Hanoi University of Literature was established by a decision of President Ho Chi Minh at the beginning of the era of independence and freedom.

As we entered a new era, the entire nation had to confront new and extremely serious challenges.

The historical responsibility of confronting foreign invaders and internal enemies, maintaining the revolutionary government, and preserving the nation's independence and freedom rested on the shoulders of the government led by President Ho Chi Minh.

DirectiveResistance and nation-buildingThe Standing Committee of the Central Party Committee clearly stated: The Vietnamese Revolution at this time remains a national liberation revolution. The slogan remains: The nation comes first! The homeland comes first!

President Ho Chi Minh clearly stated: to maintain independence and freedom, it is necessary to strongly promote national momentum on the foundation of a new regime and a new type of person.Resistance must go hand in hand with nation-building. To build a nation, we need talented people.Under French colonial rule, over 90% of our population was illiterate. Talented individuals were also very rare in the country.

To eliminate the consequences of the French colonial policy of keeping the people ignorant and to raise the intellectual level of the population, train the younger generation, the future leaders of the country, and cultivate talent, the Government intensified its efforts to combat illiteracy, opened schools from primary to university level, prepared a program to reform the old education system, and gradually built a new national democratic education system.

The government, especially President Ho Chi Minh, placed great importance on higher education to train talented individuals to serve the resistance and national reconstruction. The government decided to build upon and reform the old universities and colleges established by the French in Hanoi.[1]We had just gained control and developed several new universities to create a democratic national higher education system for an independent and free Vietnam. The Government Council's sessions on September 22, October 4, October 8, October 31, and November 8, 1945, continuously discussed the policy of reopening existing universities and colleges and establishing new ones.

Having just gained independence and freedom, many students and young people wanted to leave universities and colleges to join government agencies and the battlefield to directly serve the resistance and national reconstruction efforts. However, in response to the country's need to train talented individuals, the Government Council decided to immediately reopen colleges and universities. By order of the Government, on October 8, 1945, the Minister of National Education, Vu Dinh Hoe, signed a Decree announcing that starting November 15, 1945, universities and colleges would open in Hanoi, including the Medical University, Pharmacy University, Dental University, College of Science, College of Fine Arts, College of Agriculture, and College of Veterinary Medicine, to welcome students back to school. The Government established the University Affairs Office, with Nguyen Van Huyen as Deputy Director, to directly manage the University and College sector. Universities were granted the right to establish their own autonomous funds according to Decree No. 43/SL. Vietnamese is used for teaching at universities and colleges. The selection and appointment of directors, professors, and lecturers are also decided by the Government, including the possibility of inviting foreign professors to teach and setting the salary policy for professors and lecturers if necessary.

The French colonial university system did not establish a Faculty of Arts (Social Sciences and Humanities). With a correct understanding of the important role of social sciences and humanities in the social life of an independent nation, on October 10, 1945, President Ho Chi Minh signed Decree No. 45/SL establishing it.Faculty of Humanities, University[2] In Hanoi, the Faculty of Literature at Hanoi University was headed by Professor Dang Thai Mai, a revolutionary scholar with profound knowledge of ancient and modern, Eastern and Western cultures. Its mission was to train secondary-level literature professors and elevate Vietnamese literature to a level worthy of an independent nation, enabling it to keep pace with advanced countries worldwide.

The Faculty of Arts at Hanoi University had specializations in Philosophy, Vietnamese Studies, Sinology, History, and Geography. Upon graduation, students were awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree. The university also offered postgraduate programs and could organize courses to prepare students for the Doctor of Arts (PhD) degree. Regulations regarding the curriculum, teaching, graduation exams, doctor of arts thesis defense, and degree awarding were scientifically and strictly stipulated in the Decree of the Minister of National Education dated November 3, 1945. The old Faculty of Law had to be reformed. However, considering the immediate needs at the time, the Government decided to open a College of Politics and Social Sciences temporarily located at the Faculty of Arts, under the direction of a Secretary-General. The College of Politics and Social Sciences was tasked with training, over a two-year period, specialists who could be appointed as high-ranking officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other national administrative agencies. The government appointed Cao Xuan Huy, Dang Thai Mai, Nguyen Manh Tuong, Ho Huu Tuong, Nguyen Van Huyen, and Nguyen Duc Nguyen as professors in the Faculty of Literature at the University, and Dao Duy Anh, Cu Huy Can, Tran Van Giap, Ngo Xuan Dieu, Tran Khanh Giu, Pham Duy Khiem, Bui Ky, Nguyen Dinh Thi, and Doan Phu Tu to teach on special topics in the Literature curriculum. The University Director would negotiate with these individuals regarding their teaching assignments and the number of hours they would teach during the 1945-1946 academic year. For the Social Politics class, in addition to legal scholars, philosophers, literary scholars, and historians, the Ministry of National Education also planned to invite political activists to lecture, including Ho Chi Minh and Pham Van Dong who would lecture on the Constitution, and Vo Nguyen Giap who would lecture on Economics…

