Phan Anh Tu

Phan Anh Tu is the Vice Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (USSH) – Vietnam National University in HCMC (VNU-HCM) and Director of the Center for Theoretical and Applied Cultural Studies (CTAC), USSH – VNU-HCM. He is the author of the works “The Sculpture of Vishnu and Shiva in Southeast Asian Culture” published in Vietnamese in 2015 and “Heritages and Heritage management in Vietnam” published in Vietnamese in 2020. He is an astute academic professional with 20 years of experience in teaching, research Indian and Southeast Asian studies and deep study of ethnic group and historical arts (both print and electronic). His PhD thesis focused on Indian and Southeast Asian cultural studies, especially studying the images of Vishnu and Shiva in Southeast Asian culture. During his stay at the Harvard-Yenching Institute, he will expand his research on the cultural and diplomatic relations between China and the Funanese Empire in the early historical period of Southeast Asia. Through the research of ancient texts and archaeological findings, especially Buddha statues, he will systematically demonstrate the crucial role of four religious centers in the Funan Empire (Óc Eo (An Giang), Gò Tháp (Đồng Tháp), Gò Xoài (Long An) and Angkor Borei (Takeo)), as well as make clear their regional links in spreading Buddhism to China.