"Prison Diary" and its journey to international spread

Transcending all limits of time and space, President Ho Chi Minh 's poetry collection "Prison Diary" not only moves the hearts of Vietnamese people but also touches the emotions of readers worldwide.

Author Vo Xuan Que and the poetry collection "Prison Diary" in a foreign language. Photo: Mai Huong

Author Vo Xuan Que's collection of foreign translations is vivid proof of the enduring vitality and everlasting humanistic and artistic values of the work.

Journey of more than half a century spreading to five continents

"Prison Diary" - a collection of poems written by President Ho Chi Minh during his imprisonment in Chiang Kai-shek Prison (1942-1943) - is a symbol of indomitable will, humanitarian spirit and revolutionary intelligence. With 133 poems in Chinese, the work expresses optimism, patriotism, aspiration for freedom and love for humanity.

From a simple handwritten copy, the collection of poems has been translated into at least 37 languages with 62 translations by 79 translators worldwide - according to the collection of Dr. Vo Xuan Que. Each translation not only translates but also conveys the depth of thought, emotion and humanistic values of the poem, showing the respect of international friends for President Ho Chi Minh.

Author Vo Xuan Que - who spent many years researching, collecting and introducing translations of "Prison Diary" said that accessing all 62 translations was not easy due to limited costs, time and personal conditions. However, he tried to collect as much information as possible about the translation name, translator, publisher, year of publication and number of poems or pages - valuable data that can help researchers and interested readers to look up, learn and continue to supplement.

One of the interesting things he discovered was that there were three different Spanish translations of "Prison Diary", instead of just one as previously known in Vietnam (translated by a Cuban poet). There were even two translations in the minority languages of Spain, Basque and Galician. These cultural regions, both geographically and traditionally very far from Vietnam, paid special attention to a poetic work by a revolutionary leader from the East.

Another perspective from international readers

Not only helping to spread the image of President Ho Chi Minh as a revolutionary, the translations of "Prison Diary" also help international readers recognize another aspect of him - a poet, an artist with a sensitive heart, profound intelligence and a philosophical way of thinking about life. This is clearly demonstrated through the articles, introductions and comments included in many translations.

For example, in 1968, The Nation (USA) published an article with the title: "The Vietnamese leader is also a poet", from the English translation of "Prison Diary". This was the time when the resistance war against the US in Vietnam was in a difficult phase, but Americans still found in President Ho Chi Minh's poems a value that transcended the front line - that is humanity, art, the beauty of the spirit of freedom and resilience in adversity.

The Polish translators, in their Preface to the translation, wrote: "With short poems, often only four lines, Ho Chi Minh painted realistic pictures of his suffering and that of his fellow prisoners in a humorous and profound way. His concise poems are small masterpieces."

Meanwhile, the Galician translator - who took 7 years to complete the translation - shared: "Despite the suffering, illness and horrors that surrounded him, Ho Chi Minh still found the strength to write optimistic and humorous poems. The short poems were skillfully woven by him in the darkness of his prison cell. The poet and the revolutionary were one in him."

"Prison Diary" is not only a work of special artistic and historical value for Vietnam but also a poetic heritage of international stature. The dedicated translations by global translators have contributed to bringing the image of Ho Chi Minh - poet, humanist - closer to humanity.

The work "Prison Diary" in foreign languages by Vo Xuan Que (Information & Communication Publishing House, March 2025) is an important contribution to literature, history, culture and people's diplomacy . The work opens up a new approach in the study of Ho Chi Minh's legacy, affirming the global position of the poem in the world's literary treasure.

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