President Ho Chi Minh's decision to establish the Faculty of Literature at the University, as per Decree No. 45/SL dated October 10, 1945, was:a momentous eventThis marks a historic milestone in the establishment of a university-level training institution for the Humanities, now the Vietnam University of Social Sciences and Humanities.

At the opening ceremony of the first university of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh and Minister Nguyen Dinh Hoe sat in the front row, in the middle.

In accordance with the government's policy, on November 15, 1945, at the Indochina University campus located at 19 Le Thanh Tong Street, Hanoi, the opening ceremony of the first course of the University of Vietnam under the democratic republic regime was held. President Ho Chi Minh presided over the ceremony, and several international guests also attended. The Director of University Affairs, Nguyen Van Huyen, delivered the opening speech. The Minister of National Education, Vu Dinh Hoe, presented the mission of the University of Vietnam in the new era.

The opening ceremony of the University of Vietnam on November 15, 1945, included five faculties: Medicine, Science, Literature, Social Sciences, and Fine Arts. The Faculty of Literature was entirely new. Its purpose was to train a number of high school teachers and young people with a solid foundation of knowledge to participate in research and innovation in philosophy, social sciences, literature, history, and geography, contributing to the cultural development of humanity, as Director Nguyen Van Huyen explained in his opening ceremony speech.

The opening of the new universities in Hanoi was an opportunity for professors and students to show the world that, during this critical time for the future of the nation, "the Vietnamese people, in addition to the bloody struggle on the battlefield, are also striving to participate in the progress of human culture. We want this new university to be a strong force among the fighting forces of the Vietnamese nation. We want it to be a bulwark for the protracted resistance to completely restore the territory and liberate the spirit of the nation. We are a civilized nation with a thousand years of independent history and have created a unique civilization along this Pacific coast."[3]

The establishment of Vietnamese universities immediately after the successful August Revolution brought profound pride to professors and students of universities at that time regarding a university system of an independent and free Vietnam. It was a great motivation for professors and students to uphold their determination to build a national university system and be ready to face the extremely arduous challenges of the resistance and nation-building cause.

In that sense, the opening ceremony on November 15, 1945,ushering in a new erafor the Vietnamese higher education system.

Thus, starting from the first academic year after the August Revolution, Vietnamese education underwent a comprehensive transformation in organization and nature. All levels of education, after the commencement of the academic year, were taught and learned effectively with a sense of serving the Fatherland. At the university level, the Faculty of Literature had 253 students and the Faculty of Social Sciences had 52 students. All universities had 1,149 full-time students and 270 auditing students.[4]On October 11, 1946, the Government issued Decree No. 197/SL, deciding to open an additional Legal Department at the University of Vietnam.

Assessing the organization and operation of Vietnam's education system in the first year under the new regime, President Ho Chi Minh said: "We have accomplished much in education, far more than the French."[5]

In December 1946, the nationwide resistance war broke out. All universities relocated to the liberated zones. The resistance was fierce and intense, and some universities temporarily reduced the scale of their training or suspended training for a period of time.

Universities continued to provide training on an appropriate scale, such as the University of Medicine and the University of Pharmacy (1947), and the College of Public Works and Transportation (1948). The University of Law resumed classes in early 1949, and the following year it was divided into the Legal Department and the Economic Department. The College of Fine Arts resumed classes in the 1949-1950 academic year…

The University of Science reopened the General Mathematics course in Zone IV for the 1947-1948 academic year and continued offering it in the 1948-1949 academic year. In Northern Vietnam, the General Mathematics course was offered from the 1948-1949 academic year onwards and was later merged into the Pedagogical Department of the University of Science.

