On November 22, 2019, the Fourth Peking University & Cairo University China-Arab Civilization Dialogue was successfully held at the King Abdulaziz Public Library Branch in Peking University (“Library Branch”). Fu Zhiming, Deputy Dean of the School of Foreign Languages of PKU and Director of the Arab Studies Center of the Library Branch, Lin Fengmin, Director of the Arabic Language Department of PKU, Ahmed, Dean of the Faculty of Arts of Cairo University, Jamal, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Arts of Cairo University and many other Chinese and Egyptian scholars attended the meeting.

The Fourth Peking University & Cairo University China-Arab Civilization Dialogue

At the opening ceremony, Professor Fu Zhiming, Deputy Dean of the School of Foreign Languages of PKU, gave a brief introduction of PKU and the Arabic Language Department, and commended Cairo University for its important role in accepting Chinese students and cultivating advanced Arabic language teaching talents for Chinese universities. He also expressed hope that the civilization dialogue between the two universities would become a significant bridge connecting the two countries and strengthening the relationship between China and Arab countries.

The dialogue revolved around "The Future of Nation States", "China-Arab Cultural Exchange: Foundation, Achievements and Reflections", "Najib Mahafoz's Journey of Literary and Artistic Creation", "Egyptian Culture in China" and "History of Arabic Teaching in China from the Perspective of Sociolinguistics", "Contemporary Chinese Research Framework" and other topics. Scholars and researchers at the dialogue expressed their views over the above topics.

Experts and scholars from Cairo University had discussions with students from the Arabic Language Department of PKU

Before the opening ceremony, the delegation had a tour of the Library Branch led by Professor Fu Zhiming who briefly introduced the Library Branch, and then accompanied them to visit the “Oriental Wisdom” Saudi Arabia—China Calligraphy and Culture Exhibition on the basement floor. The experts and scholars also had discussions and exchanges with the students from the Arabic Language Department of PKU on Arabic literature and culture.

The delegation visited the “Oriental Wisdom” Saudi Arabia—China Calligraphy and Culture Exhibition

Such a mechanism of China-Arab civilization dialogue between Peking University and Cairo University was established in 2010, the first two sessions of which were held at Cairo University in Egypt, and the last two held at Peking University. The theme of the dialogue focused on language, literature, history, and culture, revolving around in-depth discussions on the development and teaching methods of Chinese and Arabic.