Confucius Institute belongs to China and the world

Today, the Confucius Institute has become a name brand facilitating cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries. A total of 525 Confucius Institutes and 1,113 Confucius Classrooms are transmitting Chinese culture and the philosophy of inclusive development and harmonious coexistence in 146 countries and regions. In a letter of congratulations on the tenth anniversary of the founding of Confucius Institute and the first “Confucius Institute Day”, Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out that the institution belongs to China as well as the rest of the world. These words contain the following implications.

Confucius Institutes not only tell Chinese stories but also help strengthen people-to-people bonds. With the Chinese language as a medium, communication and understanding between Chinese and foreign peoples are made possible. For example, the Confucius Institute at Hamburg University has become a community cultural centre for local German people, where Chinese and German people tighten their ties of friendship through communication.

Confucius Institutes are cultivating Chinese feelings in the international community and also communicating the concept of a community of shared future for mankind. The 12th Global Confucius Institute Conference, was held late last year with the theme “contributing to building a community of shared future for mankind.” Confucius Institutes are fertile soil for spreading this concept and promoting exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations.

Confucius Institutes also highlight the philosophy that the whole world is one community. They also spread the Chinese Communist Party’s unswerving mission of making greater contributions to mankind. “Peaches and plums do not have to talk, yet the world beats a path to them.” This old saying describes the most effective way for future exchanges between China and foreign countries. Chinese stories, voices and characteristics are what attract the world. These three concepts are rooted in traditional Chinese culture, but go beyond it. When we talk about confidence in our own culture, the culture also includes our revolutionary culture, especially the advanced Socialist concepts rooted in the practice of ‘Socialism with Chinese characteristics’.

 (This article was originally published by the People’s Daily Overseas Edition. It is abridged for use here. The author is a researcher at the Centre for Sino-German Socio-Cultural Exchanges at Tongji University.)

BY Yu Ke; Editor: Wang Shixue