ACCULTURATION AND RESISTANCE TO WESTERN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN VIETNAM: A COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE BETWEEN THE 16TH–18TH CENTURIES AND THE FIRST HALF OF THE 19TH CENTURY

Abstract

This paper analyzes and compares the processes through which Western science and technology entered Vietnam during two major historical periods: the 16th–18th centuries and the first half of the 19th century. The earlier period was largely shaped by Jesuit missionary activities and characterized by initial cultural and intellectual exchanges. The latter period, by contrast, was profoundly influenced by political and military imperatives, particularly under the rule of the Nguyen dynasty. The study highlights shifts in the key actors, purposes, and scope of knowledge reception, as well as the degree of localization of Western techniques in areas such as medicine, military technology, shipbuilding, and fortress construction. At the same time, it examines how the Vietnamese monarchy navigated between acculturation and resistance in the face of modern scientific knowledge emanating from Europe. By situating this dynamic within its broader geopolitical and cultural context, the paper sheds light on the internal structural constraints that limited Vietnam’s capacity for endogenous modernization in science and technology during the precolonial era.