[EDLING:1919] Confucius institute: promoting language, culture and friendliness

[Francis M. Hult]

People's Daily Online

Confucius institute: promoting language, culture and friendliness

Two thousand, five hundred and fifty-six years after his birth in China, 
Confucius is reliving his mission of "touring various kingdoms". This time, he 
has gone beyond China and settled in 36 countries, home to Confucius 
Institutes. 

However, the task for his disciples is no longer to memorize doctrines left by 
the great philosopher and educator, but to learn Mandarin, "the must-have 
language", according to the British linguist David Gaddol. 

"Mandarin is trendy around the globe, and the establishment of Confucius 
Institutes is a natural response to the world's thirst," says Xu Lin, Chief of 
the National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (NOCFL). 

Xu hit the point. Statistics from the Ministry of Education show that there 
are 30 million foreigners studying Chinese worldwide. More than 2,500 colleges 
and universities offer Chinese courses in 100-plus countries. 

Full story
http://english.people.com.cn/200610/02/eng20061002_308230.html