Seminar “Nguyen Tai Can - Thought, Works and Memories”

Professor Nguyen Tai Can was one of the leading experts in Vietnamese linguistics, playing a major role in establishing the Linguistics department at the Faculty of Literature, Hanoi University (now the Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi). Professor Nguyen Tai Can was highly regarded by researchers in fields such as Vietnamese grammar, historical phonetics and the history of the Vietnamese language, Sino-Vietnamese reading, issues related to Sino-Vietnamese script, textual studies, and classical poetry. His research results had a profound influence, changing the understanding of researchers in linguistics, Vietnamese linguistics, and Sino-Vietnamese studies in Vietnam.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dao Thanh Truong - Vice Rector of the University
 

Speaking at the conference, Vice Rector Dao Thanh Truong stated: "The conference is a connection between generations, paying homage to our esteemed teacher: Professor, Doctor, and People's Teacher Nguyen Tai Can. The research and discussions at the conference will be a continuation and further development of the Professor's scientific ideas in linguistics in general, and Vietnamese linguistics and Sino-Vietnamese studies in particular."

Associate Professor Dr. Trinh Cam Lan - Head of the Linguistics Department, shared her feelings: "Reading the articles, we deeply appreciate the values ​​that Professor Nguyen Tai Can left behind for the field of linguistics in our country. He has passed away, but his ideas, works, and passion for science remain with us through textbooks and research papers. His ideas are still inherited, discussed, and developed by his students every day."
 

 Professor and People's Teacher Hoang Trong Phien
 

As one of Professor Nguyen Tai Can's close students, Professor Dinh Van Duc (former Head of the Linguistics Department, University of Social Sciences and Humanities) shared a memory: “It was Professor Can who inspired and encouraged me to choose linguistics. He often said: whatever you do, whatever Eastern or Western theories you read, if you're going to do something, you must do it in Vietnam, you must 'localize' it, adapt it through source materials. He also shared his experience in learning and reading: find the basic books and read them carefully and thoroughly, then skim through others to see if there's anything new; don't read every book or you'll be very confused. Professor Can and I put a lot of effort into defining the concept of 'word' as the basic unit of language in his book.”Vietnamese grammarThe Social Sciences Committee's resolution of 1983 was one of the successes in public opinion."

 Professor, Doctor, People's Teacher Nguyen Thien Giap

Professor Nguyen Thien Giap (former Vice Dean of the Faculty of Literature, Hanoi University) recalled: "My most memorable experience was in the Faculty of Literature and Linguistics, which was always full of harmony. It was there that I was sown with a good seed that allowed me to develop into who I am today. Professor Can was always wholeheartedly dedicated to his young colleagues, not only at our university but also to colleagues from the Institute of Han Nom Studies, the University of Foreign Languages, etc."
 

Professor, Doctor, People's Teacher Le Quang Thiem
 

Professor, Doctor, People's Teacher Le Quang Thiem (former Vice Rector of Hanoi University, former Head of the Faculty of Literature): The presence of the teachers today is an expression of gratitude and recognition of the character and contributions of Professor Nguyen Tai Can to the social elite. He is a shining example of passionate dedication to science; a compassionate teacher to his students.

 Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Dat
 

Associate Professor Nguyen Huu Dat shared: "Professor Nguyen Tai Can's influence also lies in his international cultural exchange. He was a talented writer, and his works could have a significant impact on cultural research, cultural exchange, and national identity. He planned to publish his own poetry collection, but so far no one has done so. I think this is something that should be done in the future."
 

