Pétrus Ky

Trương Vĩnh Ký (Chinese characters 張永記), known as Pétrus Ky and Jean-Baptiste Pétrus, (Vĩnh Long Province, 6 December 1837 - 1 September 1898) was a Vietnamese scholar whose publications helped improve understanding between colonial Vietnam and Europe. His works helped popularize the romanized script of the Vietnamese language, Quốc Ngữ, leading to its officialization in the early 20th century. He served in the French colonial regime as a linguist, and also translated many literary works into modern Vietnamese.

Truong Vinh Ky, also called J.B. Truong Chanh Ky, or Petrus Ky, was born on December 6, 1837 in Vinh Thanh Village, Minh Ly Canton, Tan Minh District, Vinh Long Province (now is Vinh Thanh Commune, Cho Lach District, Ben Tre Province).

His father was Commander Truong Chanh Thi, his mother was Nguyen Thi Chau. He started to learn the Mandarin language at as early as 5 years of age. When he was 9, he lost his father. In Cai Nhum at that time there was a Christian missionary teaching the Latin language. At 12, Ky studied the Christian Bible with Father Hue (or the Priest Belleveaux) and followed him to the Pinhalu School in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In 1851, Truong was granted a scholarship by this school to study at the Penang Seminary, then the main centre of Roman Catholic training for Southeast Asian countries. At the Penang Seminary, Truong Vinh Ky showed outstanding learning skills to the ideological and knowledge on natural as well as social sciences, that even some of the famed personalities at that time were surprised and praised his excellent brainpower and erudite knowledge. He also proved himself skillful in linguistics. Beside the commonly used languages at the time such as French, English, Latin, Greek, Hindi, and Japanese, he was also proficient in Chinese, Spanish, Malay, Lao, Thai, Burmese. Truong Vinh Ky worked mainly in the cultural domain, but he also worked for 8 months at the Viện cơ mật (Secret Affairs Institute, Privy Council) in the court at Huế and another 8 months as an interpreter in the Vietnamese delegation to France. When the French troops attacked the Province of Gia Dinh in December, 1859, he was appointed as an interpreter to the Occupying forces.

In June, 1863, he accompanied Phan Thanh Gian, the chief delegator sent to France by the Hue Court to negotiate the retrieval of provinces lost into the French hands. This trip was a very good chance for Truong to meet with famous figures at the time such Victor Hugo, Littre, Renan, and French statesmen. He also had chances to tour the world, coming to countries such as Egypt, Portugal, Spain, Italy, etc.

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