Translations of Vietnamese Historical Texts
Introduction
This web site contains English-language translations of Vietnamese historical texts. It also contains searchable versions of the classical Chinese (Hán) originals.
At present there are three texts available in translation here.
- The Outer Annals (Ngoại kỷ) of the Complete Book of the Historical Records of Đại Việt (Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư)
- The Prefatory Compilation (Tiền biên) of the Imperially Commissioned Itemized Summaries of the Comprehensive Mirror of Việt History (Khâm định Việt sử thông giám cương mục)
- The Arrayed Tales of Selected Oddities from South of the Passes (Lính Nam chích quái liệt truyện)
For more information about these texts, and for specific information about the manuscript version that each translation is based on, please consult the main page for each of these texts in the navigation bar on the left (i.e., ĐVSKTT, KĐVSTGCM and LNCQLT).
Acknowledgments
The translation of the first two texts above was made possible through the generous support of a translation grant under the Henry Luce Foundation/ACLS Grants to Individuals in East and Southeast Asian Archaeology and Early History.
The input of the Chinese text for those two texts was supported by a National Resource Center Grant from the U.S. Department of Education to the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. I would like to thank Mr. Tang Kwok Leong for undertaking that demanding task.
A Caveat
Translations are never a complete substitute for original texts. They are merely tools that can help us access texts more quickly and easily. Readers are encouraged to keep this in mind when they make use of this web site. It is highly likely that there are still errors in these translations and in the transcription of the classical Chinese originals. Should you encounter any errors or have suggestions for better translations, please feel free to let me know.
How to Cite These Translations
1) The Complete Book of the Historical Records of Đại Việt [Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư] was compiled by Ngô Sĩ Liên in 1479 C.E. The version that was used for this translation was a copy of the 1697 C.E. Chính Hòa edition (reference number A. 3).
In a footnote:
Ngô Sĩ Liên, Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư [Complete Book of the Historical Records of Đại Việt], trans. Liam C. Kelley, (1479, 1697 ed.), Viet Texts, https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012], NK 1/1a.
In a bibliography:
Ngô Sĩ Liên. Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư [Complete Book of the Historical Records of Đại Việt]. Translated by Liam C. Kelley. 1479, 1697 ed. Viet Texts. https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012].
2) The Imperially Commissioned Itemized Summaries of the Comprehensive Mirror of Việt History [Khâm định Việt sử thông giám cương mục] was compiled by a group of scholars led by Phan Thanh Giản. The compilation of this work began in 1856 and was completed in 1881. The version that was used for this translation is one that was published by the National Central Library in Taibei in 1969. This version appears to be the same as that with the reference number of A. 2674.
In footnote:
Phan Thanh Giản et al., Khâm định Việt sử thông giám cương mục [Imperially Commissioned Itemized Summaries of the Comprehensive Mirror of Việt History], trans. Liam C. Kelley, (1998), Viet Texts, https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012], TB 1/1a.
In bibliography:
Phan Thanh Giản et al. Khâm định Việt sử thông giám cương mục [Imperially Commissioned Itemized Summaries of the Comprehensive Mirror of Việt History]. Translated by Liam C. Kelley. 1881. Viet Texts. https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012].
3) The Arrayed Tales of Selected Oddities from South of the Passes [Lính Nam chích quái liệt truyện] was compiled by Vũ Quỳnh in 1492 C.E. The copy I used to make this translation is preserved on a microfilm made by the École Française d’Extrême-Orient (EFEO) in the 1950s. It is listed under the reference number of A. 1200, however this text is clearly not A. 1200 version. The A. 1200 version contains 45 stories in three fascicles, while this version has 22 stories in two fascicles. That makes this version the same as the A. 33 version in terms of its overall content. However, the text on microfilm also contains a list of rulers from the time of the Hồng Bàng Clan to the year 1767 C.E. This appears to be different from the A. 33 edition. This version of the text therefore may be one that is no longer extant in Vietnam. Until I can view the A. 33 version, I am tentatively calling this manuscript the “EFEO A. 33 version.”
For parts of the translation of this text I was assisted by Stephen Flanigan, Phùng Minh Hiếu and Tang Kwok Leong.
In footnote:
Vũ Quỳnh, comp., Lính Nam chích quái liệt truyện [Arrayed Tales of Selected Oddities from South of the Passes], trans. Liam C. Kelley et al., (1492), Viet Texts, https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012], 1/1a.
In bibliography:
Vũ Quỳnh, comp. Lính Nam chích quái liệt truyện [Arrayed Tales of Selected Oddities from South of the Passes]. Translated by Liam C. Kelley et al. 1492. Viet Texts. https://sites.google.com/a/hawaii.edu/viet-texts/ [accessed September 1, 2012].
Liam C. Kelley