Part I: Renowned Since the Age of 20
(Dantri) – At just 20 years old, Hà Văn Tấn was entrusted by Professor Đào Duy Anh with editing and annotating the translation of Dư địa chí (Geography of the Realm) by Nguyễn Trãi. Such a responsibility from a scholar of Đào Duy Anh’s stature reflected immense trust in the young Hà Văn Tấn.
By the age of 30, Hà Văn Tấn, together with Phạm Thị Tâm, published The Resistance Against the Mongol–Yuan Invasion in the 13th Century, a book praised by eminent scholars such as Hoàng Xuân Hãn and Hoài Thanh, and deemed by historian Nguyễn Vinh Phúc as “a masterpiece of historiography.” This was the very book President Hồ Chí Minh read shortly before his passing.
A Rising Academic Star
In 1958, just after graduating from university and entering journalism, I was fortunate to be assigned a small loft in a house at 28 Lê Thái Tổ Street, right by Hoàn Kiếm Lake. I shared this building with Mr. Phùng Bảo Thạch, Vice President of the Vietnam Journalists Association, and Mr. Chu Thiên, author of the historical novel Reflections on Sword Lake, and a staff editor at Hanoi General University.
At that time, I often stayed up late reading the multi-volume A Comprehensive History of Chinese Thought, especially volumes on Confucianism, Mohism, Daoism, and the philosophies of Zisi and Mencius, authored by Hou Wailu, Zhao Jibin, and Duo Guotang, published in 1957 in Beijing. Though these books had little relevance to my daily journalism work at Hà Nội Mới newspaper, where I worked as a reporter, I read them with fervor.
One day, Mr. Chu Thiên asked me:
“Where are you from, Hàm Châu?”
“I’m from Nam Đàn, born and raised on pickled eggplant and salted bamboo shoots,” I replied.
“No wonder you have that Nghệ blood! I wake up at 1 a.m., look up, and your loft is still lit… Do you know Hà Văn Tấn? Nghệ Tĩnh soil is poor, but the people are diligent! Tấn is as thin as you are!… ‘Ten years of reading, poverty down to the bones!’ (Nguyễn Trãi). I haven’t worked with you, so I don’t know your classical Chinese skills. But Hà Văn Tấn—his Chinese is superb! He was the first to present a report on the Asiatic Mode of Production to the History Department. Then he published Revisiting the Totemism of Early Vietnamese, and took on editing and annotating the translation of Dư địa chí…”
The admiration from this veteran writer, who was well-versed in Chinese literature, sparked my curiosity about this “rising academic star,” as Mr. Chu Thiên described him.
Exceptional Talent Evident in His First Major Work
In 1960, when Dư địa chí by Nguyễn Trãi (1380–1442) was newly published by the Historical Publishing House and sold at Tràng Tiền bookstore, I bought it immediately. As a young writer focused on Hanoi’s heritage, I read the book repeatedly—especially the section on the imperial capital. Through Nguyễn Trãi’s work, I learned that 15th-century Thăng Long had craft villages like Yên Thái for papermaking, Thụy Chương and Nghi Tàm for weaving silk and fabrics, Hàng Đào for dyeing in vibrant reds, Thịnh Quang known for longan fruit, and Tây Hồ for its large fish…
The book was translated from classical Chinese into modern Vietnamese by scholar Nguyễn Duy Tiếp. It’s remarkable that Professor Đào Duy Anh entrusted the young Hà Văn Tấn—just past his twenties—to edit and annotate the work, and write the foreword.
Although labeled “annotations,” his commentary spanned 115 pages—three times the length of the original text (only 38 pages). Such depth was necessary because Hà Văn Tấn had to trace the geographical names across centuries and identify their modern equivalents. This required extensive study of nearly all historical Vietnamese geographical texts.
Later, historian Nguyễn Vinh Phúc attempted a rough tally and found that, for his annotations, Hà Văn Tấn consulted 30 classical Chinese works and 16 Vietnamese historical sources. Of these, only one had been translated into modern Vietnamese; the rest he read in original Chinese, including works like Shuijing Zhu, Book of Han, Book of the Later Han, Chronicles of Shu, Southern Chronicles of Shu (Chinese), as well as Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư, Khâm định Việt sử Thông giám cương mục, and An Nam chí lược (Vietnamese).
