Professor, People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam: The man and his career

Prof. Dr. Dinh Xuan Lam (1925-2017) was born in Son Tan commune (now Tan My Ha commune), Huong Son district, Ha Tinh province, in a family of Nguyen Dynasty mandarins. He started teaching (high school) after the August Revolution in 1945. After graduating from the Faculty of Literature at the University of Pedagogy in 1956, Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam was retained at the school to teach at the Faculty of History, Hanoi National University. He is considered one of the founding historians, contributing to the foundation and development of Vietnamese revolutionary history after peace was restored in the North in 1954. During his nearly 6-decade research from the late 1950s until his death, he left behind a legacy of hundreds of research works of various genres.

Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam has made many contributions to the establishment of the Department of Modern and Modern Vietnamese History of the Faculty of History, Hanoi University of Science (now the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi) as Head of the Department for 30 years; Vice President of the Vietnam Historical Science Association, term IV, Chairman of the Scientific Council of the UNESCO Center for Information, Documentation and History of Vietnam.

Prof. Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan (School Principal) delivered the opening speech at the conference.

With his virtue and pedagogical talent, the Professor is admired by colleagues and generations of students, honored as one of the four members of the legendary "Four Pillars" of the History Department (along with Prof. Dr. Phan Huy Le, Prof. Dr. Ha Van Tan, and Prof. Dr. Tran Quoc Vuong). During his 45 years on the podium, he has directly taught, guided and contributed to the training of thousands of students, hundreds of master's students and doctoral candidates from both Vietnam and abroad, many of whom have become prestigious scientists, leaders and managers of many ministries, branches and localities; a number of foreign students have become world-famous diplomats and Vietnam scholars.

Awarding Dinh Xuan Lam scholarships to students, graduate students, and doctoral students with excellent academic achievements last school year

Not only a dedicated and talented teacher, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam is also an excellent scientist with a rare passion for science. After only one year of graduation, in 1957, under the guidance and support of historian Tran Van Giau, he completed his first work.History of Vietnam 1897-1914(Construction Publishing House, Hanoi). Since then until 2015, researcher Dinh Xuan Lam has continued to diligently research and publish over 570 different works in the form of monographs, references, treatises, scientific articles, document introductions and book reviews... Professor Dinh Xuan Lam's research works mainly focus on issues of modern Vietnamese history such as: the armed movement against the French in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, about Ho Chi Minh and the Vietnamese revolution, about reform trends in Vietnamese history...

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Khanh

According to Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Khanh (former Party Secretary, former Principal of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities), reading the List of his publications, just considering the quantity aspect, people cannot help but be surprised by the rare writing ability and creativity of an excellent teacher - scientist, especially after retirement. If in 33 years of working at the university, the number of his works was 185, an average of 5.6 articles/year, then after retirement (in 1990), at the age of 70, 80, he published more publications than when he was still teaching. From 1991 to 2016, that is, in 26 years after retirement, he published 377 works and articles, an average of nearly 15 works and articles per year. That is an exceptionally outstanding achievement, belonging to the pinnacle position that very few people in the scientific community can achieve.

“Not only does Professor Dinh Xuan Lam have a large volume of works and diverse types, his published works also have a smooth presentation and great appeal to readers. Thanks to his ability to update documents and skillfully use research methods, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has made many outstanding contributions to the study of national history, especially the period of modern Vietnamese history. As a historian with a spirit of innovation and dedication, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam does not hesitate to adjust his perception, even change his point of view. From his professional perspective, he has always supported and promoted innovative thinking in historical research. Professor Dinh Xuan Lam is also one of the pioneers in practicing innovation in historical research, from innovating approaches, searching for new sources of documents to regularly updating theories and methods of historical research” - Professor Nguyen Van Khanh commented.

Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Duc Cuong - President of Vietnam Historical Science Association

Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Duc Cuong - Chairman of the Vietnam Historical Science Association acknowledged: Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has been one of the core members of the Vietnam Historical Science Association since its establishment. From the third term (1994-1999) to the sixth term (2010-2015), Professor Dinh Xuan Lam was a member of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Historical Science Association. During the fifth (2005-2010) and sixth (2010-2015) terms, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam was Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Historical Science Association. During his time in the Executive Committee and especially in his position as Vice Chairman, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has closely coordinated with Professor, People's Teacher Phan Huy Le, Chairman of the Association and other members of the Executive Committee to focus on academic activities, promote professional work and promote the latest research results of Vietnamese History, especially since the country entered the Doi Moi period. Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has actively written articles, contributing to creating a scientific appearance for the Journal.Then and Now, the mouthpiece of the Vietnam Historical Science Association. Many of the Professor's articles attract readers at home and abroad, demonstrating his passion for many historical issues.

Prof. Dr. Vu Duong Ninh

Prof. Dr. Vu Duong Ninh, former student of the first course of the Faculty of History, Hanoi National University, former head of the Faculty of International Studies, shared: The greatest luck was to follow the teacher (Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam) for a whole year in Madagascar. During his time teaching here, the teacher only taught a few sessions but the public opinion there was very lively. People discussed a lot about the Vietnamese professor; they were surprised at his great and profound understanding of their country. When teaching, he connected the issues of Vietnamese history with the history of Madagascar, and the connection between Nguyen Ai Quoc and the patriot Ralaimongo became a symbol between the two countries; giving them a method of researching the uprisings of Madagascar... The influence he created was very profound. Students expressed their admiration for his knowledge, methods and style. It can be seen that, not only is he an elder who paved the way for the history of Vietnam, Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam is also a very knowledgeable teacher, with profound teaching methods but simple and close to his students.

Prof. Dr. Phung Huu Phu

Prof. Dr. Phung Huu Phu (former Party Committee Secretary, former Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Central Theoretical Council) recounted his memories of Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam with respectful feelings: He was the first person to guide me in science. His contribution was enormous. I called him a popular scholar. He was born into a well-off family, but lived a very simple life, cycling to school. He always visited young cadres in the dormitory, living close and affectionately like a father or grandfather. Generations of us students are all small rivers that the teachers themselves have enlightened with their virtues.

Historian Duong Trung Quoc

Historian Duong Trung Quoc emphasized the need to share and multiply the values ​​that the generation of leading scientists such as Professor Dinh Xuan Lam left for the next generation: We are all talking about a teacher of teachers, with a huge legacy not only in knowledge but more importantly in personality. He was very disciplined, always frankly stating his views but not being extreme. He contributed a lot to the dissemination of historical knowledge. His generation was a golden generation, a generation that received basic education in the country, along with receiving the education of French civilization, resonating with the desire of intellectuals who lived during the period of national loss. Besides learning knowledge from the teacher, we should aim for the values ​​that he left and pass them on to the next generations.