphy: The most decorated war hero of World War II who went on to star in a number of movies
Gary Cooper: Movie actor who portrayed war heroes and cowboy western heroes
Cisco Kid: Refers to a character found in numerous film, radio, television and comic book series based on a fictional
Western character created by the writer O. Henry
NoDoz: A caffeine tablet with roughly the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee
DDT: A pesticide used to kill bacteria and was used in the war to prevent malaria and typhus. It was argued that it is a
carcinogen and banned in the U.S. in 1972 though.