In his essay Hà Văn Tấn as I Knew Him, Nguyễn Vinh Phúc wrote:
“The depth of his classical learning was extraordinary! As Corneille once said: ‘Greatness does not wait for age.’”
In his commentary, Hà Văn Tấn also accurately pointed out later interpolations and errors in the surviving editions of Dư địa chí.
According to Professor Phan Huy Lê, during a departmental meeting at the Faculty of Vietnamese Ancient and Medieval History, Professor Đào Duy Anh remarked on Hà Văn Tấn’s work:
“A meticulous and serious piece of scholarship. I am very pleased and trust the author.”
Professor Phan Huy Lê added:
“His talent and academic integrity were already evident in this first major work. He held source material in the highest regard, diligently searched for new evidence, verified every detail before including it in his research.”
A Masterpiece of Historical Scholarship
Many years later, another work by Hà Văn Tấn (co-authored with Phạm Thị Tâm) stirred great interest, compelling me to read it. That was The Resistance Against the Mongol–Yuan Invasion in the 13th Century, published in 1968. Literary scholar Hoài Thanh wrote an enthusiastic review, calling it a serious work of history, yet as gripping as a great novel. Personally, I’ve rarely encountered a history book as captivating! Without exaggeration, I read it no fewer than five times!
To write this book, Hà Văn Tấn had to consult nearly a hundred sources in various languages.
He even referenced the Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh (Compendium of Chronicles), a Persian chronicle by 13th-century historian Fazl Allah Rasid ud-Din of present-day Iran. Thanks to Hà Văn Tấn, we now know that as early as the 13th century, the victory of Kiefce-Kue (Giao Chỉ Quốc, i.e., Đại Việt) over Tugan (also known as Thoát Hoan) echoed all the way to West Asia. The historian from Hamadhan (near modern Tehran) recorded the event with admiration in his chronicles.
Here is a brief excerpt from the Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh:
“Tugan entered that country (i.e., Giao Chỉ) and took control of the coastal cities, ruling there for a week. But suddenly, from the sea, from the forests, from the mountains, forces of that country emerged and defeated Tugan’s looting army. Tugan fled and returned to encamp at Lukin-fu.”
Tugan is the Sinicized name Thoát Hoan; Lukin-fu refers to Long Hưng Phủ (in modern Jiangxi province, China).
Professor Hoàng Xuân Hãn praised Hà Văn Tấn’s discovery of Persian and Arabic historical sources—ones previously unreadable to Vietnamese scholars.
Historian Nguyễn Vinh Phúc regarded the book by Hà Văn Tấn and Phạm Thị Tâm as “a masterpiece of historical scholarship.”
The Book President Hồ Chí Minh Read Before His Passing
Of course, first and foremost, Hà Văn Tấn thoroughly researched all available Vietnamese historical sources on the resistance against the Mongol–Yuan invasions. These included the Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư by Ngô Sĩ Liên, the Khâm định Việt sử thông giám cương mục compiled by the Nguyễn dynasty’s National History Bureau, and numerous inscriptions—such as the stele of Princess Phượng Dung (wife of Trần Quang Khải), and the bell inscription at Bạch Hạc, recounting the campaigns of Trần Nhật Duật.
Even An Nam chí lược by Lê Trắc was not overlooked. Though Lê Trắc was a retainer of Trần Kiện—who defected to the Yuan forces in 1285—and though the book, written in the early 14th century, takes a pro-Yuan stance, it preserves valuable records such as correspondence between the Trần and Yuan emperors, and letters from diplomats and officials. These are crucial for understanding diplomatic relations during that era. Moreover, at times, even Lê Trắc could not conceal the disgraceful defeats suffered by the invaders and their collaborators.
With a selective and critical approach, Hà Văn Tấn also consulted numerous Chinese sources from the Yuan dynasty, especially biographical entries related to Đại Việt and Champa. He studied Yuan-era Chinese inscriptions about generals who fought in Đại Việt, as well as poetry written by Yuan envoys to Đại Việt.
