Egyptian and Chinese students celebrate UN Chinese Language Day in Cairo

Egyptian students taste Chinese tea during a ceremony celebrating Chinese Language Day in Cairo, Egypt, April 27, 2024. Students studying at Egyptian colleges celebrated the United Nations Chinese Language Day on Saturday with a themed event that included a concert, food and tea tasting, sketch comedy and art show. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

Students studying at Egyptian colleges celebrated United Nations Chinese Language Day on Saturday with a themed event that included a concert, food and tea tastings, sketch comedy and an art show.

During the event, a traditional orchestra from Nanjing University in southeastern China played melodious music such as ‘Jasmine’ and ‘Birds Greeting the Phoenix’, receiving a thunderous ovation from the enthusiastic audience.

Li Zhiru, an erhu player with the band majoring in electronics, said he was proud and excited to perform in Egypt and happy to see the local audience enjoying the show.

The event was held at the Egyptian-Chinese University (ECU) in Cairo, with the participation of students and teachers from universities of the two countries, representatives of the Arab League, Egyptian officials and Chinese diplomats.

Later, about twenty Egyptian students and Chinese teachers amazed the audience with a choral song about family ties and solidarity.

Eman El-Sayed, an Egyptian student at Cairo’s Ain Shams University, said it is a great pleasure to participate in the event, which offers “many activities including singing, acting and many other performances.”

“I decided to study Chinese because China is a big country with a strong economy and a beautiful culture, and learning Chinese offers many job opportunities in Egypt,” she noted.

Ahmed El-Sewy, who is performing a sketch comedy in Chinese, suggested that language students make good use of what they get from books, spend more time interacting with people and try many cultural activities.

Hu Die, a Chinese teacher at the Confucius Institute of Ain Shams University, said it is a great honor to introduce Chinese to more people and see how they become interested in the language. In addition, the number of Egyptian students studying Chinese is increasing.

Speaking at the event, Lu Chunsheng, Minister Counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Egypt, said that with the Chinese language as a medium, “we will promote common prosperity between China and Egypt, promote Sino-Arab ties and enhance exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations.”

For her part, ECU President Rasha El-Kholy said the university has established Chinese as a compulsory course and the number of students enrolling in the schools continues to rise.

“The Chinese language is not just a language to study, but it is a language with a very great history and civilization. It connects many peoples and symbolizes civilization, and is currently linked to technology and progress,” the ECU president told Xinhua.

The UN celebrates Chinese Language Day annually on April 20 to promote multilingualism, cultural diversity and the use of Chinese as one of the organization’s six official languages.