Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang, Chairman of Provincial Historical Science Association: "Binh Duong people are dynamic, talented, loyal, tolerant...”

"Following the variability of history, Binh Duong peasants of older generations adapted to socio-economic changes to create a harmony between industriousness, creativity, sense of honour, and enterprising to create a strong motivation for development..." Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang, Chairman of the Provincial Historical Science Association, generalized partly about the personality of Binh Duong people in a recent talk with Binh Duong Newspaper.

From aspirations and ideals

Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang said that, the length of history soon shaped the model of Binh Duong older people with their own characteristics, imprinted by nature and humanity of the local land and people. The culture of Binh Duong older people is the culture of peasants. Southerners often referred to Binh Duong people as orchardists to mention the class of residents living in orchards in Lai Thieu and Thu Dau Mot along the Saigon River.

Explaining about the dynamism, ambition, willingness to accept the new, sense of honour of Binh Duong older people, Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang said that the diversity of agricultural products plus abundant sources of handicraft inevitably disrupted the self-sufficient economy and soon became a commodity economy. The commodity economy boomed as the Chinese arrived in Binh Duong; this was marked by the establishment and prosperous development of Lai Thieu market, Thu Dau Mot market. In turn, trade impacted, stimulated, supported agriculture and crafts development, creating many rich sources of goods. This also continued to bring trade to a higher level. That cycle continued through historical periods. Its consequence is that the economy of orchards grew to the peaks. The developed economy produced a historical-cultural basis in accordance with the level and nature of the economy. It was the historical and cultural basis of garden civilization.

"Over many people generations and development periods of political diversity, garden civilization contributed to many local cultural and economic achievements. That civilization is no longer a backward countryside but did not become materialistic urban area. It embraced physical and intangible values. It was both customs, lifestyle, standard of living, amenities, farming methods, business practices but also social relations, business relations, including present spiritual values such as moral standards, orientation, ambition...

Garden civilization created its typical type of people, who still preserved the root of peasant, traditional ethics but also adapted to business style and urban civilization; farmer lifestyle was in harmony with trader lifestyle, business was integrated with farming; lived in harmony with other country people, cooperated with traders in markets, Chinese, Westerners, Catholics or Buddhists. These typical people were close to home villages but were not strange to street markets and doing business", Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang confirmed the adaptation and creativity of Binh Duong older people and generalized characteristics of Binh Duong older people, which are dynamic, talented, sense of honour, tolerant, loyal, enterprising, ambitious.

It is the natural environment that molded dynamic and talented features. The natural environment and the ecology of a multicultural, multi-ethnic society created a cultural attitude that was open, tolerant, respectful, practical but not snobbish. National fights against oppression and aggression, communication with other cultures created aspirations, ambitions, noble ideals in Binh Duong people.

Come to converge and shine

Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang said that the milestone from after 1975 to the end of 1990, in the renewal period, with the characteristics of the land of exchange and convergence, Binh Duong gradually created a new socio-economic ecology with the strong industrial growth. This ecology shaped a contemporary Binh Duong resident with some outstanding characteristics of multi-region, multicultural, multi-level, multi-income, most of them came from rural regions throughout the country.

In the process of industrialization, newcomers have increasingly made up the absolute majority of the total population, especially in the industrial and urban areas of the province. Local gardeners gradually became a minority. The former garden civilization is diluted in the general multiculturalism. In that overall population, undergoing the strong industrialization, especially in the recent mass outbreak of urban areas in Binh Duong, an urban class was formed.

Binh Duong urban culture is highly diverse and differentiated. It is a comprehensive diversity and division in terms of values, norms, lifestyles, spirit and thought. First of all, it is the multilateralization, diversification of cultural activities. The preferences of Binh Duong citizens have gradually become extremely diverse, show many dimensions of their spiritual side. On the other hand, they also have many anonymous, random social relationships as well as relationships in the workplace, through types of services, through high-tech applications. Therefore, Binh Duong citizens are very sensitive to socio-economic trends.

Binh Duong urban culture contributes to the convergence and shine of national culture types. In the combination of types, the general situation is that popular culture spreads, most commonly in terms of behavior, lifestyle, folklore, traditions are somewhat preserved and developing. Binh Duong's urban class has led to the formation of Binh Duong urban culture. On the contrary, urban culture has contributed to the molding of the quality of the urban class. That process is still ongoing, promising new achievements in the socio-economic transformation of Binh Duong in the future.

Dr. Huynh Ngoc Dang predicts that in the next decade, in Binh Duong, urban culture would continue to develop to new heights. Binh Duong citizens would mature faster and have excellent representatives in the Vietnamese urban class. These achievements in these aspects would be bolder in quality, higher in position, stable, superficial, and more beautiful, if Binh Duong has proper policies that positively impact the development process of cultural groups and subcultural groups.

Citizens need to be appreciated, fostered and supported to become Vietnamese people with comprehensive development towards the true - good - beauty, imbued with the spirit of nationality, humanity, democracy and science in accordance with Resolution 33 / NQ-TW of the 11th Party Central Committee.

Reported by Tieu My – Translated by Ngoc Huynh 

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