Reimagining Libraries in Colonial Vietnam: Knowledge, Power, and the Public

Nguyễn Phương Trâm · July 1, 2025
Reimagining Libraries in Colonial Vietnam: Knowledge, Power, and the Public

The Asia Research Institute (ARI) will host a webinar on August 14, 2025, titled Bibliotactics: Libraries and the Colonial Public in Vietnam, featuring Dr. Cindy Anh Nguyen, Assistant Professor at UCLA. In this seminar, Dr. Nguyen will examine how Vietnamese readers reimagined and repurposed colonial libraries in Hanoi and Saigon, turning them into spaces of critique, education, and civic engagement that challenged imperial intentions. Drawing on her book published by the University of California Press, she explores the complex role of libraries in shaping colonial and postcolonial publics in Vietnam and across Southeast Asia.

📍 Hybrid format: NUS AS8 04-04 and Online via Zoom
🕓 Time: 4:00–5:30 PM (SGT)

The event promises insights into the history of information, censorship, and public knowledge under colonial rule.