Register for a CSMC lecture

Thursday, 31 July 2025, 4:15 pm – 6:00 pm CEST
Warburgstraße 26, 20354 Hamburg

Untold Stories: Vietnamese Classical Manuscripts at the Bavarian State Library

Tô Lan NGUYỄN (Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences)

The website of the Bavarian State Library in Munich states that: “The manuscripts of Vietnamese provenance do not constitute a linguistic classification group of their own. They bear the classification marks Cod.sin. 82–84 and 214–255.” While Cod.sin. 82–84 refers to three color maps that have been digitized and are accessible via the Munich Digital Center (MDZ), the Cod.sin. 214–255 can only be consulted onsite at the library. Although this range of call numbers technically falls within the classification sequence for Chinese handwrittens (including some from Yao minority), it is notably absent from the catalogues of that collection. Furthermore, these calatogues reveals other manuscripts of Vietnamese origin—or closely related to Vietnam—that may have been misclassified.

This presentation is a reseach-based analysis of the Cod.sin call number range, drawing on findings from a a field survey conducted at the library in July 2025. It brings to light a number of previously unexplored stories, including: the provenance and historical significance of the maps; “traditions” of transmitting and replicating originals imperial edicts (sắc phong) of the Nguyễn dynasty (1802-1945) for religious or commercial purpose; Nguyễn dynasty’s royal bronze book; the formation and textual characteristics of manuscripts associated with the Minh Hương community in Southern Vietnam; and the transborder manuscript practices of ethnic minority communities in the Northern highlands of Vietnam.

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