刘晓明大使在全英孔子学院大会上的讲话_第十三届孔子学院大会

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Speech by H.E.Ambaador Liu Xiaoming At the UK Confucius Institute National

Conference

刘晓明大使在全英孔子学院大会上的讲话

Portcullis House, 14 September 2011 2011年9月14日，伦敦新议会大厦

Mr Lindsay Hoyle, Mr Wang Yongli, Mr Mark Hendrick, Profeor Martin Earwicker, Ladies and Gentlemen，尊敬的英国议会副议长林赛·霍伊尔先生，尊敬的中国国家汉办副主任王永利先生，尊敬的英国议会中国小组主席马克·亨德里克先生，尊敬的伦敦南岸大学校长马丁·艾尔维克教授，女士们、先生们：

It‟s a real delight for me to be with you again today.Let me first expre my warm thanks to the organisers of this UK Confucius Institute National Conference.These are the All Party Parliamentary China Group and London South Bank University.It is your support that has brought the conference to such a distinguished and unique location, the British Parliament.My thanks also go to Han Ban for leading the effort for Mandarin promotion in Britain.This UK Confucius Institute National Conference embodies the important task of building deep, lasting and long term Sino-UK understanding.Creating that kind of understanding will be won in schools and universities.So, I appreciate very much this opportunity to share my thoughts with university and school leaders.It is they who have done so much to promote Mandarin teaching here in Britain.很高兴出席全英孔子学院大会，与全英国从事汉语教学和支持汉语教学的院长和校长们齐聚一堂。首先，我要感谢此次会议的主办方——英国议会跨党派中国小组和伦敦南岸大学，使得此次会议能在英国议会这样一个特殊的地点举行。同时，我也要感谢中国国家汉办多年来对在英推广汉语的重视和支持。

In my 18 months in the UK, I have attended many cultural activities.Among them, events related to Mandarin promotion, Confucius Institutes and Confucius Clarooms have always been a priority for me.Whenever my schedule allows, I will always turn up and take part!

我出任中国驻英国大使已是一年半有余，出席过中英之间举办的各种文化活动，其中事关汉语推广、孔子学院和孔子课堂的活动，我不仅是优先参加，而且有请必到。

In fact, the first event I attended as Chinese Ambaador to the UK was the UK preliminary for the „Ninth Chinese Bridge Competition.‟ As you may know, this is a highly succeful global contest organised by Han Ban.Then last September, I spoke at the Second Joint Conference of European Confucius Institutes.Shortly afterwards, I unveiled the Confucius Claroom at the St Mary‟s Primary School.When Vice Premier Li Keqiang was here on an official visit this past January, I was with him at an exchange with British students learning Mandarin.Two months later, I joined His Royal Highne the Prince of Wales at the official unveiling of the Confucius Claroom at Llandovery College in Wales.The same month, I attended the UK Regional Final for the „Tenth Chinese Bridge Competition.‟

In two days time I will be giving a reception at our Embay for the UK contestants in the „Chinese Bridge Competitions‟.They will be joined by their teachers and families.That will be another occasion for us to celebrate the outstanding performances of these young British contestants.It is a proud symbol of the succe in Mandarin teaching in this country.去年3月我刚到任时，参加的第一场公众活动是第九届世界大学生“汉语桥”比赛英国区预选赛；接着，参加了欧洲孔子学院联席会；不久又为伦敦圣玛丽小学孔子课堂揭牌；今年1月，我陪同到访的李克强副总理会见了英国汉语学习爱好者；3月，我同查尔斯王子一同出席了威尔士兰德福瑞公学孔子课堂的揭牌仪式；当月，我又出席了第十届世界大学生“汉语桥”比赛英国区预选赛。今天，我出席全英孔子学院大会；后天，我还要在中国驻英使馆为历届参加“汉语桥”比赛的英国选手及老师亲友举行招待会，祝贺他们接连在比赛中取得优异成绩。

You may now be asking: Why is the Chinese Ambaador devoting so much time on Mandarin promotion in the UK? There are three reasons.Let me take each in turn.为什么我这么重视在英国的汉语推广？我想，原因有三：

First, Mandarin is at the very core of Chinese culture and civilization.It is one of the most popular cultural products of China.So if China is to be truly understood and integrated with the world, we must promote the learning of Mandarin.One question put to me by many visiting Chinese delegations is this: “What does Britain sell most to the rest of the world?”

