Phosphorylated poly(vinyl alcohol) (P-PVA) was prepared via the modification of the pendent hydroxyl groups of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) in the presence of diethyl chlorophosphate (DECP). Chemical structures of the P-PVA were characterized by attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared, 1 H NMR, and 31 PNMR spectra. The formed P-PVA showed good flame retardance, improved thermal stability, enhanced hydrophilicity, decreased tensile strength, and increased elonga-tion at break compared with PVA. The crystallinity of P-PVA was much lower than that of PVA, and it decreased with the increase of phosphorus content. The reasons for the obvious differences between the aforementioned properties of PVA and P-PVA were investigated and discussed.