Gustave Dumoutier with Vietnamese history and culture

Abstract

Gustave Dumoutier is a French expert in Vietnamese studies in the first generation, a gifted scholar, a man who was fond of and loved Vietnamese history and culture. As an enthusiastic Orientalist, he advocated cooperation with Vietnamese Confucian scholars, respect and preservation of Vietnamese traditional culture, maintenance of Nho script and encouragement of national language. He produced many research works on archeology, history and culture of Vietnam in general and Hanoi in particular. He was a rather special case: because of his personal interests, he gave up the big business which his father wanted him to succeed. In the late 19th century, there were not so many French people who were interested in Vietnamese history and culture. He was the pioneer and his “fate” was also a tragedy.