Illume – A great deal of books written by French about Vietnam have been translated in the last 10 years. Reconstructing Vietnamese cultural history at a time really needs this resource.
Many translations, many publishers joined in
Artist Tran Dai Thang, Director of Dong A Book Company, introduced the publication “Mot chien dich o Bac Ky” on his personal Facebook. Accordingly, there are 9 different points of “Dong A edition” from the original French and similar editions. For example, the book has a 7-page introduction, translator, 759-seat caption translator, donation of illustrations, photo copy, index, reference, and cover caption. This is also a part of the Indochina bookcase implemented by this unit.
In addition to Dong A, “Mot chien dich o Bac Ky” was also introduced by Omega Book, and Nha Nam is expected to launch later this year. “I think it is normal for many bookstores to translate the same French book about Vietnam. In part because there is no copyright restriction (the diary has copyright for 50 years since the work was first published). Partly because these books are also attracting readers, ”said a book collector.
French books about Vietnam which have been translated consecutively in recent times can be mentioned: “Tam ly dan toc An Nam” has two implementing units, Omega and Nha Nam; “Hoi uc kinh thanh Hue dau the ky XIX” was published by Thai Ha Book; “Xu Dong Duong” was translated by Alpha Book; “Quan va lai mien Bac Viet Nam-mot bo may hanh chinh truoc thu thach” was translated by Nha Nam …
Reference sources to restore the appearance of cultural history
According to PhD. Tran Dinh Hang, the harsh impacts of natural calamities and enemy sabotage have caused our Han-Nom historical legacy to be eroded, with heavy losses. Therefore, the addition of French bibliographic sources and also English, or Portuguese …will contribute practically to the gaps in Vietnamese history and culture, which have many brilliant golden points.
At present, the publishing units all think that the most difficult mission is finding French translators who can translate French writings about Vietnam. For instance, it took Omega Book three years to organize a translation team for the first batch of books.
“The transfer of a document from a foreign language into Vietnamese is not easy in terms of language, but it is to convey all information, messages of the work, of the author in the most compatible way. Therefore, it is necessary to regularly supplement and adjust by translators, experts and editors.”
PhD. Tran Dinh Hang
(Director of the National Institute of Culture and Arts in Hue)