Professor Ahn Kyong Hwan, of Chosun University in South Korea has become famous for his great contributions to Vietnam.
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| A photo of Professor Ahn in Vietnam |
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| Professor Ahn at a seminar on Ho Chi Minh heritage in Hanoi |
Over the years Ahn, who’s become a sort of unofficial ambassador of Vietnamese culture to his native land, simply started out by studying the language in order to find work.
In 1974 he applied to the Vietnamese language department of a university in South Korea. He thought that his Vietnamese would help land him a job with a company who wanted to invest in the country. But in 1975, with Vietnam’s reunification and the cessation of diplomatic relations between the two countries, trade also dried up and his hopes were all but dashed.
It wasn’t until 1989 when the Hyundai Group of South Korea recruited him as a country representative to Vietnam.
After some time, he rose to the post of Director of Hyundai’s offices in the country.
The more time he spends here and the more he’s studied, the more he’s grown to love the place.
He eventually persuaded Chosun University to start a new class, taught by him, called, “Understanding Vietnam”.
At first he worried that not enough students would be interested and it might be cancelled. However his efforts came to pay off. After two years, nearly 600 students have enrolled.
His knowledge of the culture is quite deep. He was the first person to translate Vietnamese literary works such as “Truyện Kiều” (also known as the tale of Kieu), “Nhật ký trong tù” (known as Prison diary) and “Nhật ký Đặng Thùy Trâm” (known as Dang Thuy Tram’s Diary), into Korean. He is also in the process of translating General Vo Nguyen Giap’s memoirs.
“I’ve never considered Vietnam a foreign country. I love everything about it. I especially love the people for their rustic simplicity and strength,” Ahn commented.
The first printing of his translation work only produced just 300 copies. Now his fifth printing will be 2,700.
Commenting on translating the Tale of Kieu, he said, “I had read the Vietnamese version so many times that I knew it by heart. I also read some English and Chinese versions for reference. It took ten months for me to translate that book.”
Ahn is also the director of the Sejong Languages Centre in Ho Chi Minh City. One of their goals is to help facilitate understanding between Vietnamese/South Korean couples. Trying to minimise avoidable conflicts between Vietnamese brides and South Korean grooms could prevent divorces.
More and more Vietnamese women are marrying South Korean men. He plans to make a film on the subject in hopes of attracting support from the government of South Korea as from NGOs.
Because of his contributions, Professor Ahn Kyong Hwan was among only five foreigners who were invited to attend the 8th National Patriotic Emulation Congress in Hanoi on December 27, 2010.