For instance, Trần Phu, who came to Thăng Long in 1292, expressed his dread and anxiety in the poem Feelings After Returning from a Diplomatic Mission:
Kim qua ảnh lý đan tâm khổ
(In the shadow of spears, my heart writhed in anguish)Đồng cổ thanh trung bạch phát sinh!
(The sound of bronze drums turned my hair white!)Dĩ hạnh quy lai thân kiện tại
(Luckily, I returned safely, body intact)Mộng hồi do giác chướng hồn kinh!
(Yet even in dreams, I relive the terror)
As many know, the book The Resistance Against the Mongol–Yuan Invasion in the 13th Century was read by President Hồ Chí Minh shortly before his passing. He sent his regards to both authors, Hà Văn Tấn and Phạm Thị Tâm.
Final Part: “Tracing Ancient Cultures” and the Ho Chi Minh Prize
(Dân Trí) — Hà Văn Tấn never had the chance to study abroad. He “shared every bowl of rice, every blanket” with his fellow countrymen and comrades during the hard years of “ginger’s heat and salt’s sting.” Yet, many of his works were published in countries across the world…
A Horizontal Board Inscribed by Emperor Kangxi
In the 1980s, I was Editor-in-Chief of Tổ Quốc magazine, an intellectual journal chaired by Professor Nguyễn Xiển, with Professor Hoàng Minh Giám as Vice Chairman. The editorial board, meeting every three months, included figures such as Nguyễn Đình Thi, Nguyễn Lân, Nguyễn Khắc Viện, Phan Huy Lê, Phan Đình Diệu, Đào Văn Tiến, Quang Đạm, and Trần Hữu Nghiệp.
We needed reputable contributors, so I often visited 20 Phan Huy Chú Street to meet Professor Hà Văn Tấn. He and his family lived in a 20-square-meter attic. The only valuables in the room were… books! Around a tiny bamboo table from Cao Bằng, sipping bitter-sweet Thái Nguyên tea, we would leisurely talk about “scholarly Nghệ An gentlemen” and our rustic homeland of “wooden fish.” Yet, he never once mentioned his prestigious family background.
It wasn’t until I read a 2000 New Year’s article in Sài Gòn Tiếp Thị about Hà Tông Mục’s teachings to his children that I learned more about the renowned Hà family of the literary land Nghi Xuân. In the ancestral hall, they still preserve a lacquered horizontal board inscribed in gold with three Chinese characters “Nhược Xung Hiên” — personally penned by Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, gifted to Dr. Hà Tông Mục when he served as Đại Việt’s chief envoy to Beijing in 1703. The phrase praises humility, intelligence, and noble spirit — qualities that earned Kangxi’s admiration.
Also displayed in the hall is a couplet written by Grand Scholar Phan Thanh Giản:
“Khai hoa sự nghiệp duy tiền bối,
Tuyệt thế văn chương tất đại gia.”
The ancestral hall and the tomb of Dr. Hà Tông Mục are now official historical and cultural relics of Hà Tĩnh Province. Many members of this great scholarly family were honored on doctoral stele. Dr. Hà Tông Mục’s predecessor, Dr. Hà Tông Trình, once served as Minister of Justice and Head of the Quốc Tử Giám (the equivalent of a national university president today), helping Emperor Lê Thánh Tông compile the Hồng Đức Code. The last person in the family to pass the imperial exam in 1919 was Hà Văn Đại.
The 850-Page Book and Vietnamese Archaeology
Though Hà Văn Tấn produced many outstanding historical works, it was his contributions to archaeology — particularly the 850-page volume Tracing Ancient Cultures (Theo dấu các văn hóa cổ, 1997) — that earned him the prestigious Ho Chi Minh Prize. Before the 1960s, archaeology in Vietnam was not yet recognized as an independent discipline. Hà Văn Tấn and Trần Quốc Vượng were its pioneering founders.
