The second international workshop on Vietnam studies under the theme Vietnam on the road to development and integration: Tradition and Modernity was held in Ho Chi Minh City last week.
More than 300 scientists and scholars from Vietnam and 26 countries presented reports on Vietnam’s socio-economics, culture, education, history, literature and language.
Discussions focused on Vietnam’s international economic integration in the context of globalisation, the renewal and development of Vietnam’s economy, and social, demographic and ethnological concerns.
In his address, HCM City Mayor Le Thanh Hai said through history, further understanding about Vietnam and its nationality will assist Vietnam in promoting international exchanges and absorbing the world’s quintessence into the country’s renewal process.
Mr Hai noted that Vietnam is expanding its external relations with all countries in the world, therefore the workshop would help the world develop a better understanding of Vietnam and its people.
Vietnam from foreign perspectives
Professor Phan Huy Le said that many countries in the world have carried out extensive research into Vietnamology. He said Vietnamology developed strongly at Beijing University in China while it is recovering in the US. Particularly scholars from Denmark, Sweden, Japan and Australia expressed their keen interest in modern Vietnam.
Vietnamology was established in Japan while Vietnam was at war. In 1987, Vietnamologist Yamonoto founded a Japan association specialising in Vietnam studies, which has so far attracted about 100 scholars.
The Republic of Korea (RoK) began studying the subject in 1996 when the Vietnamese Language faculty was founded at Hankuk University. To date, the RoK has boasted 70 Vietnamologists.
A Vietnamology network (Euroviet) was founded in 1993 with its commitment to organising international workshops on Vietnam every two years. Most recently, the international workshops on the 50th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu victory and the Geneva Conference were held.
At such workshops, foreign scholars thoroughly analysed Vietnam's development through different periods. Thai scholar Pimsen Buarapha, an expert in Vietnamese linguistics, emphasized the importance progress of language in developing communication and building broad-based relations between the two neighbouring countries. As a result, the demand of learning Vietnamese and Thai languages among the two peoples is increasing.
From Japan, Doctor Kikuchi Seiichi presented her report on the establishment and development of the ancient town of Hoi An through distribution of its historic vestiges. Her report highlighted the history of Hoi An and its role in commercial activities in Asia.
Vietnam’s culture on the road to integration
On July 15, sub-committee No5 discussed many issues relating to Vietnamese cultural identities. In their reports, scholar Dinh Quoc Phuong and Groves Derham analysed relations between architectural styles and cultural features of Hanoi. They said French, Russian and modern architectural styles have impact on communal culture in Hanoi.
Scholar Wang Jia made a comparison of classical drama between Vietnam and China. The scholar said: "I am a teacher of foreign language at Beijing University. I am conducting a doctoral thesis on Vietnamese culture at Ho Chi Minh City Teachers’ Training College. I like Vietnam’s classical drama for its creativity. Zhang Fei is a blunt and undereducated character in China. But playwright Dao Tan harmonised this character by turning him into a lyric character."
Many other scholars also selected typical themes about Vietnamese culture. Andrew Wells Dang raised concerns about the translation for Vietnamese literature; Avieli Nir talked about Banh tet (long glutinous rice cake) for the traditional lunar New Year and Mar Chang explored a project to preserve traditional Vietnamese houses.
While Vietnamologists presented different themes on economics, science, society and education, Japanese scholar Kato Atsusumi explored the reconciliation process in rural Vietnam after studying community-based culture in Thach Chau commune, central Ha Tinh province.
The development of Vietnamology needs a more frequent exchange and an expansion of co-operation among Vietnamologists and organisations.
(VNA)
