Highly crystalline body-centered cubic structure Y 2 O 3 with lanthanide (Ln) codopants (Ln = Yb 3+ /Er 3+ and Yb 3+ /Ho 3+ ) has been synthesized via a moderate hydrothermal method in combination with a subsequent calcination. The structure and morphology of Y(OH) 3 precursors and Y 2 O 3 nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The results reveal that the Y 2 O 3 nanoparticles possess cubic phase and form the quasispherical structure. The upconversion luminescence properties of Y 2 O 3 nanoparticles doped with different Ln 3+ (Yb 3+ / Er 3+ and Yb 3+ / Ho 3+ ) ions were well investigated under the 980 nm excitation. The results show that the Yb 3+ /Er 3+ and Yb 3+ /Ho 3+ codoped Y 2 O 3 nanoparticles exhibit strong red and light yellow upconversion emissions, respectively. It is expected that these Y 2 O 3 nanoparticles with tunable multicolor output and intense red upconversion emission may have potential application in color displays and biolabels.