Professor Dinh Gia Khanh – the teacher of new beginnings.

Good at self-learning

Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was born on December 15, 1925, into a scholarly family in Ninh Binh. His father was a practitioner of traditional medicine. He himself had a law degree. In 1945, when the August Revolution broke out, the young Dinh Gia Khanh, in his late teens or early twenties, abandoned his studies at law school to join the revolution. He worked in journalism, taught English to high school students, and later taught Vietnamese literature at a teacher training college. In 1956, in his early thirties, Dinh Gia Khanh became a university lecturer teaching medieval literature (then called classical Vietnamese literature) and folklore at Hanoi University – one of the first and most prestigious universities of basic sciences in Vietnam. Along with many other scientists, he shouldered the responsibility of building the foundations of various scientific disciplines as well as establishing the image and prestige of the first university-level training and research institution of the new regime.

Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was renowned for his intelligence and erudition. What was particularly remarkable was that, despite the scarcity of books and scientific information at the time, he diligently pursued his studies with rare perseverance and diligence, equipping himself with a vast and comprehensive knowledge of languages, literature, and culture. Although formally trained in English and French, he self-taught Russian and Chinese, and possessed a level of expertise in classical Chinese and Vietnamese script comparable to that of a specialist at the time. This foundation allowed him to delve deeply into and offer unique, innovative, and groundbreaking insights in his later professional fields. From a modern educational perspective, he is a shining example of transforming formal education into self-education.

He was also renowned for his meticulous attitude, self-awareness of accuracy, and seriousness in science, only writing and speaking about what he knew and understood thoroughly. Professor Dinh Gia Khanh's character as a scientist was further demonstrated by his unwavering commitment to learning, reflecting, and constantly updating himself with new and modern knowledge. Thanks to this, he overcame the limitations of his time to become one of the exemplary scholars of the Vietnamese intellectual class – possessing a solid and profound foundation in Eastern and national culture, while also thoroughly absorbing the diverse and rich achievements of Western culture and literature.

The "double" professor

He was called the "double professor" because he was a leading expert in both medieval Vietnamese literature and folklore – a rare achievement for a scholar in two such specialized fields…

To serve the training work at Hanoi University, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh edited and wrote textbooks that, even in the early years of the 21st century, remain irreplaceable monuments such as:Vietnamese folk literature”, “Vietnamese literature from the 10th century to the first half of the 18th centuryWith the book “Vietnamese literature from the 10th century to the first half of the 18th century"For the first time, a literary history book systematically addressed the historical development of medieval Vietnamese literature. From its inception, the book became a 'handbook' for those teaching and studying medieval Vietnamese literature."

As both a teacher and a researcher, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh recognized and valued the close relationship between teaching and research early on. His lectures were imbued with a very high level of scientific rigor. Initially, his textbooks were intended solely for student learning, but many of the topics covered have since become concise monographs, such as "The collection and study of folklore in Vietnam”, “A brief history of Vietnamese folk literatureConversely, his earlier monographs also stemmed from teaching needs, such as the monograph "Problems with fairy tales as seen through the study of the story of Tam Cam.Before its first publication as a book in 1968 (Literature Publishing House), Professor Dinh Gia Khanh used the outline of that manuscript to teach a specialized course to fourth-year Literature students at Hanoi University. In this monograph, with a comprehensive vision and profound scholarship, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh raised several issues concerning fairy tales that are of great scientific significance: international and national characteristics; the tradition of struggle, the moral and aesthetic traditions of the nation; the origin, transmission, transfer, transformation, and change of fairy tales. To this day, the work remains one of the pinnacles of Vietnamese folklore research.

Exploring the field of folk culture

From 1983, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was transferred to work at the Institute of Folklore Studies as its Director and launched the Journal of Folklore as its Editor-in-Chief. In this new position, he had even more opportunities to delve deeper into the study of Vietnamese folklore and literature, and wrote groundbreaking works in this field.

"On the journey to explore folklorePublished in 1989, this work is considered the academic manifesto of the Institute in its early years. In this work, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh presented theoretical issues, the history of research, and the components of folk culture. The book is considered a work that achieved a high level of generalization, raising important issues.theory and methodologyFor this scientific discipline, it deserves to be considered a foundational work for the development of Vietnamese folklore studies. The book both summarizes fundamental issues and encourages further reflection on problems that the author has not had the opportunity to delve into or fully analyze in all their subtle and specific aspects: Is the synthetic nature a characteristic of all genres of folklore? How is this characteristic manifested in the various elements of folklore? And from a scientific perspective, this book is a normative, classic work for folklore studies at the time and for the long term to come.

