Time: Sept. 29, 2021 

Source: College of Chinese Language and Culture 

Author: Liu Hui

Prof. Guo Xi, director of the National Center for Overseas Huayu Research in JNU's College of Chinese Language and Culture, and Associate Prof. Liu Hui, assistant to the director of the center, were invited to attend the China-ASEAN Language and Culture Forum in Guiyang, Guizhou Province, on Sept. 25. Tian Xuejun, vice minister of the Ministry of Education and director of the National Language and Writing Committee, and Danuch Tanterdtid, Thailand's deputy minister of higher education, scientific research and innovation, gave the opening speeches by video. Tian Lixin, director of the Ministry of Education's Language Information Department, gave the keynote speech. 

Speaking on Southeast Asian Chinese Language as a Cultural Heritage, Guo said it was a language resource shared by all members of ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, that is non-renewable, geographical, historical and diverse, with a unique mode of transmitting language and culture.“It's important to value the Southeast Asian Chinese as a cultural heritage and re-identify the goal of overseas Huayu research,”Guo said. Meanwhile, we must dig into the history and present condition of Southeast Asian Chinese, expand the comparative study of Chinese among different regions, and deepen the research on its inheritance theories and methods as a proto-language. It's a tremendous priority for future overseas Huayu Research to serve cultural exchanges and mutual learning. Guo called on more scholars from ASEAN countries to join the ranks of the research. 

During the discussion, Guo answered a question from Sidney Christopher Bata, an associate professor at Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines. He was later interviewed by China Education Television. 

(Prof. Guo speaking at the forum)