Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

From: Ngo Thanh Nhan via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Saturday, April 5, 2025 7:25 PM
To: Eric Henry <henryhme@bellsouth.net>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] [External] Re: Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Eric and Tan,

Thank you.

Early 2000s Virginia Shih of UC Berkeley told me that many libraries listed Nôm works in the Chinese section, simply because they have Chinese titles when the coverage was totally in Vietnam then. Quốc ngữ transliteration of ideographic titles and creators, consistent with coverage info, helps librarians as well as readers.

Best,

Nhàn

Temple University

From: Eric Henry via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Saturday, April 5, 2025 5:40 AM
To: Nhan Ngo <nhan@temple.edu>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear anh Nhan and others on this thread,

   In accordance with your sensible suggestion that material from Vietnamese ideographic sources be represented by Sino-Vietnamese rather than Mandarin spellings, I’m happy to repost the titles I mentioned in my recent message with the suggested Latin-letter equivalents:

   Thiền Uyển Tập 禪苑集 (mentioned in LNCQ 24)

   Bắc Cực 北極 (mentioned in LNCQ 26)

   Bảo Cực 保極 (mentioned in LNCQ 27) 

   Đỗ Thiện 杜善 and Sử Ký Đỗ Thiện 杜善史記 (mentioned in LNCQ 33 and 36) 

   Đô Lỗ 都魯 (mentioned in LNCQ 34) 

   Cổ Pháp Ký 古法記 (mentioned in LNCQ 35)

   stele: Ký Đức Bi (Bia Ký Đức) 紀德碑 (mentioned in LNCQ 35)

   reign period: “Thiếu Bảo 紹保 (mentioned in LNCQ 24)

   Also, my email friend anh Tấn tells me that he has seen different versions of the Sino-Vietnamese names for a couple of the works listed above: "Thiền Uyển Tập Anh” instead of "Thiền Uyển Tập,” and  "Cổ Châu Pháp Vân Phật Bản Hành Ngữ” instead of "Cổ Pháp Ký.” I would love toknow more about this.

Sincerely,

Eric

Eric Henry, PhD, Senior Lecturer (retired), UNC-CH

Dept. of Asian Studies

Home address: 106 Jones Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

From: Tan Pham via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Friday, April 4, 2025 10:00 PM
To: Nhan Ngo <nhan@temple.edu>
Cc: vsg@u.washington.edu
Subject: Re: [Vsg] [External] Re: Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái and reference

Dear anh Nhan,

Yes, it is a sensible suggestion, but it does not always work. 

It is an issue that I have faced while writing my books. I have a choice of using the Sino-Vietnamese words (Latin alphabet), Pinyin, Chinese scripts or English when referring to book titles and official ranks and titles. Most English readers prefer to read the English translation of the title, for example, A Collection of Strange Stories from Lingnan for Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái. I can add '嶺南摭怪', but there is no need for Pinyin, which would have been 'Lǐngnán zhí guài', according to Google Translate. I should point out that even if they can read the word, most Vietnamese would not know what Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái is. 

When I first came across it, I did not understand what  Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái (LNCQ) meant. What's Lĩnh Nam? What is Chích Quái? According to Nguyễn Hữu Vinh and Trần Đình Hoành (2015), Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái (嶺南摭怪) is  “Lựa chọn những chuyện quái dị ở Lĩnh Nam” (嶺南) with Lĩnh Nam being the region south of Mount Ngũ Lĩnh (Wu Ling). By the way, the five mountains are Yuecheng (or Yuechengling) (Hunan-Guangxi border), Dupang (Hunan-Guangxi border), Mengzhu (Hunan-Guangxi border), Qitian (near Hunan-Guangzhou border), Dayu (Jiangxi-Guangdong) south of Ganzhou. This region encompasses present-day Guangxi and Guangdong provinces in southern China (refer to my Volume I).