Archaeology includes fieldwork (surveying, excavating) and lab-based analysis, with fieldwork being the most crucial. Professor Hà Văn Tấn left his footprints across the country. Associate Professor Hán Văn Khẩn recalled:
“As always, I shared a room and bed with Professor Tấn. Thanks to huddling close for warmth, we survived the freezing, drizzling nights… Meals were extremely basic. Every day, we ate old, musty rice from storage, with nothing but watercress soup. Lunch: rice with soup. Dinner: same soup again! We were all sick of it — but without it, we couldn’t swallow the rice! … Yet the ‘joy’ outweighed the hardship. We uncovered many traces of bronze smelting furnaces, bronze slag, and mold fragments…”
Hà Văn Tấn never studied abroad. He shared both hardships and meals with the people during trying times. Yet, his works were published not only in Hanoi but also in Paris, Rotterdam, New York, Hawaii, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Bangkok.
A self-taught scholar, he supervised over 20 doctoral dissertations in Vietnam. In 2000, Paris 7 University invited him to serve on a PhD examination committee. He also lectured at prestigious universities abroad.
Proving the Indigenous Origins of Đông Sơn Culture
Through extensive fieldwork and research, Professor Hà Văn Tấn and his Vietnamese colleagues discovered and named many archaeological cultures. Scholars must thoroughly investigate prior work to identify untouched areas worth exploring. Research is about uncovering the new — not recycling the old.
Thanks to his command of English, French, Russian, German, Japanese, Nôm script, classical and modern Chinese (Mandarin), Sanskrit, and Pali — combined with advanced math and modern archaeological methods — he never allowed himself to become an “ignorant frog in a well,” masking superficial knowledge with flowery rhetoric.
Several foreign scholars claimed the brilliant Đông Sơn culture was not indigenous. O. Janse traced it to the Scythians of the Eurasian steppes. B. Karlgren linked it to China’s Huai River culture. R. Heine-Geldern attributed it to Tokharians migrating from the Black Sea.
Hà Văn Tấn firmly opposed such speculative theories. But refuting them wasn’t easy. He spent decades gathering solid evidence through fieldwork, mastering the latest research methods, and crafting airtight arguments to withstand critique from powerful foreign scholars and their students — since academic forums can be battlegrounds of intellectual warfare.
In numerous scientific papers, he convincingly argued that Đông Sơn culture evolved directly from pre-Đông Sơn cultures discovered in Vietnam. Before Đông Sơn was Gò Mun; before Gò Mun was Đồng Đậu; before Đồng Đậu was Phùng Nguyên.
Readers would enjoy his explorations of Phùng Nguyên culture in works such as:
- Phùng Nguyên People and Symmetry (1969)
- From Phùng Nguyên Ceramics to Bronze Drums (1974)
- Phùng Nguyên Culture and the Origins of the Vietnamese Nation (1975)
In these papers, filled with meticulous illustrations, he demonstrated that the “language” of Phùng Nguyên ceramics — in terms of vocabulary and grammar — closely matched the decorative language of Đông Sơn bronze artifacts. “Vocabulary” referred to types of motifs; “grammar” described how they were arranged on jars, vases, and drum surfaces.
Hà Văn Tấn emphasized:
“The similarities between Đông Sơn and Phùng Nguyên art affirm the Phùng Nguyên tradition within Đông Sơn culture. Đông Sơn culture originated from Phùng Nguyên, here on our homeland — not from some faraway civilization.”
Yet, as a careful scholar, he added:
“To strengthen this conclusion, more work is needed: more Phùng Nguyên ceramic materials must be collected; broader studies of Đông Sơn bronze items are essential; and the connection between Phùng Nguyên and Đông Sơn must be fully traced.”
He concluded:
“Undoubtedly, the bronze drum is a brilliant and unique creation of the Đông Sơn people. It marks a flourishing stage in Red River Delta civilization. A quantum leap occurred in the material and spiritual life of our Vietnamese ancestors… The birth of the bronze drum was the culmination of long-term development across many domains of life.”
Ham Chau
Original link: http://hoasymanhquynh.org/con-re-cua-hoa-sy-ngo-manh-quynh-gs-ha-van-tan-nha-hoc-gia-thong-kim-bac-co.html
