Students learn pinyin at Sanhe Primary School in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province. （GUANGMING）

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A forum on pinyin was recently held in Beijing to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Scheme for the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet. Jointly organized by Beijing Language and Culture University and the Institute of Applied Linguistics under the Ministry of Education, this event, attended by more than 30 scholars, reviewed pinyin’s contributions to the modernization, digitization and internationalization of the Chinese language and gave insights into the application of pinyin in the new era.

The system has had a valuable impact in three regards, said Liu Li, president of Beijing Language and Culture University. It is a testament to democratic essence of the domestic cause of language and characters. It indicates the innovative mindset through which Chinese literati have enlightened their fellow countrymen and empowered their nation. Also, the achievement can be attributed to Chinese scholars’ pursuit of excellence. This spiritual legacy encourages the advancement of language and characters at the present time, Liu said.

Pinyin is expanding its role in social life and digitization work. In terms of the application of pinyin, scientific research is required to tackle problems in many projects, said Zhang Shiping, director of the Institute of Applied Linguistics under the Ministry of Education. Therefore, attendees engaged in in-depth discussion on theoretical and practical issues about pinyin, aiming to promote the evolution of language and characters.

Chen Zhangtai from the State Language Commission, said that pinyin serves as a scientific, convenient and practical tool for the language and its characters. It promotes the literacy and ability of Chinese people, thus advancing the modernization and digitization of the domestic economy and social life.     

Pinyin features in China’s exchanges with other countries as pinyin has become a global standard for spelling Chinese names and geographical names. Moreover, pinyin helps students to learn faster when Chinese is taught to non-native speakers.

“It’s fair to say that the establishment and promotion of pinyin system directly facilitates international education on Chinese language. The scheme has forged a path for teaching Chinese across the world. Pinyin has brought Chinese language to the global stage since it was adopted to teach Chinese to non-native speakers in the 1960s,” said Zhao Guocheng, deputy director of the Confucius Institute Headquarters.

Pinyin was designed to eradicate illiteracy, but it has been identified as a global standard for inputting Chinese characters. The invention, along with the country’s thousands of years of civilization, will continue to show new signs of life in the coming years.

Du Zhanyuan, deputy minister of Ministry of Education called for fully utilizing the potential of pinyin in the countryside and ethnic minority regions where education lags. Pinyin will shed further light on information and technology as well as in artificial intelligence, improving the country’s ability to digitize linguistic information. The cause will support the construction of a cultural powerhouse and a human community with a shared destiny.

 

(edited by MA YUHONG)