On the other hand, official rank can be confusing, as there are different English translations; for example,  Tiết Độ Sứ = Jiedushi (节度使) = Military Governor/Commissioner or Thứ Sử = Cishi (刺史) = Regional Inspector (also as Inspector) in Han times and Prefect (Head of the local prefecture) in Sui-Tang times. In this instance, I have opted to use the Pinyin of Jiedushi and Cishi to avoid confusion, but others may use the English equivalent. I could have used the Chinese script, but most readers would prefer to read the Latin alphabet in Pinyin Chinese.

I would be interested to hear other people's views.

Kind regards,

Tan Pham (NZ)

Author of a book series on Vietnamese history: A Traveller’s Story of Vietnam’s Past.

Volume One: The Bronze Drums and The Earrings. ISBN:  978-0-473-59804-4. 

Volume Two: One Thousand Years - The Stories of Giao Châu, the Kingdoms of Linyi, Funan and Zhenla. ISBN 978-0-473-63527-5.

Volume 3A: Đại Việt and Champa: The Early Centuries - The Dynasties of Đinh, Tiền (Former) Lê, Lý, and Trần. ISBN 978-1-0670208-2-8, ISBN 978-1-0670208-0-4.

Volume 3B: Đại Việt and Champa: Panduranga, Kauthara, and Indrapura. ISBN 978-1-0670208-1-1,  ISBN 979-8-3469430-7-5  

From: Nhan Ngo via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Friday, April 4, 2025 5:48 PM
To: vsg@u.washington.edu
Subject: Re: [Vsg] [External] Re: Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái and reference

Dear VSG and Tan Pham,

I have been following this thread and found that people usually transliterate a Vietnamese ideographic source and
Vietnamese personal names in ideographic, into pinyin.  

I propose the transliteration in latin in Vietnamese quốc ngữ,  rather than Pinyin. will help a lot.
for example, 禪苑集, instead of Chán Yuàn Jí, the latin transliteration Thiền Uyển Tập.  This
helps with consistency and searching in Vietnamese libraries.

My two cents,
Nhan
Temple University

From: Tan Pham via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Friday, April 4, 2025 1:39 PM
To: Eric Henry <henryhme@bellsouth.net>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; hieu.phung@rutgers.edu
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Bác Eric,

This is a wonderful list; I will check them out, but on first glance:

  Chán Yuàn Jí  禪苑集 (“Zen Garden Anthology")  =Thiền Uyển Tập Anh (Collection of Outstanding Figures of the Zen Garden)

   Běi Jí 北極 =  Báo Cực Truyện

Bǎo Jí 保極 = same as above ? Báo Đức Truyện

Dù Shàn 杜善, Dù Shàn Shǐjì 杜善史記 = Đỗ Thiện, Sử Ký Đỗ Thiện

Dū Lǔ 都魯 = Đạo Giáo Nguyên Lưu ?

Gǔ Fǎ Jì 古法記 = Cổ Châu Pháp

Jì Dé Bēi 紀德碑 =

Kind regards,

Tan Pham (NZ)

Author of a book series on Vietnamese history: A Traveller’s Story of Vietnam’s Past.

Volume One: The Bronze Drums and The Earrings. ISBN:  978-0-473-59804-4. 

Volume Two: One Thousand Years - The Stories of Giao Châu, the Kingdoms of Linyi, Funan and Zhenla. ISBN 978-0-473-63527-5.

Volume 3A: Đại Việt and Champa: The Early Centuries - The Dynasties of Đinh, Tiền (Former) Lê, Lý, and Trần. ISBN 978-1-0670208-2-8, ISBN 978-1-0670208-0-4.

Volume 3B: Đại Việt and Champa: Panduranga, Kauthara, and Indrapura. ISBN 978-1-0670208-1-1,  ISBN 979-8-3469430-7-5  

From: Eric Henry via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Friday, April 4, 2025 8:49 AM
To: Tan Pham <nxb315kio@gmail.com>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; hieu.phung@rutgers.edu
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear all,

