Assoc. Dr. Nguyen Viet Thao (right) presents flowers to journalist - translator Vu Van Au on the day of introducing Vietnamese - Spanish Dictionary. Photo: Thanh Luan

It is the first dictionary of its kind, compiled and printed in Vietnam and comprising of 2,397 pages with over 40,000 words.

Upon addressing the event, Assoc. Dr. Nguyen Viet Thao, standing vice president of the Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Association, underscored the importance of the work to broaden the knowledge, as well as to equip researchers and local Spanish learners with an useful tool to gain access to the language.

Speaking at the event, Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Orlando Nicolas Hernandez Guillen called the dictionary “a precious gem” from Vietnamese friend and Vu Van Au marked a milestone in the history of Cuba-Vietnam solidarity and friendship.

Diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Spanish-speaking countries were increasingly expanded and developed in all fields. Therefore, Vietnam decided to open a Spanish department 20 years ago at Hanoi University. Spanish is continuously trained as a popular foreign language in Vietnam.

According to Nguyen Viet Thao, the previous generation of Spanish learners only had Spanish-Vietnamese dictionaries. The fact that journalist-translator Vu Van Au compiled a nearly 2,400-page Vietnamese-Spanish dictionary, with the support of Spanish teachers and experts, is meaningful.

"Language is always a bridge of knowledge connecting cultures, countries and peoples. For us, Spanish is also a bridge of friendship connecting the people of Latin America, Spain and Vietnam in the efforts to build a new life and a better society.

This is a product of not only academic but also political significance. In the future, the younger generations using Spanish will continue to complete this dictionary. However, this is the first brick to build a Spanish-language science in Vietnam," said Assoc. Dr. Nguyen Viet Thao.

Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Orlando Nicolas Hernandez Guillen and journalist - translator Vu Van Au presented Vietnamese - Spanish Dictionary to excellent students of the Spanish Department, Hanoi University. Photo: Thanh Luan

According to the Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam, the published dictionary is a bridge between the Spanish-speaking world and Vietnam, helping to foster cultural diversity and spread mutual knowledge to understand each other better. The promotion of Spanish is essential, not only as a multidisciplinary language strategy, but also as an opportunity for economic, diplomatic and tourism cooperation.

Vice Rector of Hanoi University Nguyen Tien Dung said Spanish is the primary language in 21 countries with about 470 million speakers, and is also the second most used language on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

Through Spanish, learners can acquire knowledge related to the culture, economy, politics and history of the 21 countries that use this language.

The first-ever Vietnamese-Spanish dictionary is introduced at the event. Photo: baoquocte.vn

The Spanish Department of Hanoi University, through 20 years of development, has trained many generations of students who are fluent in Spanish, working in many fields of economy, society, education serving the development of Vietnam.

However, the department's teaching activities still face many difficulties due to the lack of highly qualified lecturers and teaching materials.

Therefore, the Vietnamese - Spanish Dictionary will promote its role as a useful supplementary document for teaching and learning Spanish. It helps the Spanish Department and Hanoi University in teaching, training and spreading knowledge through foreign languages.

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