"The Influences and Imprints of Soviet Ethnology in Anthropology in Vietnam in the Second Half of the 20th Century"

Attending the discussion, on the guest side were: Prof. Dr. Ngo Van Le - former Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU-HCM, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Cao The Trinh - Chairman of the Council of Dalat University, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lam Ba Nam - Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Ethnology and Anthropology, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vuong Xuan Tinh - Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Ethnology and Anthropology, and scientists from domestic universities and research institutes such as Hue University of Sciences, Dalat University, Hanoi National University of Education, etc.; on the side of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU-Hanoi, there were: Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Kim - Party Committee Secretary, Vice Rector of the University; and all lecturers and scientists from the Faculty of Anthropology, Faculty of History, and Faculty of Philosophy.

The seminar had the participation of many scientists and anthropology researchers from universities and research institutes.

The French-model Ethnological tradition was formed in Vietnam from the beginning of the 20th century. In the second half of the 20th century, the Soviet-model Ethnological tradition was gradually built, developed and made important contributions to the state and society. Since the early 1990s, in the context of innovation and international integration, Ethnology has been transformed and developed into Anthropology. The process of innovation, development and expansion of the research and training subjects of the discipline has brought new opportunities, and at the same time raised the need to better understand the history of Vietnamese Anthropology from its origins to the present. Therefore, the Scientific Seminar “Influences and imprints of Soviet Ethnology in Anthropology in Vietnam in the second half of the 20th century” was organized to clarify the form, level of influence and imprints of the Soviet Ethnological tradition in an important historical period of Anthropology in Vietnam. Specifically, what influences, contributions and marks did Soviet academia have on Vietnamese Anthropology in particular and the country's scientific fields in general in the second half of the 20th century?

In his opening speech, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Kim (Party Committee Secretary, Vice Rector of the University) said that the contribution of Soviet science to Vietnam in the three decades of 60, 70, and 80 was very important. Cadres who studied and worked in the Soviet Union during this period returned to Vietnam and passed on the torch to the following generations, creating conditions for the formation of the Soviet ethnographic tradition in our country. The legacy of Soviet ethnography is very large, contributing many fundamental viewpoints to textbooks and monographs in Vietnam. Therefore, this discussion has a very profound academic significance. It not only looks back at the legacies and typical contributions of Soviet ethnology and anthropology, but also affirms the process of creative adaptation to world academic trends and movements of Vietnamese academics. The Vice Rector also expressed his thanks to the Wenner-Gren Foundation for sponsoring this discussion.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Kim delivered the opening speech at the seminar.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Van Kim andAssociate Professor, Dr. Lam Ba Nam chaired subcommittee 1 of the seminar.

The seminar includes 19 reports and is divided into 3 sub-committees with the following main contents:

1.The Influence and Imprint of Soviet Ethnology in Anthropology in Vietnam: A Macro Perspectivewith a number of presentations such as "From Soviet Ethnology to Vietnamese Ethnology: Common Sources, Private Capital" by Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Chinh (Faculty of Anthropology, VNU); "Influence and Marks of Soviet Ethnology in Vietnamese Anthropology" by Professor, Dr. Ngo Van Le (Faculty of Anthropology, VNU-HCM); "Soviet Ethnological Heritage and Its Influence on the Development of Vietnamese Ethnology" by Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Tiep (Faculty of Anthropology, VNU-HCM).

2.The Influence and Imprint of Soviet Ethnology in Anthropology in Vietnam: Disciplinary and Institutional Perspectiveswith some papers such as "The impact of Soviet Archaeology on Vietnamese Archaeology" by Associate Professor, Dr. Lam My Dung (Faculty of History, VNU), "The influence of the Soviet Ethnology School at Dalat University from 1984 to present" by Associate Professor, Dr. Cao The Trinh (Da Lat).

3.The Influence and Imprint of Soviet Ethnology in Anthropology in Vietnam: Scientists' Perspectiveswith a number of presentations such as "The Soviet Union/Russian Federation and the training of cadres for Vietnam - Some comments" by Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Thinh (Faculty of History, VNU); "Professor Phan Huu Dat: The influence and imprint of Soviet Ethnology on Vietnamese ethnology/anthropology" by Dr. Dinh Thi Thanh Huyen (Faculty of Anthropology, VNU).