Language is the unique "secret key" of human communication. Only by being connected can emotions blend and strength gather. Translation, like a bridge, has become an important channel to promote the exchange of world cultures and ideas.

As one of the earliest eight independently established higher foreign language colleges in the country, in 1964, under the care of Premier Zhou Enlai, Tianjin Foreign Studies University was born in response to the needs of New China's diplomatic undertakings. Since then, Tianwai spent a sixty-year period translating and introducing China to the world, which not only witnessed the changes in Sino-foreign exchanges, but also built a bridge for exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations.

In the golden autumn of September, adjacent to the Fifth Avenue Cultural Tourism Zone of Tianjin City, which is known as the "World Architecture Expo Garden", the Machang Avenue Campus of Tianjin Foreign Studies University is hidden among the bustling downtown areas, surrounded by green shades, low-key and elegant. Students travel to and from the retro European teaching building on campus to start the new semester of campus life.

In the 60 years since its founding, nearly 60,000 outstanding Chinese and foreign alumni have been active in many fields such as diplomacy and foreign affairs, foreign economics and foreign trade, media, law, and education, relying on their solid language skills, witnessing China's journey towards the world and the world's understanding of China. Immersed by exchanges and mutual learning, this campus has become increasingly profound and has a long cultural heritage.

Important town: Important documents of the Party and the country "go out to sea" through here

"Love others with virtue" and "benevolent people are invincible"... Talking about China's extensive and profound ideological culture, Luo Feifei from Belarus is like a family treasure, and her tone is full of recognition of many of these concepts.

This girl with an oriental charm is not only a teacher at the School of European Languages and Culture of Tianjin Foreign Studies University, but also a doctoral candidate in the China-Russia direction of the foreign translation of important party and national documents at the Central Document Translation Research Base.

Luo Feifei took out a white-covered book from the bookshelf that she was proud of, with the title of the Belarusian and Chinese-"Terms of Chinese Thought and Culture" printed on it. "I am one of the translators of volumes 4, 5 and 6 of the Belarusian translation of this book." Luo Feifei said.

When talking about this book, Luo Feifei was full of interest. "Many terms in this book embody the wisdom and thoughts of thousands of years of China's civilization and are important spiritual symbols of Chinese civilization. Understanding the connotation can help Belarusian readers understand China's ancient culture and splendid civilization, so as to better understand today's China."

In order to achieve accurate expression of the content with distinctive China characteristics in the book, Luo Feifei spent two years "carefully choosing the words." The translation of this book has received enthusiastic responses in Belarus, with many local physical bookstores and even online stores selling it. Belarusian translators and university teachers have successively come to Luo Feifei to exchange their translation experiences. "Full of accomplishment." she said.

Historically, Belarus was located at the intersection of the Wahi Trade Road and the Silk Road connecting China and the West. Luo Feifei has been learning Chinese since she was six years old and has gradually become obsessed with traditional China culture. These became the "driving force" for her to later embark on the path of translation.

"I want to show and interpret to the world the wisdom of China that promotes the development of human civilization through my translation works." Luo Feifei said. In recent years, other works translated by her and her team members have been published one after another. "Translation is like building a bridge, allowing more people to walk on the bridge to understand the real China."

How to convey "why the Communist Party of China is able, why Marxism works, and why socialism with China characteristics is good" in a way acceptable to the people of the world is an important lesson in "Translating China to the World" of Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

To this end,"top" platforms are built here one after another. In 2011, Tianjin Foreign Studies University cooperated with the then Central Compilation and Translation Bureau to jointly build the "Central Document Translation Research Base". In 2018, the base was officially upgraded to a ministerial research institution directly under the Party History and Documentation Research Institute of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. In 2021, the school further established the International Communication and Translation Research Center for the Theoretical System of Socialism with China Characteristics.

"Currently, the 'Base + Center' covers four languages: English, Japanese, Russian, and Korean. There are more than 30 members of the foreign translation team. There are many foreign translators like Luo Feifei joining the team, directly serving China's discourse, world expression, and external discourse system construction and other national strategies." Li Yingying, president of Tianjin Foreign Studies University, said.

As the only "External Translation Research of Important Party and State Documents" in the country to serve the special needs of the country, and based on the newly established research center, Tianjin Foreign Studies University has successively undertaken or participated in the completion of "A Brief History of the Communist Party of China" and "Chronicle of Events of the People's Republic of China (October 1949-September 2019)" and other international translation tasks of important party and state documents.

"In recent years, the school has undertaken more and more important external translation work, and the results have become richer." The relevant person in charge of the Propaganda Department of the Party Committee of Tianjin Foreign Studies University said that last year alone, the first and second volumes of "The Centenary of the Communist Party of China","Economic Growth and Development Potential-Theoretical Evolution and China Experience" and "China Social Governance" and other translated works completed by the school have attracted widespread attention from foreign political, academic and ordinary people in society.

"China's propositions, China's wisdom, and China's solutions have traveled across the ocean in different languages from here to convey wisdom and strength to the world." Li Jing, head of the base, said.

