In memory of Teacher and Scholar Nguyen Thach Giang

Associate Professor Nguyen Thach Giang was born on December 3, 1928, in Cam Thuy, Cam Lo, Quang Tri, into a prestigious family with a long tradition of teaching and learning.

In his youth, he received an education that combined traditional, prestigious values ​​with modern Western learning. He joined the revolution early on and contributed to the nation's protracted resistance war. From August 1945 to August 1946, he participated in the Popular Education program and self-defense work in Hue and Quang Tri. From August 1946 to September 1949, he enlisted in the army, serving as a soldier in Regiment 95 in Quang Tri. From October 1949 to December 1951, he worked at the Quang Tri Education Department. From December 1951 to May 1955, he worked at the Central University Campus in Nanning, Guangxi, China. From 1956 to 1992, he worked at the University of Hanoi, now the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

Entering the field of science, he was fortunate to be mentored by some of the greatest masters of his time, such as Professor Dang Thai Mai, and figures like Tran Le Nhan and Ngo Lap Chi. Coupled with his own continuous efforts to improve his knowledge, his understanding grew ever deeper and broader. Throughout his research career, he received several important awards, including the Nguyen Dinh Chieu Award and the Phan Chu Trinh Award.

However, what a person leaves behind for posterity is not just their resume! What makes Nguyen Thach Giang a name that future generations will remember lies in his achievements and contributions!

He is remembered by the Faculty of Vietnamese Studies and Vietnamese Language, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, as the first Head of the Vietnamese Linguistics Department, the builder who laid the first brick to create the Faculty of Vietnamese Studies & Vietnamese Language, which now not only provides training but also conducts scientific research, not only teaches foreign students but also trains Vietnamese students, and not only handles undergraduate but also postgraduate training.

Photo: Jackie Chan

To build a successful career, one needs preparation! Associate Professor Nguyen Thach Giang is like a diligent bee, tirelessly absorbing knowledge, with an incredibly precise and unconventional scientific orientation! He follows the old saying: "Quality over quantity." But at the same time, he is also very strict: "Only with quantity can quality be achieved!" Thanks to this, he has reached the level: "I manage the collection of Sino-Vietnamese books at the library of the French School of Far Eastern Studies."

As early as 2011, Associate Professor Nguyen Thach Giang confided: "Now that I am old and frail, I have prepared for a long journey!" And now he has truly gone! Looking back, we are astonished and admire his incredibly meticulous "preparation": Nearly 80 books filled with vast amounts of knowledge and overflowing dedication! Some of the precious gems include: "Nôm Literature Terminology," "Literary Allusions," "Dictionary of National Language Literature," and his comprehensive revision of "Truyện Kiều" as a model!

He was also known to his family, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances, as he himself recounted in "Collected Words from the Countryside": "A lifetime of tireless writing year-round, without a single Sunday or summer vacation." Perhaps that is why what he left behind always carries an immeasurable weight. His revised edition of "The Tale of Kieu" alone has been reprinted 33 times, totaling 200,000 copies. Truly, "a work of immense proportions." And with this work, he received an honor few scientists have the opportunity to receive: he was invited to a private dinner by the late Prime Minister Pham Van Dong – a gesture of gratitude and recognition from a great personality, a great intellectual, a great leader – a testament to a national talent! We believe it would not be an exaggeration to say that as long as Vietnamese people know "The Tale of Kieu" as a national spiritual asset; While Nguyễn Du is remembered as a national and world cultural figure, people will also not forget Associate Professor Nguyễn Thạch Giang – the person who revised Truyện Kiều so that it could truly exist with its truth, goodness, and beauty!

In 1970, he confided: "When doing anything, my heart is always directed towards three directions: the past, the present (to be grateful), and the future (to dare to take on my responsibility to future generations)." With this statement, and with his conduct throughout his life, he truly is an example of upright character and embodies the spirit of a wise man!

Throughout the ups and downs of life, he couldn't avoid his anxieties, confiding: "Working silently in solitude, a lifetime of solitude to find joy…". And even the title of his later major books, "Collected Words from the Countryside," seems to convey a sense of loneliness, bittersweetness, and melancholy! These are feelings he didn't bother to hide in the prefaces or afterwords!... However, what people know and expect is a Nguyen Thach Giang of unwavering character, just as he himself said: "With a noble and selfless heart, I will possess the Wisdom, Humanity, and Courage of the ancients to study and research effectively and for the long term!"

Associate Professor Nguyen Thach Giang, one of our leading scholars of Nom script (Vietnamese classical literature), has passed away!

But he will forever live on in his writings, in the "precious manuscripts turned by lamplight" that he – "the creator of words" – has left behind for posterity!

Heartbreaking for those who stay and those who leave.

Tears fall and soak into the stone, silk threads are separated and silkworms are shed.

The sky was overcast and dark that night.

"The grass is drooping sadly, the branches are covered in dew!"