   This is a topic about which I know next to nothing, but I wish to add to anh Tấn’s query by pointing out that quite a few tales in the Lê dynasty continuation of Linh Nam Chích Quái mention written texts by name as sources for the stories. LNCQ 24 (Three Ladies of Kiên Hải ) mentions Chán Yuàn Jí  禪苑集 (“Zen Garden Anthology"). LNCQ 26 (Spirit of Bronze Drum Mountain) mentions Běi Jí 北極. LNCQ 27 (Spirit of the Earth Queen Ứng Thiên Hóa Dục) mentions Bǎo Jí 保極. LNCQ 33 (Spirit of Minh Ứng An Sở) mentions Dù Shàn 杜善. This work is apparently cited again in LNCQ 36 (God of Good Fortune, Khai Thiên Trấn Quốc, at Đằng Châu), but there it is called Dù Shàn Shǐjì 杜善史記. LNCQ 34 (Spirit of the Rock at Đô Lỗ Breaker) mentions Dū Lǔ 都魯. LNCQ 35 (Story of the Spirit King Xung Thiên Chiêu Ứng) mentions Gǔ Fǎ Jì 古法記. This item also mentions a commemorative stele: Jì Dé Bēi 紀德碑.

   I also wish to mention here that these tales occasionally refer by name to Chinese or Vietnamese reign periods. LNCQ 24 (Three Ladies of Kiên Hải) refers to a “Shào Bảo” 紹保 reign period belonging to the reign of Trần Nhân Tông.

Best wishes,

Eric

Eric Henry, PhD, Senior Lecturer (retired), UNC-CH Dept. of Asian Studies

From: Hieu Phung via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Thursday, April 3, 2025 3:57 PM
To: Tan Pham via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Tan,

This issue deserves a careful study. My approach would be to first identify why and in what context we need the information of these book titles. The information you’ve acquired looks familiar to me. Perhaps you can track down the sources from which you got the information and explore some hypotheses of how these sources ended up being transmitted to northern Vietnam, and then got to the hands of someone like Vu Quynh. Previous scholarship has pointed to the differences in geography and jurisdiction of Giao Chau and Giao Chi—another type of clue to identify these titles. Finally, when dealing with sources like LNCQ and VDUL you want to check all the extant versions, and the contexts that these titles are mentioned. I would not rule out that the phrases like Giao Chau Ky or Giao Chi Ky could sometimes refer to certain local gazetteer-like materials rather than a specific title that we could trace in Chinese archives.

I have not yet studied enough (and/or can’t recall off the top of my head) the mentions of these titles in LNCQ. However, I did research the title Giao Chau Ky (Jiaozhou ji) mentioned in Le Trac/Tac’s An Nam chi luoc. Below is what I wrote about that detail in a forthcoming book chapter. I think it might be hard to only look into the titles; if there’s information about the contents attributed to the titles, it’d be useful.

=====For Lê Trắc, the Long Môn was important not only because it marked a gateway to Giao Chỉ-Annam but also because it was recorded in an ancient text. That text, Jiaozhou ji, written by a fourth/fifth-century scholar named Liu Xinqi, included gazetteer-like materials about an area called Giao Region.1 The territory of Giao Region that Liu Xinqi mentioned was much larger than northern Vietnam, and Giao Chỉ Commandery was only a part of that region. Note, prior to the seventh century, “region” (zhou/châu) was a large administrative unit that supervised commanderies. Because the Jiaozhou ji was a fragmented text, Lê Trắc must have read Liu Xinqi’s quote about Long Môn from a commentary that dates to the sixth century and that is appended to a famous chronicle of the Han dynasty, the Hou Hanshu.2 Lê Trắc quoted Liu Xinqi almost verbatim, asserting that any large fish that swam up this waterfall would transform into a dragon.3

[1] The authorship of the Jiaozhou ji is highly problematic. Several texts with the same title were produced by writers of different periods between the fourth and ninth centuries. Scholars of Vietnamese history have attributed this text (or texts) to two authors living in the eighth and ninth centuries. Their analyses are based on texts circulated in Vietnam, which include no details about the contents of the text(s). By contrast, the evidence about Liu Xinqi and his text is more sufficient in Chinese historiography. See, for instance: Keith W. Taylor, The Birth of Vietnam (Berkeley, Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1983), 354; Yang Hengping, “Guanyu Liu Xinqi ‘Jiaozhou ji’ jiyi de ji ge wenti,” Zhongguo Difangzhi, no. 1 (2016): 47–52.

