HCM CITY — Historian and philosopher Professor Buu Cam, who has died aged 90 at his home in HCM City, trained generations of social scientists.
He was born Nguyen Phuc Buu Cam in Vy Da Village in the central province of Thua-Thien Hue, was a descendant of the Nguyen, the country's last royal dynasty.
He showed his flair for literature at 12 and went on to serve as managing editor of literary magazines like Gio Len (Rising Wind) and Tinh Hoa Van Tap (Quintessence Anthology) when he was just 20.
At 30, he was invited to teach literature at Hue's Quoc Hoc High School, one of the country's most prestigious.
He moved six years later to the Institute of Archaeology's Department of Collection and Research in what was then Sai Gon.
Two years later he joined the Sai Gon University of Literature to teach Vietnamese history, linguistics, and Eastern philosophy.
He became a professor in 1972 when he was 52. He guided scores of post-graduates in doing their theses at the university until his retirement in 1981.
As an erudite scholar of ancient Han (Chinese script) literature, he edited, reviewed, and compiled glossaries for historical volumes written by several dynasties in Viet Nam.
He will be cremated at the Binh Hung Hoa Cemetery in HCM City's Tan Binh District today. — VNS