Poet Tran Dang Khoa awarded abroad

Well known Vietnamese poet Tran Dang Khoa has been honoured with the Sunthorn Phu Award in recognition of his great contributions to Southeast Asian art and literature.

Well known Vietnamese poet Tran Dang Khoa has been honoured with the Sunthorn Phu Award in recognition of his great contributions to Southeast Asian art and literature.

Poet Tran Dang Khoa

Sunthorn Phu (1786–1855) was a famous poet in Thailand and an outstanding global cultural activist. His greatest work – the epic ‘Phra Aphai Mani’, is considered an encyclopedia that has had strong influence on the spiritual lives of the Thai people for over two centuries.

This year, the Sunthorn Phu Award was presented to 10 ASEAN poets, including Tran Dang Khoa from Vietnam.

Addressing the awards ceremony, Khoa expressed his admiration for the great Thai poet and the award named after him, saying his winning prize will encourage him to to introduce Vietnamese literature to international readers.

He also mentioned the late great Vietnamese great poet Nguyen Du, who is famous for Truyen Kieu (The Tale of Kieu), and who, together with Sunthorn Phu, will continue influencing readers and writers in the region and around the world.