2 The author of this commentary was Liu Zhao (fl. ca. 510). Liu Zhao’s commentary was absorbed into yet another commentary by a Tang scholar named Li Xian (651–684). Thanks to the widespread use of printing technology during the Song time, several eleventh-century printed copies of the Hou Hanshu with Li Xian’s commentary became the standard version. For more information on the textual transmission, see: B. J. Mansvelt Beck, The Treatises of Later Han: Their Author, Sources, Contents, and Place in Chinese Historiography (BRILL, 1990).

3 Lê Trắc, An Nam Chí Lược—SKQS, 1/9b; Fan Ye, Li Xian, and Sima Biao, Hou Hanshu, ed. Yangjia Luo, Reprint, Dingwen shuju 1981, Scripta Sinica Database (Taipei: Academia Sinica, 1984), Zhi 25, https://hanchi.ihp.sinica.edu.tw.

Hope this helps a bit.

Hieu Phung

Rutger University

From: Tan Pham via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, April 2, 2025 4:00 PM
To: Do Thi Thuy Lan <lansuu@yahoo.com.vn>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; hieu.phung@rutgers.edu
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear List,

Following on from Dr. Eric Henry, may I ask if anyone has information on two books that Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái (LNCQ) made references to? 

If the subject is too specific, please email me off list.

The two books are Giao Châu Ký (Records of Jiaozhou) and Giao Chỉ Ký (Records of Jiaozhi).

Below is my information on the subject:

A little background: LNCQ (A Collection of Strange Stories from Lingnan) often goes with Việt Điện U Linh (VDUL, Compilation of the Departed Spirits in the Realm of Viet). VDUL was compiled sometime in the 14th century by Lý Tế Xuyên, and LNCQ was restored and edited by Vũ Quỳnh (15th-16th century) on a work by Trần Thế Pháp from several authors during the 11th to the 13th centuries.

Both have some similar stories, and one may copy from the other (LNCQ copied VDUL?). 

VDUL makes a number of references to two books, Giao Châu Ký (Records of Jiaozhou) written by Zhao Chang (Triệu Vương or Triệu Xương) and Giao Chỉ Ký (Records of Jiaozhi) written by Zeng Gun (Tăng Công or Tăng Cổn).  Zhao Zhang was the duhu of An Nam twice, in 791-802 and 804-806; Zeng Gun was the jiedushi of An Nam in 878-880 under the Tang dynasty.

The title of Giao Châu Ký also appears under different authors: Diêu Văn Thức of the Later Han (25-220), Đặng Trung Phẫu, Lưu Hân Kỳ of the Jin (265-420), Lưu Trường Chi of the Liu Song (420-479) and Zeng Gun of Tang (618-906). All were lost except for a few pages by Lưu Hân Kỳ that were found. 

VDUL does not mention other authors except Zeng Gun for Giao Chỉ Ký. These two books are also known as Triệu Công Giao Châu Ký, Triệu Vương Giao Châu Ký, and Tăng Công Giao Châu Ký.

The stories in VDUL that refers to these two books are: 1. Bố Cái Đại Vương, 9. BẢO QUỐC TRẤN LINH ĐỊNH BANG QUỐC ĐÔ THÀNH HOÀNG ĐẠI VƯƠNG (Thần sông Tô Lịch), 17. QUẢ NGHỊ CƯƠNG CHÍNH UY HUỆ VƯƠNG (Cao Lỗ), 23.TẢN VIÊN HỰU THÁNH KHUÔNG QUỐC HIỂN LINH ỨNG ĐẠI VƯƠNG (Sơn Tinh), 25. TRUNG DỤC VŨ PHỤ UY LINH VƯƠNG (Thần sông Bạch Hạc). 

Those in LNCQ are: Truyện Phùng Bố Cái Đại Vương; Truyện Sông Tô Lịch; Truyện thần đá Cao Lỗ; Truyện núi Tản Viên; and Truyện thần Uy Hiển Bạch Hạc.

I also bcc ntoanh2003@yahoo.com

Kind regards,

Tan Pham (NZ)

Author of a book series on Vietnamese history: A Traveller’s Story of Vietnam’s Past.

