Hanoi (VNA) - Amid deeper international integration, the Vietnamese language serves not only as a means of communication but also as a repository of the nation’s history, knowledge, cultural identity and collective memory.
The Vietnamese Language Cultural Heritage Club was officially launched at the Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam Cultural and Scientific Activities Centre in Hanoi on July 8, to connect Vietnamese language enthusiasts at home and abroad to preserve the Vietnamese language as a cultural heritage.
The club was established by the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Conservation Support Fund to bring together researchers, experts, educators, and all of those who share an interest in the Vietnamese language.
Through a range of networking and cultural activities, the club will preserve the value of the Vietnamese language while spreading it through international integration.
According to club chairwoman Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam, drawing on the UNESCO view that language is a core means of transmitting intangible cultural heritage, the club serves as a common platform connecting knowledge and practice for different generations in Vietnam and abroad.
It will also seek to foster love for Vietnamese among younger generations, support overseas Vietnamese communities and engage international friends interested in Vietnamese culture.
Following its establishment, the club plans to launch a number of key programmes, including a Vietnamese Language Heritage Day and annual events celebrating the language.
Forums, seminars, and discussions on preserving Vietnamese will also be organised, alongside Vietnamese language and cultural experiences for children, overseas Vietnamese and foreigners interested in the language and Vietnamese culture.
The club is also expected to work with schools, research institutes and domestic and international educational and cultural organisations to develop Vietnamese language training programmes.
Competitions and cultural, artistic and heritage-experience programmes will be organised for young people and international communities.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, Nguyen Quynh Mai, Vice Chairwoman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described the club’s establishment as a meaningful initiative reflecting attention to and responsibility for preserving Vietnamese, a core element of national cultural identity.
She noted that for the 6.5 million Vietnamese living, studying and working in more than 130 countries and territories, Vietnamese is far more than a means of communication.
The language serves as a family memory, a bond with the homeland and a repository of the nation’s cultural, historical and traditional values. Wherever they live, Vietnamese people can maintain a connection with their roots through their mother tongue, she said.
The Vietnamese Party and State have consistently attached importance to preserving and promoting the Vietnamese language among overseas Vietnamese communities, from the project on Vietnamese Language Honour Day for overseas Vietnamese communities for 2023-2030 to recent major resolutions of the Politburo.
Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW on breakthroughs in education and training development and Resolution No. 80-NQ/TW on Vietnamese cultural development both call for broader Vietnamese language teaching, greater promotion of traditional cultural values and the expansion of cultural and Vietnamese language club models within overseas Vietnamese communities.
Mai said the establishment of the Vietnamese Language Cultural Heritage Club represented a timely and practical step towards putting these policies into practice.
She stressed that the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese stands ready to work with and support the club in promoting Vietnamese, popularising Vietnamese culture and strengthening connections among overseas Vietnamese communities./.
