 One of our goals here at Berkshire Publishing is to provide students (and all readers) a bigger view of the world. To celebrate the Lunar New Year and the Year of the Dragon, Berkshire is delighted to announce the online and open-access China Encyclopedia, the first international edition of a Chinese reference work familiar to millions of Chinese students, parents, and teachers.The ECPH China Encyclopediaprovides information on a wide variety of topics in a careful translation from the original Chinese text. The articles are written from a point of view that students in China are familiar with, now presented in clear, colloquial English.The work is primarily historical and cultural, but there are certain controversial topics included, which will be particularly useful in classroom discussion. Berkshire assembled a team of US copyeditors who read Chinese and asked them to provide an accurate rendition of the original text. Very few editorial changes were made and Berkshire did not try to eliminate the subjective voice, “official” understanding of Chinese history, or political ideology evident in many of the articles. Readers will therefore find politically determined terms and phrasings such as “Chinese Taiwan (Province)” and the “peaceful liberation of Tibet.” Our goal has been to present these viewpoints, in the conviction that having information, even about areas of disagreement, will lead to understanding if not agreement. For example, the article “One Country, Two Systems” begins by explaining that this is “the concept created by the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) and government as a method by which to realize the national reunification of China, and solve the issues of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao.” The article treats Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao as if they were in the same political position, and there is no reference to Taiwan’s actual governance as an independent democracy and separate economy. (“Taiwan Province” is the title of another article.) Problems of the past are treated lightly. “Eager to lift China out of poverty and backwardness and catch up, or even outpace, developed Western capitalist powers overnight, Mao broke the rule of economic development and hastily started the Great Leap Forward and the People’s Commune Campaign in 1958. Having realized his mistake, he led the Party’s efforts for possible remedy between 1958 and 1959.”To celebrate the Year of the Dragon, we have also prepared a page with our favorite New Year PSAs (Public Service Announcements) from CCTV in China, with English subtitles, and sample lessons about dragon proverbs from Berkshire’s Becoming a Dragon: Forty Chinese Proverbs for Lifelong Learning and Classroom Study, written and translated by Haiwang Yuan. You’ll find the video and lesson links at our Year of the Dragon page.And here’s what Chinese students learn about Tibet: After the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the Central People’s Government, to fulfill the aspiration of the people of all ethnic groups, including Tibetans, repeatedly stated its determination to smash the obstruction and destruction of imperial powers so as to liberate Tibet and maintain national unity. On 23 May 1951, the Agreement of the Central People’s Government and the Local Government of Tibet on Measures for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet was signed in Beijing. After the peaceful liberation, Tibet was divided into Central and Western Tibet and Ngari, administrating 123 districts. In 1956, the Qamdo prefecture of the former Xikang Province was incorporated into Tibet, and the Preparatory Committee for the Autonomous Region of Tibet was set up. After abolishing feudal serfdom in 1959, Tibet entered the road of socialism. . . . “After the peaceful liberation in 1951, and especially since 1959 when democratic reforms were carried out, Tibet has developed modern industry. Beyond politics, however, there is a vast array of other material to explore, including articles on regional cuisine, schools of painting, and architectural features, as well as many dozens of biographies. The ECPH-China platform also includes the bilingual ebook texts of 16 short histories, also published as Kindle ebooks with both English and Chinese texts. They cover historical architecture and cultural topics from tea and silk to martial arts and traditional Chinese medicine.Unsubscribe | Manage subscription 122 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230 |
