Book Review

摘要

It has been widely assumed that Vietnamese traditional medical practices were governed by Chinese medical texts and theories, whether it was the practice of one or another of the two main branches of medicine in Vietnam ( the northernor Chinese branch and the southern orindigenous one). However, as Michele Thompson points out, Nôm, or demotic Vietnamese script, held a significant place in the literate transmission of medical knowledge. Exploring texts written in different languages and scripts concerning smallpox, and combining them with historical data, ethnographic observations and extensive documentation, she has questioned a common belief. Thereby also gives some new insights into the circulation of medical traditions between China and Vietnam.