At the same time, the school has integrated multilingual versions of important party and state documents into multilingual professional courses for undergraduate and graduate students and cultural and language courses for international students, and has incorporated many translation results throughout the entire process of teaching and educating people. A group of outstanding graduates took "China Thought" to serve in the United Nations, embassies and consulates abroad, and Chinese and foreign-funded enterprises.

"We are committed to cultivating a team of international communication talents with family and country feelings, global vision, and professional skills, and telling the story of the governance of the Communist Party of China and the hard work of the China people." said Zhou Honglei, Secretary of the Party Committee of Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

Mutual learning window: a network for close exchanges

Tianjin Foreign Studies University's "first class" is unique and always starts from the famous Beijiang Museum.

A hundred years ago, French naturalist Sang Zhihua traveled thousands of miles to China for scientific inspections and established the Northern Xinjiang Museum, which collects various animals, plants, paleontology, etc. This "one of the earliest natural history museums in China" is located on the campus of Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

"As a landmark for cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and foreign countries, it carries the humanistic feelings of overseas Sinologists and is a vivid 'teaching material' for Chinese and foreign students." said Sun Qian, Secretary of the Party Branch of the School of International Education of Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

Just like the spiritual core displayed by the Beijiang Museum, Tianjin Foreign Studies University has been a window for exchanges and mutual learning between China and overseas countries since its establishment.

Today, Tianjin Foreign Studies University is committed to building more communication platforms. This year, Professor Helms Mwangxiaoke, an expert in Kiswahili linguistics in Tanzania and president of Teofilo Gisanzi University, came to Tianjin Foreign Studies University for lectures and exchanges.

During this period, he walked into the classroom of China college students many times, starting from culture, supplemented by food, clothing, music and other contents, to present the origin, historical development and characteristics of Swahili culture to students in an in-depth and simple way. At the same time, he had many discussions with the school's Kiswahili teachers to discuss how to share teaching resources, cooperate in publishing textbooks and dictionaries, and jointly carry out plans for African language, culture, and education topics.

"Through such close exchanges, we have a deeper understanding of the skills of teaching Kiswahili, and they have a better understanding of the characteristics of China teachers and students." said Luo Yuanyuan, associate professor at the Kiswahili Department of Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

Not only are there lectures, Tianjin Foreign Studies University continues to take the initiative to invite foreign experts, scholars, and young people who know China to come to China to take high-speed rail, ride shared bicycles, experience online payments in the city, and see the results of rural revitalization and the green waters and green mountains in the countryside. Happiness... In the close cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, Chinese stories with small incisions, warmth, and down-to-earth characteristics are presented to more people.

Jin Xin, deputy dean of the Graduate School of Tianjin Foreign Studies University, clearly remembers that last year, Giorgio Ivan Gonzalez Bolero, a representative of the visiting delegation of Colombia educators and director of the National Financial Planning Agency of Colombia, and his party came to the school for an inspection. When parting, he said with emotion that he had studied China issues in Colombia for many years and had always been confused about the reasons for the rapid development of China. When he really set foot on the land of China and communicated closely with the teachers and students of the school, The answer to the question emerged.

"We also take advantage of our advantages of many foreign language majors and wide channels for international communication to vigorously promote the building of the 'Study in China' brand." said Zhang Zhanqi, director of the International Cooperation and Exchange Division of Tianjin Foreign Studies University. American teacher Joe chose to study at Tianjin Foreign Studies University because he loved China culture, and eventually chose to stay in the school to teach.

More and more students graduating from here are practicing the spirit of peace, communication and mutual learning with practical actions.

After graduating from Tianjin Foreign Studies University, Wang Zhaoyan joined the army in 2011. More than a year later, he received instructions to join China's first peacekeeping police riot squad in Liberia. For more than a decade, he has stayed on the front line of United Nations peacekeeping forces and was awarded the First Class Peace Medal by the United Nations delegation in Liberia. "The concepts of communication, tolerance, and peace I learned in school have given me a firm belief in life."

Time flies. On September 12, a group of more than 3000 newly enrolled students visited the Beijiang Museum. Gao Runhao, a freshman from the Institute of International Education, said: "After the visit, I am even more determined to become an envoy of exchanges and mutual learning between China and the West."

At present, the number of foreign languages in Tianjin Foreign Studies University has reached 31, basically covering major countries and regions along the "Belt and Road"; it receives more than 2000 long-term and short-term international students from more than 60 countries around the world to study for degrees every year; It has established friendly cooperative relations with more than 330 universities and educational institutions in more than 50 countries... Talents from different countries have gathered here to jointly create a "new scene" for cultural and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries in the new era in the school.

Cultural Messenger: Start from here to understand China

At the beginning of the lanterns, Tianjin's "mother river" Haihe put on heavy makeup. One summer night this year, members of the "Chinese Bridge" project for Korean high school students came to the Haihe River to take a cruise ship. Colorful colorful lights on both sides of the strait reflect on the faces of the young people.

