Tokyo, June 16 -- The Vietnamese language proficiency exam held in Japan has reached a new milestone this year, with a record number of candidates and the introduction of the highest-level test, Level 1, for the first time.

The exam, the 8th of its kind, organised by the Association for the Promotion and Exchange of Languages of Southeast Asian Countries in Japan, took place on June 15 at the Japan College of Foreign Languages in Tokyo. It featured six levels, from the introductory Pre-Level 6 up to Level 1.

This year, 917 entries were received from participants aged 8 to 84, representing 40 of Japan's 46 prefectures. Pre-Level 6 and Level 5 attracted the most candidates, with 229 and 214 respectively. Notably, Level 1 debuted with 41 c...