(海上贸易) 6 min read Ancient China’s maritime trade largely involved an exchange between manufactured goods from China and natural products from Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, and Africa. This network connected the economies of the Eastern Hemisphere for centuries, making China the central manufacturing powerhouse of the premodern world. While the overland […]
China’s Trading History (2): Maritime Trade Read More »
(鸦片贸易) 5 min read From the mid-16th to the early 19th century, China was the world’s leading manufacturing power and absorbed much of the global silver supply in payment for its exports. European demand for Chinese tea, silk, and porcelain was immense, but because China accepted only silver, Britain’s reserves steadily declined. To reverse
China’s Trading History (3): “Opium Trade” Read More »
(清末民初海归对文学的贡献) 8 min read From the late 19th to the early 20th century, the transition from the Late Qing Dynasty to the Early Republic of China marked a watershed moment in modern Chinese history. Long-standing imperial institutions were increasingly exposed and threatened by Western military power, political systems, and cultural values. In response, a generation
Overseas Returnees from Late Qing to Early Republic of China—Impacts on Literature Read More »
(利玛窦: 促进西学东渐的第一人) 6 min read In the mid-sixteenth century, Jesuits—members of the Catholic Church’s Society of Jesus—first attempted to establish a mission in China. In 1552, St. Francis Xavier reached Shangchuan Island (上川岛), off China’s southern coast near Macau (澳门). That same year marked both the death of Francis Xavier and a turning point for
Sages from the West: the Story of Matteo Ricci and His Fellow Jesuits Read More »
(玄奘的足迹) 4 min read Buddhism had taken root in China soon after its introduction from India in the 1st century CE. In 629, the Buddhist monk Xuanzang (玄奘, 602–664) embarked on a monumental pilgrimage to India. Born Chen Wei (陈祎), he received the Dharma name Xuanzang at his Buddhist ordination. His motivation was not
Following the Footsteps of Xuanzang Read More »
(严复: 20世纪初中国与西方的对话者) 4 min read Modern China’s “age of awakening,” spanning the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was a painful reckoning for Chinese intellectuals as they confronted the country’s rapid decline in the face of Western imperial powers. Yan Fu (严复, 1854—1921), one of the most influential thinkers of this era, was the
Yan Fu: At the Crossroad of East and West in the Early 20th Century Read More »
(活生生的中文字) 5 min read Chinese is spoken by more than a billion people, primarily in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, and in diaspora communities around the world. Like all living languages, Chinese evolves over time. Over the past three millennia, Chinese writing has taken on new forms, and new words and
Chinese—a Living Language Read More »
(历久不衰的成语故事) 6 min read Chinese idioms (成语) are concise expressions that convey complex ideas, moral lessons, or life philosophies. Idiom stories explain the origins and meanings of these expressions and, in some ways, resemble Aesop’s Fables. They are an integral part of Chinese culture. People who grow up in Chinese-speaking communities are deeply familiar
Enduring Idiom-Stories Read More »
(传统说唱艺术的魅力) 4 min read Oral storytelling has played a significant role in the development and preservation of civilizations worldwide, serving as an essential means of transmitting knowledge, cultural values, and historical narratives to the general public before the advent of mass literacy. This tradition, marked by vast regional diversity, encompasses various forms such as
Oral Traditions of China Read More »
(海外华人来自何方) 6 min read According to a 2020 United Nations estimate, approximately 10.7 million people of Chinese ethnicity live outside China. If their descendants are included, this figure rises to at least 60 million. Among this population, the largest communities reside in Thailand, followed by Indonesia, Malaysia, the United States, Singapore, Canada, and other
Who are the Chinese Overseas? Read More »