As the cruise ship started, the teenagers cheered. They expressed their joy in their unfamiliar Chinese: "Wow! Beautiful!" "I want to take a photo and share it." After the cruise ship arrived at the finish line, everyone was amazed at Tianjin's urban development and hoped to participate in more such activities to enhance exchanges between the youth of the two countries.

This is a university and a "cultural messenger". More and more foreign scholars and students are starting from Tianjin Foreign Studies University to understand China.

In August this year, Tianjin Foreign Studies University was approved by the Chinese and Foreign Language Exchange and Cooperation Center of the Ministry of Education to host the "Jingu Impression" Chinese Bridge Project for Youth commissioned by the Ministry of Education of Oman. During the two-week study, more than 20 young people from Oman carried out activities such as language and culture learning and exchanges to perceive China culture through the rich and colorful course experience.

Young people from Oman visited the Tianjin City Planning Exhibition Hall, Tianjin Binhai New District Library and many other places, and experienced Tianjin's infrastructure construction, historical and cultural buildings. The exchange group also specially set up China cultural courses such as Tianjin intangible cultural heritage handicraft silver jewelry making, seal cutting experience, and reading of famous classics.

At the end of the study, Oman youth instructor Muhammad Alalawi said with emotion: "This is the first time but not the last time. We will still want to come to China in the future."

"Online" cultural exchanges have also given Chinese and foreign youth new connections. Since 2020, more than 4000 foreign students have participated in the "Chinese Bridge" online exchange group project organized by Tianjin Foreign Studies University. 30 "Chinese Bridge" video courses have been selected into the excellent course resource library of the Chinese and Foreign Language Exchange and Cooperation Center, becoming a new platform to showcase the achievements of China's international education and deepen educational exchanges and cooperation.

"'Chinese Bridge 'activity combines learning and practice, online and offline, allowing foreign friends to experience the charm of China immersively and introduce China in their eyes to family and friends after returning home." said Cheng Youqiang, professor and library director of the School of English at Tianjin Foreign Studies University.

After leaving school, cultural exchanges did not stop. Tianjin Foreign Studies University has successively opened 9 Confucius Institutes in cooperation with universities in South Korea, Portugal, Russia and other countries.

In the classroom at the Confucius Institute at the University of Lisbon in Portugal, more than 20 local students studied Wang Jincheng's calligraphy demonstration class with gusto. This year is the seventh year that Wang Jincheng has served as the Chinese dean of the Confucius Institute at the University of Lisbon in Portugal.

"In response to the needs of Portugal's economic and social development, the Confucius Institute in Lisbon has built a curriculum system featuring 'Chinese + vocational skills'to meet the diverse learning needs of students." Wang Jincheng said that the Confucius Institute also provides customized business Chinese courses for Chinese companies in Lisbon. Since its establishment in 2008, nearly 20,000 registered students have participated in the Institute, Confucius Classrooms and teaching sites, and more than 90,000 people have participated in various cultural activities of the Confucius Institute.

In addition, Tianjin Foreign Studies University and Volgograd State Normal University in Russia have jointly supported the "Kitty Hawk" China-Russia Youth Language and Cultural Exchange Center since 2021, offering various courses and other supporting related work to learn Chinese and understand China culture. More than 8000 students from the "Kitty Hawk" Center have participated. The two sides also designed 100 issues of the "China Cultural Knowledge Window" column, covering China mythological stories, poetry, drama, folk art, traditional festivals, food culture, China cities, China buildings and scenic spots to help local youth better understand China.

Tianjin Foreign Studies University also uses various international exhibitions as a "stage" for spreading China culture.

This summer, Tianjin Foreign Studies University selected 30 volunteers from 6 language majors to serve as interpreters for the 2024 Tianjin International Children's Art Festival.

Taste intangible cultural heritage delicacies such as Goubuli steamed buns, ears fried cakes, and Shibajie hemp flowers, and experience intangible cultural heritage making techniques such as lacquer fans and sachets... At the 2024 Tianjin International Children's Art Festival, more than 50 children's art groups from around the world, Spend an unforgettable journey to China cultural experience.

"During the event, I communicated with young Japanese people, prepared performances, and helped them communicate with China friends. It was a great feeling." Yang Depeng, a student at Tianjin Foreign Studies University who serves as an interpreter for the Yokkaichi High School Orchestra in Japan, said.

Over the past 60 years, I have opened my mind, embraced the world, and demonstrated the style of China; I have also used one year to cultivate batches of outstanding Chinese and foreign students, allowing them to work hard and forge ahead around the world.

Li Yingying said that the school will continue to strengthen the construction of international communication capabilities, gather the power of outer space, give out the voice of outer space, conclude friendship between outer space, and improve the quality of outer space, so as to cultivate more high-quality international innovative talents with family and country feelings, global vision, and professional skills, promote the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind, and contribute the wisdom and strength of outer space. (Reporters Zhang Jianxin, Bai Jiali, Song Rui)