I respond: “That must be English”!

Let me give you some compelling statistics.Today, roughly 1 billion people are learning English worldwide.An additional 1.5 to 2 billion are speaking or exposed to English every day.In contrast, Mandarin is spoken by over 1 billion users.This means Mandarin has more native speakers than any other language.More importantly, Mandarin is part of the very „DNA‟ of Chinese civilisation, the core building block of Chinese culture.China is the longest continuous civilisation in the world.Mandarin has been an integral part of the development of China for the past five millennia.Coming back to the language statistics, Mandarin now has more than 40 million learners acro the globe.This is a key trend for the people of the world outside China to truly grasp the depth and breadth of Chinese culture and civilization.One powerful example of Mandarin‟s growing popularity is the Confucius Institutes initiative.Confucius Institutes started from scratch six years ago.No one then could have imagined how far this initiative could come in so short a time.Today, global numbers are over 300.There are 360,000 registered students benefiting from its language teaching programmes.Mandarin is now well on its way to become China‟s fastest-growing cultural export and means of communication.第一，汉语是中国最精美、最畅销的文化产品。许多来英国访问的中国代表团曾问我，英国目前最大宗出口产品是什么？我告诉他们：英语。全球正在学习英语的人口大约为10亿，另有15-20亿人口每天使用、接触英语。而汉语是全世界母语人口最多的语言，使用人数超过10亿，汉语代表着五千来一直延绵不断的文明——中华文明。令人高兴的是，随着中国的全面发展及影响力扩大，现在全球有4000多万人学习汉语，孔子学院经过近6年从无到有的跨越式发展，全球数量超过300家，注册学员达到36万人。汉语正在成为中国增长最快、影响最大的对外文化产品和对外交流工具。

The second reason I devote some much time to this vital effort is this: Mandarin is the most effective key to understanding today‟s China.As you may be aware, the development of China is moving very quickly.In China today many aspects, such as cities, can change beyond recognition in a short period of time.If one relies on British media coverage and journalists perspectives alone, he will fail to understand the larger picture of my country, or even be influenced by biased and misguided reports.This lack of reporting and analysis means it is vital to equip young British people with Mandarin skills.By being able to speak Mandarin, the youth of Britain can go and explore China themselves.They can then learn first hand the reality of my country today.Mandarin offers a path to grasp all facets of the Chinese society, from outside to inside.So understanding China truly starts from Mandarin.The Confucius Institute and Confucius Claroom couldn‟t come at a better time.They have offered high-quality venues around the world for Mandarin teaching and learning.In turn they have created non-profit and excellent platforms that have earned wide recognition and respect.第二，汉语是了解当代中国的最直接、最有效的钥匙。当代中国，发展日新月异，进步包罗万象，如果仅从英国当地媒体的视角认识中国，难免管中窥豹，甚至有可能被一些偏见所误导。但是，如果借由汉语这一门径，就能透过语言，认识当代中国社会的方方面面，由表及里，从外至内。所以，了解中国，自汉语始。孔子学院和孔子课堂就是应时应需，在全球建立了合作开展汉语教学的专业场所，提供了非营利性、获得广泛认可和赞誉的优质平台。

My third reason for devoting time to Mandarin learning is its role in China–UK relations.From my visits to many Confucius Institutes and Clarooms I have seen the evidence that here is the most dynamic and vibrant core of Sino-UK cultural exchange.Meeting many of the teachers and students has hugely impreed me with their enthusiasm and paion.I sense that this is providing a powerful impetus to drive the learning of Mandarin into all corners of Britain.Such eagerne to learn is shown by so many people.Busine leaders, young people and even children: overall more than 100,000 Britons are learning Mandarin.What is happening now can be best described by a well known observation of Confucius.That is: “Education is for all”.第三，汉语学习和交流是当前中英关系中最热门、最活跃的领域。我很高兴看到英国“汉语热”不断升温，无论是工商精英，还是青年一代，甚至是冲龄幼童，都在积极学习汉语，总人数超过10万，正合孔子的一句名言：“有教无类”。

