Towards establishing a subject called "Maritime and Island Archaeology of Vietnam"

Attending the workshop were Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Kim, Secretary of the Party Committee and Vice Rector of the University; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lam Thi My Dung, Director of the Museum of Anthropology, University of Social Sciences and Humanities; and representatives from 16 participating research units. Among them were leading and reputable research units such as the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and the Institute of Archaeology under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.

Speaking at the ceremony, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Van Kim affirmed the importance of marine and island archaeology to the national sovereignty over the sea and islands: “With the participation of representatives from 16 units and 29 reports, in an analytical and combined approach, research between specialized and multidisciplinary fields will surely provide an objective and comprehensive view of Vietnam's maritime position, the role of the sea in the development of ancient cultures and kingdoms, the process of exploitation at sea, the establishment of sovereignty at sea, and the extremely arduous process of protecting Vietnam's maritime sovereignty.”

Simultaneously, at the conference, scientists from within and outside the university, both domestically and internationally, discussed several theoretical and methodological issues in marine and island archaeology, and especially the long-term direction for the development of the archaeology ngành of the History Faculty at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities. Coupled with the ongoing and pressing issue in the East Sea, the inclusion of the course "Marine and Island Archaeology of Vietnam" in the curriculum in the near future is highly necessary.

Among the 29 reports presented at the conference were important reports affirming Vietnam's sovereignty over its islands in the East Sea, such as "Archaeological Documents Contributing to Affirming Vietnam's Sovereignty in Hoang Sa and Truong Sa" by Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang Ngoc (Institute of Vietnamese Studies and Development Science, Vietnam National University, Hanoi); and archaeological discoveries in the Truong Sa archipelago by Dr. Lai Van Toi (Center for Imperial City Research). In fact, since 2014, China has conducted illegal archaeological excavations around Vietnam's Hoang Sa archipelago and declared its intention to register the "East Sea Maritime Silk Road" as a World Heritage Site. Therefore, archaeological research documents affirming that the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos belong to Vietnam are very important.

The conference program will take place over two days, May 7th and 8th. Today, delegates will participate in a workshop on presented reports at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities. Tomorrow, delegates will visit the Bach Dang stake field historical site (Quang Ninh).