Volume One: The Bronze Drums and The Earrings. ISBN:  978-0-473-59804-4. 

Volume Two: One Thousand Years - The Stories of Giao Châu, the Kingdoms of Linyi, Funan and Zhenla. ISBN 978-0-473-63527-5.

Volume 3A: Đại Việt and Champa: The Early Centuries - The Dynasties of Đinh, Tiền (Former) Lê, Lý, and Trần. ISBN 978-1-0670208-2-8, ISBN 978-1-0670208-0-4.

Volume 3B: Đại Việt and Champa: Panduranga, Kauthara, and Indrapura. ISBN 978-1-0670208-1-1,  ISBN 979-8-3469430-7-5  

From: Do Thi Thuy Lan via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, April 2, 2025 8:35 AM
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; Eric Henry <henryhme@bellsouth.net>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Eric,

Prof. Nguyễn Thị Oanh (Thăng Long University, Hanoi) is an expert on Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái. Her dissertation (2005) and recently published book (2024) focus extensively on this work. Last December, she organized a conference dedicated to LNCQ.

I have attached two pictures related to this information for your reference.

You can contact Prof. Oanh at ntoanh2003@yahoo.com.

Best wishes,

Thùy Lan

Ms. Do Thi Thuy Lan, PhD.

Department of History,

VNU - University of Social Sciences and Humanities,

Vietnam National University, Hanoi

336 Nguyen Trai, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi

Tel: +84 (0) 38 447 8834

Email: landtt@vnu.edu.vn; lansuu@yahoo.com.vn 

From: Hieu Phung via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 1:22 PM
To: Eric Henry via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Henry,

I’ve been using the Linh Nam Chich Quai in my research, and I am happy to share information about this important source. The key problem with this source (and all other premodern Vietnamese sources) is how to deal with different versions having been heavily redacted and altered over time. This discussion will be too much in email changes, and I think it’d be more productive to meet on Zoom. I don’t think I seem to be able identify your email contact. Would you mind sending me an email to hieu.phung@rutgers.edu, and if you’re interested, we can talk at some point in May (after the Spring semester is over)?

Regards,

Hieu Phung

--

Dr. Hieu Phung (she/her)

Assistant Professor of Vietnamese and Environmental History

Asian Languages and Cultures

Rutgers University – New Brunswick

Rm 327 Scott Hall | hieu.phung@rutgers.edu

Google Scholar Profile

From: Tan Pham via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 1:01 PM
To: Eric Henry <henryhme@bellsouth.net>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Hello Eric

Your translation of LNCQ is exciting news. 

I have found a copy of LNCQ in Vietnamese and Chinese. I have included it with other related texts in the Google Drive link below. You may find the work helpful.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1BXDDrqUxcFNXOWTKtKfbGqzAYykOaRyN?usp=sharing

Kind regards,

Tan Pham (NZ)

Author of a book series on Vietnamese history: A Traveller’s Story of Vietnam’s Past.

Volume One: The Bronze Drums and The Earrings. ISBN:  978-0-473-59804-4. 

Volume Two: One Thousand Years - The Stories of Giao Châu, the Kingdoms of Linyi, Funan and Zhenla. ISBN 978-0-473-63527-5.

Volume 3A: Đại Việt and Champa: The Early Centuries - The Dynasties of Đinh, Tiền (Former) Lê, Lý, and Trần. ISBN 978-1-0670208-2-8, ISBN 978-1-0670208-0-4.

Volume 3B: Đại Việt and Champa: Panduranga, Kauthara, and Indrapura. ISBN 978-1-0670208-1-1,  ISBN 979-8-3469430-7-5  

From: Eric Henry via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 12:43 PM
To: Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox <wilcoxw@wcsu.edu>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Wynn and Eric,

   I am very grateful to both of you (and to Mr. Trần Lê Huỳnh, who contacted me off list) for supplying me with these links. Thanks to your efforts, I now have a digital version of about the first sixty per cent of the text, and will be able to add what remains to it later on.

