No.044 - International Symposium 2019 “Japan-Vietnam Cooperation in the Humanities in the Global Era”
International Symposium 2019 “Japan-Vietnam Cooperation in the Humanities in the Global Era
LEE Sungsi,
Executive Director
National Institutes for the Humanities
On November 12, 2019, the National Institutes for the Humanities (NIHU) hosted a symposium under the theme “Japan-Vietnam Cooperation in the Humanities in the Global Era” to commemorate the conclusion of an Agreement for Academic Exchange and Cooperation between NIHU and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU-USSH). The event took place in VNU-USSH’s conference room.
Scholars from NIHU-affiliated institutes and their VNU-USSH counterparts discussed themes of common interest that would be suitable to pursue under the signing of a comprehensive agreement.
Scene from the signing of the agreement.
The presenters from NIHU were as follows:
(1) Unno Keisuke (National Institute of Japanese Literature) “The Transmission of Buddhism in Eastern Asia and the Culture of
Books in Vietnam and Japan”
(2) Araki Hiroshi (International Research Center for Japanese Studies) “The Practice and Rollout of Japanese Culture
Studies/Education in Vietnam: Potential for National-level Cooperation and Case Studies”
(3) Ishiguro Kei (National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics) “Vocabulary Acquisition by Vietnamese Students of
Japanese”
(4) Kurushima Hiroshi (National Museum of Japanese History) “Salvage and Utilization of Historical/Cultural Materials Damaged in
Natural Disasters: Activities Through the “Shiryō Net” (Network for Preserving Historical Materials) and “Inter-University
Research Institute Corporation Network Project for the Preservation of Historic and Cultural Materials”; co-presented with
Masashi Amano (National Museum of Japanese History)
(5) Saijō Tatsuyoshi (Research Institute for Humanity and Nature) “What Is Future Design?”
(1) Keisuke Unno discussed how imagery and pictorial materials in regions that adopted Buddhist teachings translated into Chinese (e.g., China, Vietnam, Japan, and South Korea) and apocryphal Buddhist scriptures from China profoundly affected religious and literary developments in Eastern Asia. According to Unno, these materials and scriptures eventually came to be supported by the general populace and widely accepted, in turn affecting the development of folkways and values within the region. Unno also provided a specific proposal for directions in East Asia and Vietnam studies through digitizing books and making data available.
(2) Hiroshi Araki shared specific examples of how Japanese studies in Vietnam has been extending across generations of scholars, building upon steady and continuous research exchange between Japan and Vietnam via the International Research Center for Japanese Studies (Nichibunken). Araki also discussed the potential for collaborative research relating to Buddhism, an important and common intellectual foundation shared by Japan and Vietnam since ancient times.
(3) Kei Ishiguro’s presentation focused on how Vietnamese engaged in Japanese language learning develop their vocabulary. Through comparison with Chinese who are studying Japanese, Ishiguro discussed two of his research topics—how learners guess the meaning of proper nouns, and their acquisition of onomatopoeia—based on studies conducted at VNU-USSH.
(4) Hiroshi Kurushima presented a networking project that leverages the “Shiryo Net” (Network for Preserving Historical Materials) and collaboration with various universities and museums that the National Museum of Japanese History has been promoting within Japan. Through the network and with special efforts at coordination, the project aims to transmit and create regional history and culture in a way that allows for balancing “development”-based sustainability with diversity in the Japanese islands. Kurushima also talked about the current significance that lies in the surveying, preservation, and utilization of materials related to regional history and culture.
(5) Using examples from Kyoto prefecture and the town of Yahaba, Iwate prefecture, Saijō Tatsuyoshi introduced the attractions and potential of “future design.” Saijō discussed what social structure we should design and put into practice, in order for us to pass down a sustainable natural environment and human society to future generations.
The presentations (4) and (5) were about specific cases of action being taken in Japan, and symposium participants expressed hopes of similar projects being implemented in Vietnam.
Scene from symposium: Simultaneous interpretation and slides presented in both Japanese and Vietnamese
The presenters from VNU-USSH were as follows:
(1) Phan Hải Linh “Women’s Roles in the Use of Cultural Assets: With Primary Focus on Matsuzaka Cotton and Kho Thieu Textiles”
(2) Vo Minh Vu “The Japanese Empire and Migration: A Case Study of Japanese Migration to Vietnam”
(3) Pham Le Huy “Vietnam’s Thang Long and the East Asian Castle-town System”
(1) Through comparative studies and long-term fieldwork in both Japan and Vietnam, Phan Hải Linh’s presentation attempted to confirm the hypothesis that Matsuzaka cotton—a specialty of Ise, Mie prefecture and an intangible cultural asset of Japan—was modeled after ryūjōfu fabric. Literally meaning “willow leaf vein cloth,” this textile is known to have been imported from Annam (modern-day Vietnam) by Kadoya Shichirobei, an early sixteenth-century merchant of Matsuzaka. Pham also discussed the significance of women’s roles in the utilization of cultural assets.
(2) Vo Minh Vu’s presentation dealt with Japanese emigration spanning the period from before to after World War II. Vo focused on Japanese migrant movements within the French Indochina region including Vietnam, a theme that has received little attention in previous studies. The presentation shed light on realities behind such migration, how migration-promoting policies were carried out, how Japanese migrants to French Indochina returned to Japan after the war, and how the Japanese who remained in Vietnam postwar were included into or excluded from Vietnam society.
(3) Pham Le Huy proposed the need for incorporating Vietnam into research on the East-Asian castle-town system, noting how these efforts conventionally have revolved around Japan-China or Japan-South Korea comparisons. Pham’s basis for this argument was that Vietnam’s extensive excavation initiative ongoing from 2000 on the imperial Thang Long citadel has moved East Asian castle-town studies into a new phase.
All three presentations were ambitious. Phan Hải Linh’s study was based on extensive fieldwork in both Japan and Vietnam based on wide-ranging outcomes of existing research, and Vo Minh Vu and Pham Le Huy empirically identified new facts through meticulous verification in historical records dating from time periods corresponding to each topic of research.
The presentations from both sides were well suited to the symposium’s theme: Japan-Vietnam Cooperation in the Humanities in the Global Era. In addition to affirming the deep historical ties shared by Japan and Vietnam, the presenters raised specific issues that could be shared through improved academic exchange between the two nations.
The symposium was attended by an audience of at least 80. Among them were not only USSH-related parties but also Japanology scholars from universities and institutes in Vietnam as well as USSH undergraduate and graduate students. Although the issues discussed in the symposium spanned a wide range of fields in the humanities, the outstanding performance of the interpreters enabled participants to engage in lively dialogue. We would like to express our gratitude to the Japan Foundation for their cooperation and support for this symposium.
Commemorative photo after the ceremony marking conclusion of the Agreement.
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