Along with the monographOn the journey to explore folklore, with articles published in the MagazineFolk cultureIn works such as "The Purpose and Significance of Studying Folk Culture and Arts," "What is Folk Culture or Folklore?", "The Position of Folk Visual Arts in National Culture and Folk Culture," "The Study of Folk Performing Arts in the Integrated Aspect of Folk Culture," "The Social and Political Significance of Studying Folk Culture," and "Folk Culture and Modern Society," Professor Dinh Gia Khanh truly laid the foundation for the study of folk culture in Vietnam.

"Vietnamese folklore in the context of Southeast Asian culture"Published in 1993, this work is a representative study not only for the field of folklore but also for regional studies and comparative culture. Here, readers can identify Vietnamese folklore within the Southeast Asian cultural space through the process of creation, exchange, and cultural transformation. Regarding the value of this book, as Associate Professor Phan Ngoc assessed:This is the first work to provide a perspective not only on Vietnamese folklore but also on Vietnamese culture in general within the context of Southeast Asian culture. It helps those interested in Vietnamese and Southeast Asian culture to see the common ground that serves as a foundation for studying each cultural phenomenon in this region and in each individual country. This is particularly beneficial for those accustomed to viewing culture in a static and narrow way. It provides readers with a new, broader, and therefore more profound approach…"

"Vietnamese folk culture and the development of Vietnamese society."This is another work of folklore research conducted chronologically. The author delves into the meaning and function of folklore."Regarding the search for methods to promote social development, contributing to the preservation and promotion of the cultural identity of the Vietnamese nation."The pages he wrote about villages, customs, village festivals, and indigenous beliefs are not entirely new issues, but they are presented clearly with flexible, well-reasoned, and highly persuasive analysis."

Professor Dinh Gia Khanh also made many contributions in the field of translation and research on Sino-Vietnamese authors and works such asViet Dien U Linh, Linh Nam Chich Quai, Thien Nam Ngu Luc, Lam Tuyen Ky Ngo, Poems and Writings of Nguyen Binh Khiem...in-depth studies on the words and meanings in The Tale of Kieu...

Another outstanding scientific work bearing the distinct personal imprint of Professor Dinh Gia Khanh is the organization and compilation of the series "Anthology of Vietnamese Literature"(Literature section covering the period from the 10th century to 1945) comprises 42 volumes. He was the initiator and creator of this monumental literary work, the largest in the history of Vietnamese compilation and publishing. As Chairman of the Editorial Board, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh assembled a team of hundreds of scientists, translators, and researchers to compile, select, and synthesize ten centuries of literature, encompassing tens of thousands of pages and hundreds of authors, into over 40 volumes. This highly scientific and meticulous work spanned 20 years, beginning in 1978 and concluding in 1998."

Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was also the first to propose and organize basic research on folk culture in localities and to organize the compilation of Folk Culture Gazetteers of provinces and districts. As Director of the Institute of Folk Culture, he organized the collection and compilation of "Folk Culture Gazetteer of Nghe Tinh," published in 1995; co-editor of "Folk Culture Gazetteer of Thang Long - Dong Do - Hanoi," published in 1991; and author and editor of "Cultural Regions of Vietnam," published in 1995.

Outstanding science manager

In the field of literary and folklore studies, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was not only the person who developed and summarized theoretical viewpoints and directly carried out research projects, but also the founder of a research organization, a media outlet, the builder and trainer of research staff, and the person who oriented and developed a system of research topics.

With nearly 30 years (1956-1983) as Head of the Department of Vietnamese Folk, Classical, and Modern Literature at the Faculty of Linguistics, Hanoi University, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh proved himself to be a manager with a strategic vision for building the department. He considered the department an academic unit, not an administrative one. Therefore, he focused on writing textbooks, building a system of specialized materials, and training young staff. He organized and managed the scientific work not through commands or imposition, but with the vision and heart of a profound educator and scientist.

As the Director of the Institute of Folklore Studies (1983-1987) and the founder of the Journal of Folklore, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh not only produced methodologically sound research works for this new field but also showed great interest in building a new generation of highly qualified and passionate researchers, thereby gradually establishing the Institute's scientific prestige. In addition, he served as the General Secretary of the Vietnam Folklore Arts Association (from 1982 to nearly the end of 1984); was a member of the UNESCO Advisory Committee for Southeast Asian Cultural Studies; and a member of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Union of Literature and Arts (from 1984).

With outstanding contributions to training and scientific research, Professor Dinh Gia Khanh was awarded the title of professor quite early, in 1980; he was awarded the First Class Labor Medal by the President of Vietnam and received the first Ho Chi Minh Prize for Science and Technology in 1996.

Professor, People's Teacher, and Labor Hero Vu Khieu – a contemporary friend – once wrote a couplet for Professor Dinh Gia Khanh: "Gathering the essence of a thousand books – Passing it on to disciples in all four corners of the world." With all his valuable contributions to the national culture, Dinh Gia Khanh deserves to be recognized as a cultural figure who made immense contributions to understanding Vietnamese culture and the Vietnamese people.