Using a third-generation synchrotron source (the BL12XU beamline at SPring-8), inelastic X-ray scattering (LXS) spectra of liquid water and liquid benzene were measured at energy losses of 1-100 eV with 0.24 eV resolution for small momentum transfers (q) of 0.23 and 0.32 au with +/- 0.06 au uncertainty for q. For both liquids, the IXS profiles at these values of q converged well after we corrected for multiple scattering, and these results confirmed the dipole approximation for q <= similar to 0.3 au. Several dielectric and optical functions [including the optical oscillator strength distribution (OOS), the optical energy-loss function (OLF), the complex dielectric function, the complex index of refraction, and the reflectance] in the vacuum ultraviolet region were derived and tabulated from these small-angle (small q) IXS spectra. These new data were compared with previously obtained results, and this comparison demonstrated the strong reproducibility and accuracy of IXS spectroscopy. For both water and benzene, there was a notable similarity between the OOSs of the liquids and amorphous solids, and there was no evidence of plasmon excitation in the OLF. The static structure factor [S(q)] for q <= similar to 0.3 an was also deduced and suggests that molecular models that include electron correlation effects can serve as a good approximation for the liquid S(q) values over the full range of q.