(October 17) Presentation: Anthropological analysis of some phenomena related to writing

Topic:Anthropological analysis of some phenomena related to writing: the case of memorials and ancestral worship texts

Presenter: Dr. Phan Phuong Anh (Vietnam Institute of Culture and Arts)

Time: 9:00 a.m. October 17, 2008 (Friday)

Location: Multimedia Room, Museum of Anthropology, 3rd Floor, Building D, 336 Nguyen Trai, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi.

Summary of content: The ancestral altars and writing spaces of the Vietnamese people were previously often associated with Han-Nom scripts. However, since the renovation, along with the strong changes in social life, religious activities in Vietnam have become increasingly vibrant, in which phenomena related to writing have also become more diverse with the revival of Han-Nom scripts and the penetration of the national language in ritual texts. While the national language has long replaced Han-Nom scripts in social life, it seems that for some people, Han-Nom scripts are considered a good way to solve some contemporary spiritual problems and this replacement is causing much controversy. The author will analyze the multi-dimensional relationships between the writer, the person who commissioned the writing and each type of script to demonstrate that the use of different types of writing is not simply governed by tradition or the convenience of the script, but it also reflects the profound influences of each form of character on thinking, religious life in particular and society in general. Through the case study of writing and writing on the ancestral altar of the Vietnamese people, the author also wants to suggest some new research directions on writing from an anthropological perspective.

Keywords: Script, Writing, National language, Han-Nom, Writing anthropology, Memorial, Rituals, Ancestor worship, Beliefs.