With sincere thanks;

Eric

Eric Henry, PhD, formerly of UNC-CH

From: Erik Harms via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 10:15 AM
To: Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox <wilcoxw@wcsu.edu>
Cc: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Eric,

This is so exciting! Thanks for your work on this translation.

After Wynn's post, I followed up with Yale's Southeast Asia librarian, Brent Bianchi, and he explained a bit as noted in the forwarded message below.

Please note that I am happy to follow up more if there are details we are missing.

Erik

**Forwarded from Brent**

On Tue, Apr 1, 2025, 12:13 PM Bianchi, Brent <brent.bianchi@yale.edu> wrote:

I am not sure whether this is the same text, but we have microfilm for Lỉnh Nam Tŕıch Qúai Ngọai Chuỵên.  This means that Durand himself purchased the microfilm and didn't own that particular copy, at least, of the mss.  This appears on p. 24 of the finding aid:

https://ead-pdfs.library.yale.edu/4897.pdf

It doesn't seem to me that there are any other copies in the collection, though to be sure one would need to know all the variant names the title might have appeared as. 

Brent Bianchi
Librarian for South & Southeast Asian Studies
Area Studies and Humanities
213C Sterling Memorial Library,
Yale University Library

Tel: 1-203-432-5561

From: Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 6:25 AM
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; Eric Henry <henryhme@bellsouth.net>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear Eric and List:

The Thu Vien Quoc Gia copy of Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái can be found here on the nomfoundation site:

https://lib.nomfoundation.org/collection/1/volume/819/

There is a copy in the Durand Collection at Yale, which I thought had been fully digitized, but it doesn't seem to be on their list. It might be worth contacting them and asking if you needed that version.

There's also a digitized-only copy here: https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/%E5%B6%BA%E5%8D%97%E6%91%AD%E6%80%AA

Best,

Wynn

               
Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox

Chair and Professor of History, Philosophy, and World Perspectives

Western Connecticut State University

181 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810
Phone (203) 837-8565
Fax: (203) 837-3968

From: Eric Henry via Vsg <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, April 1, 2025 5:21 AM
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: [Vsg] Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái

Dear all:

This communication is to ask if any of you have a digital copy of the Chinese text of Lĩnh Nam Chích Quái 嶺南摭怪, or have any idea where or how such a thing might be procured.

My reason for asking is that I have just made an English translation of the work, not overly careful, but at least complete, and would like to put it into bilingual Chinese-English format.

I have the text only in hard-copy form. It’s in a desperately decayed out-of-print paperback published in 1959 by Lê Hữu Mục (1925 - 2017), generously mailed to me about half a century ago by Charles Benoit, who back then was a Harvard PhD student (query: does anyone know anything about Mr. Benoit’s subsequent activities?). The paperback he sent me, which is now, in a physical sense, teetering on the brink of oblivion, has 1) the Chinese text, 2) a Vietnamese translation, and 3) a lengthy introductory discussion.

I suppose that, in spite of being irksomely old and feeble, I might be able to make a digital text “by hand.” The work is not hundreds of pages long, only about sixty to seventy pages.  

I’ve been intending throughout my life to translate Lĩnh Nam, but have kept forgetting. I was recently stirred into action by a friend who reminded me of the work’s importance. It has forty (or forty-one) tales of which twenty-one (or twenty-two) were written or compiled in the Trần, and nineteen added later.

The tales mostly have the character of historical legends. In comparison to Chinese historical legends, they are 1) outrageously supernatural, 2) quite unpredictable in terms of content, and 3) and filled with wish-fulfillment of many kinds. They show that during the Lý, Trần, and Lê dynasties (1054 to c. 1750), the Vietnamese were (evidently) utterly gaga about miracles and supernatural events, typically In a Buddhist context, and had vanishingly little interest in Confucian concepts and situations.

Best wishes to all,

Eric

Eric Henry, PhD, Senior Lecturer (retired)

Asian Studies Department, UNC-CH

home address: 106 Jones Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

(translator of Shuoyuan 說苑, Guoyu 國語,  Hồi Ký by Phạm Duy, and Chuyện Nghề Của Thủy by Tran Văn Thủy)