The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Training, NguyenThien Nhan, commenced the event with the appreciation to international friendsfor their presence in Vietnam’s capital that is celebrating its millenniumanniversary later this year.
“The conference is the first step for acomprehensive study of the Vietnamese literature and culture and a launching padfor the work of translating and promoting Vietnamese literature and culture toall parts of the world,” Nhan said.
He added that in general,distributing best-seller literature worldwide would bring happiness to peopleand contribute to peace over the world.
A number of Vietnamese famousliterature works, such as classic “Kieu Story” by Nguyen Du (1765-1820) andpoems by female poet Ho Xuan Huong (late 18th and early 19th century) andVietnam’s first President Ho Chi Minh, have been translated into foreignlanguages.
The President of the Vietnam Writers Association, poet HuuThinh, said
the association has been aware of the importance to expandinternational exchange and cooperation as a decisive factor of development.
Since the translation conference in 2002, the number of Vietnameseliterature translated into foreign languages have increased considerably. Mostrecently, the classic poem collection between the 10th and 19th century weretranslated into Polish. Of note, the “Dang Thuy Tram’s diary” has been warmlywelcomed by foreign readers.
So far, most literary trends have beenintroduced into Vietnam, even in harsh times of war.
Up to 2007, around13,700 foreign literary works have been translated and published in Vietnam,accounting for 25 percent of literature books available in bookstores./.