At the end of July when I left Britain for consultations back home, I had noted that there were 13 Confucius Institutes and 54 Confucius Clarooms in Britain.When I returned to London last week, I was told their numbers had jumped to 17 and 57 respectively.I am delighted to note that these figures means Britain will remain in the pole position acro Europe in developing Mandarin education.Today, Confucius Institutes and Confucius Clarooms now reach out acro all parts of Britain.They have spread around England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.This movement is already having results.Confucius Institutes and Confucius Clarooms have educated and trained a large number of students.These pupils now speak Mandarin and as a result better understand Chinese culture and appreciate my country.Some of these students have done extraordinarily well in the global „Chinese Bridge Competition‟.In turn these contestants have now become active in boosting cultural exchanges and building understanding between our two nations.我7月底回国述职前，在英有13所孔子学院和54所孔子课堂，我上周回到伦敦，这个数字增加到17所孔子学院和57所孔子课堂，继续在欧洲名列第一。现在，全英各地包括英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰都已设有孔子学院，布局全面、合理。英国的孔子学院和孔子课堂培养出一大批精通汉语、了解中国文化、热爱中国的优秀人才，他们在“汉语桥”比赛中表现出色，在增进两国交流和理解方面作用突出。

In recent years, Chinese leaders coming to Britain have made frequent visits to Confucius Institutes and met with young Mandarin learners.These visits reflect strong high level support for the further advance of Mandarin teaching.As a result the government education departments of both our countries are giving a big push to Mandarin teaching.One recent development was last year‟s signing of a Sino–UK government framework cooperation agreement.The objective is to provide higher quality Mandarin education and more resources in support of such programmes.I highly appreciate the All Party Parliamentary China Group warmly supporting such teaching programs and co-hosting today‟s conference.As Chinese Ambaador, I hope this rising demand for Mandarin will become an even stronger force.I will do everything I can to add to its momentum.近年，中国领导人访英期间，经常参观孔子学院或会见英国青年汉语学习爱好者，活动成为访问中的突出亮点。两国政府教育部门也全力推动，去年签署了在英开展汉语教学的框架合作协议，决心促进提升在英汉语教学水平和提供更多资源便利。我也赞赏英国议会跨党派中国小组同样热心支持在英汉语教学，特意参与主办此次会议。作为中国大使，我乐见“汉语热”继续升温，也愿继续为它添火、助阵。

Your theme for this conference is „The Sustainable Development of Confucius Institutes in Britain‟.I fully support the choice of this theme.It is a vital and neceary task to ensure there are solid foundations that will last for all time.Of course, we have every reason to be proud of the achievements to date.New Confucius Institutes are being created quickly.All around the world they have made a big difference to Mandarin teaching outside of China.And the plan to create a global network has been largely succeful.As you explore the theme of this conference, I would encourage deep thinking and analysis.We should never stop searching for better approaches to promote the development of Confucius Institutes.More needs to be done to raise teaching standards, and promote sharing of resources and the spread of best practices.In addition, we need to put more efforts in training local teachers.Then there is the use of new techniques and methodologies to make Mandarin teaching more productive.So I encourage you in this conference to build on the succe and bring forward a new vision for the future.I believe that this is the only way we can set Mandarin education in Britain on a „sustainable course.‟

本次会议的一大主题是“在英孔子学院的可持续发展”。我认为，这一讨论在当前阶段尤为必要和重要。应当说，当前孔子学院建设速度很快，成绩成果很大，树立了良好的品牌。在此大好形势下，我们应保持头脑冷静，调整发展思路，转变工作重点，重视提升教学质量，注重资源共享，加强经验交流，强化当地师资培养，借重教学新科技和新方式，不断固本强基，开拓创新，让在英汉语教学走上一条可持续发展道路。

In closing, I wish this conference a great succe!

最后，祝本次会议圆满成功，祝在英孔子学院、孔子课堂的发展更上一层楼。

Thank you!

谢谢。