Dear spirit of Professor, People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam,
Dear bereaved family,
Dear colleagues and friends,,
Today, we gather here to bid farewell to Professor, People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam to the eternal world.
The great tree of modern Vietnamese history, the exemplary teacher, the beloved great teacher of dozens of generations of students in the History major is no more! Due to old age and poor health, he left us at 2:25 p.m. on January 25, 2017, which is December 28, Binh Than year.
Prof. Dr. Dinh Xuan Lam was born on February 4, 1925 in Son Tan commune, Huong Son district, Ha Tinh province in a family of intellectuals - patriotic mandarins. The family tradition and hometown with Hong Mountain - La River - Ngan Pho soon left a deep mark on the open-minded soul, the persistent and strong will, the straightforward and honest character of the young man Dinh Xuan Lam. From a very early age, his family created favorable conditions for his studies and self-cultivation. At the age of 20, he graduated with a full Baccalaureate degree in Philosophy and Literature from Hue National School. Surely the time studying at the famous school in the capital contributed significantly to the training and shaping of the talent, personality and style of the gallant and experienced intellectual Dinh Xuan Lam, who soon revealed his passion for the fields of culture - literature - social sciences.
Leaving the capital, the "rich kid" Dinh Xuan Lam returned to Yen Dinh district, Thanh Hoa, where his father was holding the position of District Chief. At that time, the August Revolution broke out. The "earth-shaking" momentum and the aspiration for revival of the entire nation, especially the attitude and behavior of the Viet Minh leaders at that time, which was full of righteousness and kindness, had a strong influence on him, so that he voluntarily devoted himself, devoting all his talent, enthusiasm and intelligence to serving the Nation, the People and the Revolution.
The path he chose very early was teaching and he devoted his whole life to this profession. During the years of the Resistance War against the French, with his profound knowledge and enthusiastic volunteering spirit, he was appointed as a Literature teacher at the High School (College) Dao Duy Tu (later renamed Lam Son High School) in Thanh Hoa city, during the resistance war, evacuated to Tho Xuan, near the University Preparatory School and the Senior Pedagogical School. It was here that he first met and came into contact with great intellectuals - revolutionaries and cultural figures, such as Tran Van Giau, Dang Thai Mai, Nguyen Thuc Hao, Nguyen Manh Tuong, Dao Duy Anh, Cao Xuan Huy, Ton That Chiem Te, etc. Later, these people would become teachers who had a decisive influence on his academic aspirations. Also at that field school in the Thanh - Nghe - Tinh Free Zone, he met many friends, including Phan Huy Le and Tran Quoc Vuong who were studying at the University Preparatory School - the two would later become his lifelong close colleagues.
After peace was restored, as Principal of Yen Dinh High School (Thanh Hoa), he was sent to study in the second year of the History - Geography Department of Hanoi Pedagogical University, and was appointed as class monitor of the first class of 29 students. Here, he continued to receive instruction from masters Tran Van Giau, Dang Thai Mai, Dao Duy Anh, Tran Duc Thao, met friends Phan Huy Le and Tran Quoc Vuong, and became acquainted with Ha Van Tan - a fellow countryman more than ten years younger than him, who was in his first year. In 1956, after graduating with honors, he, along with Phan Huy Le and Tran Quoc Vuong, were retained as teaching staff at Hanoi University of Science. In 1957, Ha Van Tan graduated and was also retained at the school.
Thanks to the direct and serious guidance of the masters, Dinh Xuan Lam and his friends grew up very quickly on the path of science and education. He was especially trusted and directly guided by Professor Tran Van Giau, so only three years later (1958), he and his colleagues, together with Professor Tran Van Giau, completed and published Volume I of the textbook.Modern History of Vietnam, (complete set of 3 volumes completed in 1963). This is the most basic textbook, laying the foundation for the entire career of training and researching modern and contemporary Vietnamese History.
During more than half a century of working at the Faculty of History, Hanoi National University (now the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU), Prof. Dr. Dinh Xuan Lam has contributed to training tens of thousands of bachelors, masters and doctors. Many of his students have become famous scientists, leaders and managers holding important positions in the country and in ministries, branches and localities. With outstanding talent and virtue, he, along with professors Phan Huy Le, Ha Van Tan and Tran Quoc Vuong, have received the full love and admiration of generations of students of the History major, and are respectfully called"The Four Pillars of the Court"– an unofficial title but has become the symbol of the Department of Heroic History.
The reputation and contributions of Professor Dinh Xuan Lam are not only limited to the field of history and the school to which he devoted his life, but have actually reached far, spread and been affirmed at many university and post-graduate training institutions in the country and abroad. Since his time working and even after his retirement, he has been invited by many universities and academies to collaborate in training at many levels and in many different forms. Many universities abroad, such as France, the Netherlands, and Germany, have also invited him to lecture on Vietnamese History. He was also sent to join the Vietnamese educational expert delegation in Madagascar from 1981 to 1983. The far-reaching reputation of the great teacher - great scholar has made many famous experts, even new students from many distant countries, come to him to discuss the complex issues of modern Vietnamese history, but sometimes just to verify a few historical documents.
Not only has he made great contributions to the cause of university education, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has also made many significant and long-term contributions to the cause of general education. He is the editor and author of many history textbooks. He also actively participates in teacher training and development activities, participates in and is the chief judge of many national history competitions for excellent students.