A University Teacher Training Department was also established at the Faculty of Literature and the Faculty of Science during the 1948-1949 academic year to train secondary school teachers specializing in literature and science.

The Ministry of National Education reformed the system of teacher training schools to improve the quality of teacher training, meeting the requirements of the educational reform. Decree No. 234/ND (October 1, 1951) decided to establish the Central Campus consisting of three schools: the School of Basic Sciences, the Advanced Teacher Training School, and the Central Intermediate Teacher Training School. The campus was placed under the direct control of the Ministry. Subsequently, the Ministry issued Decree No. 276/ND (October 11, 1951) abolishing the University of Science Teacher Training Board and establishing the Advanced Teacher Training School to train high school teachers for general education schools, comprising three departments: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, and Natural Sciences.Decree No. 277/ND (October 11, 1951)One-year preparatory university courses were opened at the beginning of the 1952 academic year in Military Region 4, comprising two departments: the Social Sciences Department (subjects: Philosophy and Politics, Vietnamese Literature, Foreign Languages, World Literature History, History, Geography, Economics) and the Natural Sciences Department (subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Natural Sciences). The programs of these two departments were at the first-year university level to serve the rapidly developing resistance war. The first course (1952) had approximately 200 students. The preparatory university courses were under the direct control of the Ministry.

Simultaneously with the policy of reforming the entire general education system, replacing the old education system with a 9-year general education system, and resuming teaching at some universities, the Government sent cadres and high school graduates to study abroad, proactively preparing for the reconstruction of the country after the victory of the resistance war.

Amidst fierce warfare, a fragmented battlefield, and frequent enemy attacks on liberated areas, the Party and Government still prioritized the development of a new, nationalistic and scientific education system to raise the cultural and educational level of the nation. They continued to maintain higher education, including the University of Science and the University of Arts, to train teachers for secondary schools and scientific researchers in natural and social sciences.

The achievements in higher education in general, and in the natural and social sciences during this period, although limited, were of particular importance. They not only served the resistance against French colonialism but also laid a solid foundation for the Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam to build large, core universities that would form the foundation of a modern, national university system, serving the cause of building socialism in the North and the resistance against the US and for national salvation later on.

After the liberation of North Vietnam (1954), entering a period of economic recovery and cultural development, gradually advancing along the socialist path, the Party and Government continued to consolidate and develop major universities in Hanoi. On June 4, 1956, the Government issued Decree No. 2183 establishing five major universities and fifteen vocational high schools, including Hanoi University. On September 14, 1956, the Minister of Education issued a decision appointing Professor Nguy Nhu Kon Tum as Director and Professor Dang Thai Mai as Head of the Faculty of Literature and History.

Former Hanoi University (19 Le Thanh Tong Street, Hanoi today)

Hanoi University is a university of basic sciences established on the basis of the University of Science and the University of Literature.[6]

On December 10, 1993, the Government issued a Decree establishing the National University of Hanoi based on the reorganization of several universities and research institutes in the Hanoi area. These included the University of Hanoi, the Hanoi Pedagogical University, and the Hanoi University of Foreign Languages. The University of Hanoi was divided into two schools: the University of Natural Sciences and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.

The University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi today

The University of Social Sciences and Humanities is a continuation and further development of the tradition of the Faculty of Literature, founded by Ho Chi Minh on October 10, 1945, and of the faculties of Literature, History, and other social science faculties established in later years.

Looking back at the founding, development, and contributions of the Faculty of Literature, now the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, to the cause of resistance and national construction, and to the preservation and development of the Democratic Republic, now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, helps us clearly see the strategic vision of President Ho Chi Minh – an outstanding cultural figure of the nation – regarding the role of social sciences and humanities in the political and social life of the country. He was an outstanding cultural figure of the nation, and very early on, "from Nguyen Ai Quoc emanated a kind of culture, not European culture, but perhaps a culture of the future," as O. Mandelstam wrote in the Ogoniok newspaper (Soviet Union), issue 39, December 23, 1923.[7]The culture of Nguyen Ai Quoc – Ho Chi Minh is the dialectical adaptation and synthesis of cultural values ​​of the Vietnamese nation and the culture of humanity to develop and enrich Vietnamese national culture.