 

The papers presented at the conference further deepened the contributions of Professor Nguyen Tai Can in the fields of: Theory and methodology of linguistic and Vietnamese linguistics research; Sino-Vietnamese studies; History and dialects of the Vietnamese language; and the description of modern Vietnamese grammar. The specific papers included:Discuss some points in Nguyen Tai Can's hypothesis about the loanwords "Tai" in Vietic.- Professor Mark Alves, Montgomery University, USA;The language of the Champa state inhabitants in history: an analysis of the origins of some place names in the "Hoanh Son - Gianh River" region of Quang Binh.- Prof. Dr. Tran Tri Doi;A turning point in Nguyen Tai Can's thinking about the central element of noun phrases.- Prof. Dr. Vu Duc Nghieu;Vietnamese word classes from the perspective of Chinese quantifiers."—Professor Lam Minh Hoa, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and Foreign Trade, China;Revisiting the role of word order in the syntactic structure of Vietnamese, from the perspective of systemic functional grammar and cognitive grammar.- Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Hiep;Reflecting on the training of Sino-Vietnamese scholars after rereading Professor Nguyen Tai Can's 1978 article.- Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Tuan Cuong.
 

A brief biography of Professor, Doctor, and People's Teacher Nguyen Tai Can Professor, Doctor, and People's Teacher Nguyen Tai Can was born on May 2, 1926, in Thuong Tho village (now part of Thanh Van commune), Thanh Chuong district, Nghe An province, into a Confucian family with a tradition of patriotism. During his youth, he studied at Vinh National School and Hue National School. After the August Revolution, he participated in the resistance in Nghe An and was a member of the Communist Party of Vietnam from 1949. In 1949, he began teaching. In 1952, he was appointed as the assistant to the first university class in Military Region Four. From 1953-1954, he was the Head of the Professional Department of the Education Zone of Inter-Region Four. From 1955-1960, he was appointed by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education as the first Vietnamese linguistics expert in the Soviet Union (working at Leningrad State University). In 1960, he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation in Linguistics, becoming the first Vietnamese doctor of linguistics in the Soviet Union.The noun word class in Vietnamese. From 1961 to 1971, he served as Head of the Linguistics Department at the Faculty of Literature, Hanoi University. In 1980, he was appointed Professor and in 1982, 1988-1990 was a visiting professor at the University of Paris 7 (France) and in 1991 at Cornell University (USA). In his scientific work, Professor Nguyen Tai Can was a linguist with profound knowledge and made significant contributions in many fields, especially to the study of Vietnamese linguistics and Sino-Vietnamese studies. Many of his scientific works on synchronic and diachronic aspects in various fields (grammar, phonetics, etymology, writing systems) of Vietnamese linguistics and Sino-Vietnamese studies have been highly regarded by Vietnamese and international scientists, such as: 1.The noun word class in modern Vietnamese,Social Sciences Publishing House, 1975. 2.Vietnamese grammar(Words - Compound words - Phrases)University and Vocational High School Publishing House, 1975, Hanoi National University Publishing House (reprinted many times). 3.The origin and development process of Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation.Social Sciences Publishing House, 1979, Hanoi National University Publishing House (reprinted many times). 4.Some issues concerning the Nôm script.University and Vocational High School Publishing House, 1985. 5.A textbook on the history of Vietnamese phonetics (preliminary draft).Education Publishing House, 1995. 6.The influence of Chinese literature during the Ly and Tran dynasties through the poetry and poetic language of Nguyen Trung Ngan.Education Publishing House, 1998. 7.Explore the technique of sequential rhyming in the poem "Mountains and Rivers in the Rain" by Thieu Tri.Thuan Hoa Publishing House, 1998. 8.Some evidence related to language, writing, and culture.Hanoi National University Publishing House, 2001. 9.Documents on the Tale of Kieu: Duy Minh Thi Edition 1872Hanoi National University Publishing House, 2002. 10.Documents on the Tale of Kieu: From the Duy Minh Thi edition to the Kieu Oanh Mau edition.Center for National Studies, Literature Publishing House, 2004. In 2000, Professor Nguyen Tai Can was awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize by the State for a group of three works: Vietnamese Grammar (Words - Compound Words - Phrases) Textbook on the history of Vietnamese phonetics The origin and formation process of Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation In 2008, Professor Nguyen Tai Can was awarded the title of People's Teacher.