The Austroasiatic phylum had dispersed via the Mekong River drainage basin. The likely homeland of Austroasiatic is the middle Mekong, dating to perhaps 2000 BCE. (Paul Sidwell & Roger Blench 2009, 2011). Austroasiatic -> Môn-Khmer -> Việt-Mường (Laos & Vietnam) -> Việt ngữ (chữ Viết kiểu Trung Quốc, phát âm kiểu Mon Khmer)