The Tale of Kieu translated into Russian

The translators of the famous Vietnamese story include 3 Vietnamese people with majors in Russian linguistics and translation, a Russian who specialises in Vietnamese linguistics, and a young Russian poet.

Nguyen Du's 'The Tale of Kieu' has been translated into over 20 foreign languages, including English, German, and Russian. However, most Russian versions of the famous poem do not contain the whole story, as they were translated indirectly, from another foreign language. Out of respect for Nguyen Du and love for Vietnamese and Russian literature, the group of translators working on this new version spent 2 years painstakingly translating the tale into Russian directly from the Vietnamese.

"All of the members in my group have been researching Russian literature, so we have the inspiration to translate the tale into Russian. Besides, Nguyen Du is one of the most famous writers in Vietnam", said Dr. Nguyen Huy Hoang, Editor in Chief, Proofreader.

The warm relations between Vietnam and Russia is also a big motivation for Hoang Van Vinh, the chairman of an association of Vietnamese people living in Russia, to sponsor this project.

"My reasons are very simple. I was born in Ha Tinh province, which is also the home of Nguyen Du. I want to introduce Vietnam’s culture and the Tale of Kieu to the Russian people", said Hoang Van Vinh, Chairman, Association of Vietnamese Overseas in Xvetlov Province, Russia.

One of the translators is Vaxilii Popov, a young Russian poet born in 1983. He was in charge of changing the Tale of Kiều from prose to poetry, considered the most important step because it decides the artistic value of the translated version. Popov had to listen to the tale in Vietnamese to hear the rhythm of the poem.

"When reading the Tale of Kieu, I can see characteristics of Vietnamese people and also Russian people. I think there is a similarity among classic works: they tell about not only a people but also peoples around the world. That is why the tale needs to be translated into different languages", said Vaxili Popov, Poet, Translator.

5,000 copies of this new version of the Tale of Kieu will be printed and given to colleges and libraries in Russia.