International Conference on Vietnamese Studies “Teaching Vietnamese language and Vietnamese studies in the contemporary world”

(July 26, 2019 at 10-12 Dinh Tien Hoang, District 1)

 The conference was organized by the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Viet Nam National University Ho Chi Minh City (Faculty of Vietnamese Studies) on July 26, 2019, at the University (10-12 Dinh Tien Hoang, District 1, HCMC). The conference included 118 reports from domestic and international researchers, including nearly 20 reports from foreign scholars. Foreign scholars came from countries with long-standing and robust Vietnamese studies sectors: the United States, Russia, Japan, China, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, etc. The conference focused on 4 topics:

1) International Vietnamese Studies: How has Vietnam been studied abroad? How has the image of Vietnam traveled to the world over 350 years? Prof. Shimizu will present 200 years of Vietnamese studies in Japan, Dr. La Canh Van (Taiwan) will introduce a Chinese scholar specializing in Vietnamese studies who translated The Tale of Kieu into Classical Chinese, and Dr. Duong Ngoc Dung will present on Vietnamese studies in the United States. Prof. Socolov (Russian) will discuss the Vietnamese studies field that was peculiarly formed in Soviet Russia (mainly at the Institute of Oriental Studies) in the 1920s.

2) Vietnamese Linguistics: Intricate issues of the Vietnamese language through the research of Vietnamese linguists in HCMC, Hanoi, and abroad. Reports by Prof. Tomita Kenji (Osaka University, translator of Vietnamese folk literature, Anh Duc's Hon dat... into Japanese) and Tuong Vi Van (Cheng-kung University, Taiwan) attracted much attention.

3) Vietnamese Culture and Literature: Besides many unique presentations, the report by Dr. Nohira Munehiro (Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, translator of Pham Cong Thien published by Iwanami - a leading Japanese publisher, and recently Truyen thay Lazaro by Nguyen Trong Quan) was highly regarded. Dr. Nohira re-traced the diplomatic route of Nguyen Du, which differs from previous scholars like Dao Duy Anh and researcher Nguyen Van Hoan, with very persuasive evidence and arguments.

4) Vietnamese History and Society: The hottest topic was the presentation by researcher Luu Hong Son: a synthesis of views from Chinese scholars regarding Vietnam's historical sovereignty over its sea and islands. There were many other presentations on Vietnamese history, society, and education.

On the occasion of this conference, the Faculty of Vietnamese Studies will launch the Liaison Board for International Vietnamese Studies Scholars.

Researchers, journalists, teachers, PhD candidates, master's students, and students interested in Vietnamese studies are cordially invited to attend.

VNH