This is an International Academic Symposium being held by a big throng of sinology faculty deans from various world-famed universities around the world. It is one as the first ever being jointly held by Chinese academic circles with their foreign counterparts to make an overall study into the history and current Chinese language teaching on various university campuses in China and abroad. Altogether 33 foreign sinologists and 40 Chinese experts along with officials in charge of education and foreign ambassadors to China are present at the Symposium.

A worldwide sinological study spreading and impacting the world is being felt as this reporter is impressed in recent years. Since reform and opening up from 1980s on China has had increased cultural ties developed with its foreign counterparts especially those in the West. There has been witnessed a fast development of sinological study as a humanity subject on various university campuses abroad in the past 20 years in the West.

In Europe, cite Germany as an example, universities, which originally had no departments for sinological study, have come to be run with East Asia Study Departments instituted. Though some have already had East Asia Study Departments they still make a point to set up a new faculty of sinology for making an intensive study on China. This is especially so since General Motors Fund pools in to have enabled Germany to become one with sinological study being developed fastest and the largest number of students majoring in Chinese language study. Being the biggest trade partner of China in Europe, it has by its sinological study testified to the fact "China prospers, sinology blooms".

The United States is another in case as it has become the biggest and No.1 country going in for sinological study known to the world. Back in the days of World War II the country had only five institutes set up to that end and against these by now are more than 200 having been developed with a research force of over 1,000 sinologists and as many as over 1,000 doctoral students specializing in sinology. When counting in all East Asia research institutions built in various libraries throughout the US there will be literally a research body of over 6,000 for sinological study.

Sinology, or China study, is to make a study into China's culture, history and development, or things past and present. A trendy phenomenon is that an increased number of people have got a strong interest in China and going in for sinological study in various parts throughout the world.

Firstly, intensified efforts are being made and many descriptions of societies for sinological study have been formed for undertaking sinological study. They have academic publications of their own and every year have a session called. Of these, the East Asia Institute in the US has been launched on the biggest scale and every year has an annual meeting held. As a result of a strengthening of overall sinological study made there has been brought about an obvious raise in the number of academic achievements and quality studies.

Second, a change has been made in academic study from traditional sinology to social scientific study, especially an enhanced study of sinology in economics, social science and law

Third, increased input has been made by various funds and this is as shown by a year-on-year increase of this by General Motors in Germany.

Well known is a senior Russian sinologist with the Institute of the Far East of Russia, Russian Academy of Sciences. As early back in the period of the War of Resistance Against Japan he had got into contacts with many famous Chinese sinologists like Cao Jinghua and cultural giants like Guo Moruo. When recalling all these we are bound to cherish a deep memory of those Chinese and foreign sinologists and experts who have made great contributions to cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries.

From Marco Polo (1275-1292), Mattco Ricci, Abel Remusat, John Kiny Fairbank, Joseph Needham and many other such big names have come to form into a long giant bridge to span the history of "Western studies Being Made in the East" and "Oriental Studies Made in the West".

In 1814, French Institute set up the subject of sinology and the tenure of professorship to that end, poiting to the fact that sinology has long been established as a subject of science. Sinology had ever been a subject going through ups and downs after the founding of New China. Reform and open-up have however brought about China's development and prosperity and this has given rise to a new heat for sinological study in many countries abroad.

At the juncture of the new century, China has come for the first time to call such a great International Symposium of sinologists from all over the world, highlighting the new advances of sinology being made onto a new stage in the present-day world.

(09/10/2001)