The Arabic and Persian historical documents wrote on Vietnam (the 10th - 14th centuries)

Abstract

Murûdj al-dhahab of al-Masûdî, Jâmi’al-Tawârîkh of Rashîd al-Dîn Tabîb and A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Travelling (or The Travels) of Ibn Battua were the earliest Arabic and Persian historical documents wrote on Vietnam in the 10th and 14th centuries. Although paragraphs mentioned about Vietnam in these documents are so brief and sometime are still ambiguous, they are useful and valuable historical documents to research in Vietnamese history according to the perception of foreigners. This article firstly researches in authors and historical context of the documents, then excerpts as well as propounds interpretation of some typical sections containing materials on Vietnam from these historical documents.