Tiềm was born in 1912. Tiềm's father was Soạn and her mother was Thanh Nguyễn như. Her paternal grandparents were Huyên and Ruẩn Trần. She had four brothers and six sisters, named Ấp, Thao, Thức, Quyên, Đạm, Nhuận, Uông, Tân, Loan and Ty. She is the second oldest of the eleven children.