The Day to Honor the Vietnamese Language in the Overseas Vietnamese Community [September 8] has been officially launched in Hanoi.
The event is aimed at raising awareness of Vietnamese expats about their mother tongue and honoring the values of the Vietnamese language.
Speaking at the event, Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (COVA) Pham Quang Hieu said that there are more than 5.3 million Vietnamese overseas who live in over 130 countries and territories across the globe.
Deputy Foreign Minister and Chairman of the State COVA Pham Quang Hieu speaks at the launching ceremony. Photo: Khanh Linh |
“The Vietnamese language is a bond of the community and a bridge of the Vietnamese culture. Amid the cultural and geographical differences of Vietnamese overseas, their mother tongue serves as a medium that unites them. Many of them have kept the traditions and values of their homeland alive, and have passed them down to their children,” Hieu stressed.
“Through the project, we hope the day for honoring the Vietnamese language will become an important occasion in the cultural and spiritual life of overseas Vietnamese community, spread the love of the mother tongue among Vietnamese expats, especially young people, as well as foreign friends,” the deputy minister said.
He added that it will also help broadcast the policies of the Vietnamese Government as well as the Vietnamese culture to international friends.
Dinh Hoang Linh, head of the Information-Culture Department under the COVA, said in response to the day, a range of activities will be organized in 2023, including a program seeking envoys of Vietnamese abroad who are overseas Vietnamese or Vietnamese speaking foreigners with great influence on the community.
"Besides, Vietnamese individuals, families and organizations abroad who make active contributions to the preservation and popularization of the Vietnamese language in the community will be honored," Linh said.
Nguyen Hong Duc Anh, living in Poland, tells the story of “Bánh chưng and bánh dày”. Photo: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs |
He added that the COVA will host a conference to take stock of the activities and award the title of Ambassador of Vietnamese language 2023. Vietnamese representative agencies abroad will be provided with Vietnamese textbooks for foreigners and Vietnamese literature works in bilingual prints.
The project also looks to organize an art performance gathering overseas Vietnamese artists named "Dear Vietnamese" in Vietnam and foreign countries to promote the Vietnamese language abroad, Linh emphasized.
Earlier, on August 3, Standing Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh approved the project “Honoring the Vietnamese language in the overseas community in the period of 2023-2030”.
September 8 was chosen as it coincides with the anniversary of the date the provisional government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam launched a campaign to eradicate illiteracy in 1945. It also honors President Ho Chi Minh’s call on September 8, 1962, to preserve, respect, and popularize the mother tongue.
The project encourages and honors individuals and organizations that have made active contributions to preserving and spreading the language in the overseas Vietnamese community, maintaining the use of Vietnamese in Vietnamese families abroad in daily activities, and introducing the language to the local people of the host countries.
