By Qian Ding, cctv.com editor
The 3rd Huilin Culture Prize ceremony was held at Beijing Normal University on Friday, Jan. 20.
The prize is meant to honor those who made outstanding contributions to international communication of Chinese culture and is named after Mrs. Huang Huilin, a senior professor of Beijing Normal University and head of the Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture. This year, Joel Bellassen, a French sinologist and Chinese historian and archaeologist Li Xueqin shared the prize.
Joel Bellassen was born in French Algeria and started to learn Chinese in the 1970s. In 1973, he came to Beijing to study Chinese and worked in the Chinese countryside. After finishing his studies in China, he returned to France where he became a Chinese teacher in middle schools and universities. In 1984, he helped to establish the Association for Chinese-Teaching in France and took up the post of general secretary. He is the first Inspector General in the field of Chinese Language Teaching at the French Ministry of Education.
Joel Bellassen awarded with the Huilin Culture Prize
According to Bellassen, France and China have much in common, both countries take pride in their long histories. He employed Chinese saying, "When you drink water, think of those who dug the well" to express his gratitude towards his Chinese teachers. He said there are around 100,000 Chinese learners in France and the enthusiasm for learning Chinese is running high. Chinese is not just a language, it’s also a type of art. He encourages more Chinese teachers to adapt to French culture when teaching Chinese in France. For example, Chinese teachers tend to make dumplings in reality when teaching something about Chinese food, they don’t talk much about gastronomy. However, French love gastronomy. French cuisine, as one of the most famous cuisines in the world, is much more than food making, it’s an art. Thereby, there is still a lot to be done to improve the Chinese teaching methods abroad.
Li Xueqin awarded with the Huilin Culture Prize
The other award winner is Li Xueqin who is considered one of the most important historians working today in China. He has served as Director of Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Director of Institute of Sinology of Tsinghua University, head of Pre-Qin History Association of China, and Director of Xia–Shang–Zhou Chronology Project.
Group photo of participants to the ceremony
The Huilin Prize for Culture is an internationally-oriented academy award, hosted by Huilin Cultural Fund of Beijing Normal University and Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture, which aims to introduce Chinese culture worldwide more effectively and contribute to a harmonious world culture via in-depth research and art works.
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