Besides his passionate love for teaching, the secret that helped Professor Dinh Xuan Lam become one of the great masters of modern Vietnamese history is his scientific and serious attitude towards his profession: always closely linking training with research, taking his diligent and passionate research as a foundation for every hour on the podium.
Throughout his life, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam was a shining example in scientific research and through his works, he firmly affirmed the stature and academic reputation of an outstanding scientist. Starting with the series of worksModern History of Vietnamfrom 1958 which he contributed to complete under the guidance of Professor Tran Van Giau and ended with the bookHistory of Vietnam Volume IIIwhich he edited and published with his students in 2016, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has spent nearly 6 decades as a writer. With over 400 works published in both Vietnam and abroad, he is certainly one of the greatest authors in the modern Vietnamese historical literature and is also one of the few people most cited by international scholars.
But what made Dinh Xuan Lam famous in the social science community of our country is not the quantity but the quality and influence of the scientific works he published. For decades, he devoted his heart, mind and passion to researching the history of patriotic and revolutionary movements in modern Vietnam. Hundreds of his research articles on the resistance war against the French, the Can Vuong Movement, the Dong Du and Duy Tan movements, the Viet Nam Quang Phuc Hoi and especially the patriotic movement under the banner of Ho Chi Minh's ideology have become the main learning materials and the foundation for the entire research and teaching of modern Vietnamese history. In order to understand more correctly and fully the movements for reform and national salvation in modern times, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam has gradually expanded the scope of his research interests to the fields of economics, society, culture, religion and ideology and in each of these fields he has made outstanding contributions.
The most outstanding feature of Professor Dinh Xuan Lam's research is historical data. Historical data was collected from many sources, extremely rich, and he meticulously examined, carefully researched to the source, compared, and contrasted to determine the value and reliability of each piece of information. That honest and professional attitude was consistently maintained by him, considered the supreme principle of a historian, and helped him become a truly erudite scholar. With that position and extensive professional experience, Professor Dinh Xuan Lam participated in and chaired many scientific forums at home and abroad, and wherever he went, he won the trust, love, and respect of his colleagues thanks to his serious, scientific, open, and sincere working attitude, always respecting differences in professional discussions, but also being brave and determined when it was necessary to protect scientific truths and historical facts.
In addition to teaching and scientific research, Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam also enthusiastically participated and had a high sense of responsibility in union activities. Since his time teaching in Thanh Hoa, he has been actively involved in the Union activities. Later, he also held the position of Secretary of the Union of the Faculty of History for many years, contributing a lot of time and effort to strengthening the solidarity and friendship of the brothers and sisters in the Faculty. The position he held the longest and from which he contributed the most was Head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Vietnamese History. During the 32 years from 1958 to 1990, he led the building of the Department into a strong and united scientific collective, directly training many excellent teachers and scientists, contributing to the overall achievements and reputation of the Faculty of History - Hanoi National University. From 1988 to 2015, he continuously held the position of Vice President of the Vietnam Historical Science Association. With his great prestige, he has made important contributions to the great achievements of the Association and strengthened the love and solidarity of the team of history lovers, researchers and history teachers nationwide. Prof. Dinh Xuan Lam is also a highly prestigious and beloved leader of the UNESCO Science Center, the Pham Than Duat Award Council and he is also a long-term and effective collaborator with many large scientific, educational and cultural agencies such as the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, the National Political Publishing House, the Education Publishing House, the Vietnam History Museum, the Ho Chi Minh Museum, the Vietnam Military History Institute, the Far East Archaeological Institute, etc.
For his hometown Huong Son, Ha Tinh, he always devoted a wholehearted love. His deep feelings and pride for his hometown Nghe An were expressed in many pages of writing, especially in two works.Nghe Tinh - yesterday and today(1986) andHistory of Ha Tinh(2 volumes, 2000) which he and his fellow countrymen completed and published. He also had deep affection for Thanh Hoa - the place he considered his second hometown, and for the capital Hanoi, where he lived, worked and devoted himself until his last breath. The ancient capital Hue also left him with many unforgettable memories of his student life at Quoc Hoc Hue School.
Due to his outstanding contributions to science and education, in 1984, he was awarded the title of Professor by the State. He was also one of the first people to be awarded the noble title of People's Teacher in 1988. Professor Dinh Xuan Lam was also awarded noble medals by the Party and the State: First-class Labor Medal (2006) and Third-class Independence Medal (2016).
Dear ladies and gentlemen!
Professor, People's Teacher Dinh Xuan Lam has left us forever!
The family and clan were in pain at the loss of an exemplary husband, a kind, responsible, tolerant father and a gentle, exemplary grandfather.
The country's science and education sector lost a great scientist and an exemplary teacher.
Friends and colleagues lost a close and very trustworthy colleague, intelligent, erudite but also very simple, humorous and humble.
Generations of History students will now lose a respected teacher who was always dedicated to his profession and wholeheartedly loved, taught, and guided his students.
The Master shared when he retired nearly 30 years ago, that“If there is an afterlife and I could choose a career again, I would still choose teaching.”will forever be engraved in the hearts of generations of students and colleagues of the Teacher. I vow to be a worthy successor to the example of dedicated work, creativity, and wholehearted devotion to the profession and life of the Teacher!
Dear bereaved family.
In this moment of sorrow, on behalf of the school's staff, friends, colleagues and generations of students of Professor Dinh Xuan Lam, we would like to express our deepest condolences and send our deepest condolences to his family.
Let us all take a minute of silence to remember and pay tribute to Professor Dinh Xuan Lam and together send him off to his final resting place./.
Author:USSH
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