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Speech at the Inauguration Ceremony of the Department of Linguistics at BLCU

【 Time:2018-10-29 】

 

An Inquiry into the Training of Linguistics Talents in a Chinese Fashion

Speech at the Inauguration Ceremony of the Department of Linguistics at BLCU

October 29, 2018

Li Liu, President of Beijing Language and Culture University

 

Distinguished leading pioneers of the linguistics community;

Distinguished guests, teachers & students;

Good Morning!

At this exciting moment on this joyful day, we’re gathered here to witness the inauguration of the Department of Linguistics at Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU). The founding of the Department of Linguistics has caught great attention from the linguistics community, and gained enormous support from colleagues from home and abroad. We feel overwhelmed and empowered to see so many renowned linguists make time out of their packed schedules to come to BLCU and offer us congratulations. Thus, on behalf of BLCU, I’d like to extend the warmest welcome and the sincerest gratitude to all the guests, thank you for finding time to attend the Inauguration Ceremony of the Department of Linguistics at BLCU & International Forum on Frontiers in Linguistics! I’d also like to give thanks and regards to all the predecessors and colleagues who have contributed support and hard work to BLCU in the growth of linguistics as a discipline and in the founding of the Department of Linguistics. Thank you!

As we all know, for a discipline to be independently homed in a department in a university, it signifies the recognitions for and significances of the discipline itself, and it is also a crucial step for the discipline to achieve greater maturity and further growth. Thus, many renowned universities in Europe and the U.S.A., including engineer-and-science-based universities, have their own department of linguistics, which have become ideal destinations for Chinese undergraduates who have interests in linguistics research to pursue further studies after graduation. However, because of the absence of a department of linguistics in Chinese universities, when these undergraduates graduate from Chinese universities and seek a higher degree in linguistics in overseas universities, many of them would have a hard time especially at the beginning because of their lack of systematic training during undergraduate studies. It is on this ground that many of the forefathers of the Chinese linguistics community had ideas of establishing a department of linguistics in earlier years. Mr. Wang Li has made efforts to install a linguistics program, so did Mr. Zhu Dexi, who envisioned a department of linguistics at Peking University. Following their footsteps, several other universities in China made similar attempts to set up a department of linguistics; however, for various reasons, as of today, an equivalent academic platform in the sense of the department of linguistics in foreign universities has never truly materialized in China. Nevertheless, the appeal to make linguistics an independent discipline has never ceased, and the pursuit of the dream to found a department of linguistics extends till today. As linguistic research reaches new height in China, there emerge the theoretical appeal for an innovative theoretical system that inherits the traditions and simultaneously explores the essence and actuality of Chinese, and the need of training special linguistics talents that are equipped with thorough systematic expertise of modern linguistics. We can say that such theoretical appeal and needs for training of talents have become direct drive for the founding of a department of linguistics in a Chinese university. Propelled by the same drives, the Department of Linguistics in the modern sense is now officially launched at BLCU. The installation of the Department answers the needs of the time at three different levels.

First, the founding of a department of linguistics in the modern sense aligns with the national strategy. The growth of linguistics has important implications on the furthering of the shared future of the mankind; it exerts a key role in moving forward modern sciences as is represented by artificial intelligence. A first-rate linguistics university with a first-rate discipline of linguistics is bound to accelerate the development of sciences and humanities in China. At the National Education Conference convened in early September, President Xi emphasized that education should be addressed “by seizing opportunities and pre-advanced planning, from a greater historic height, with a broader international vision, and from a more profound strategic point of view”. He further pointed out, “Adjustments should be made to optimize the structure of programs and the curricular, and a dynamic mechanism for adjustments to degree programs and disciplines must be installed so as to speed up the implementation of the plan to develop first-class universities and first-class disciplines”. To relate the macro national educational strategies to the specific development of linguistics in China, we think that in order to accelerate development of linguistics as a first-class discipline in China, necessary adjustments must be made to the overall structure and sub-fields of linguistics, so as to help linguistics fit better, in terms of institutional development, into the bigger picture of the national “Double First-Class Plan”.

In 2017 and 2018, the Conference for Advancement of Language and Literature as a Discipline was held at BLCU. The participating experts all agree that “only when the disciplinary structure is perfected and language sciences as an academic discipline becomes more powerful, will it be possible that the language community is be able offer better services to meet the needs of the nation.” It has been a common understanding that “efforts in such a direction provide not only easy benefits for the discipline itself and universities, but also far-reaching benefits for the nation and society, it would go beyond the internal exchanges and adjustments of a discipline to become a significant project with economic and societal bearings, and it would also transcend academics and rise to national strategy and national development.” In such a social, political, historical context, the endeavor to reorganize the structural makeup of linguistics-related fields so as to elevate the stand of linguistics and gain more independence for linguistics in terms of institutional foundation, would be a practice and attempt that answers the needs of national strategy, the time, and the linguistics community.

The founding of a department of linguistics in the modern sense accentuates the independence of linguistics as an academic discipline, and is therefore a necessary step to elevate the stand of linguistics as a discipline. In the West or in China, the history of language research has been long and rich. Nevertheless, for a sufficiently long time period in the history of academia, linguistics has been intertwined with philosophy, literature, or philology. It wasn’t until the 20th century that linguistics emerged as an increasingly independent subject within the entire system of sciences. Then came the mid-1950s, when a series of science movements, including the Second Cognitive Revolution led by Chomsky amongst others, in which linguistics participated or even asserted a leading role, raised linguistics to become “a leading-edge subject of knowledge”.

However, in the course of history of science, it has been the case that the identification of an academic discipline and establishment of corresponding institutions tends to lag behind the development of the subject matter of the discipline itself. A handy example would be the absence of an independent department of linguistics in the structural complex of higher institutions. As famous as MIT, which is highly credited as the world research center of theoretical linguistics, the history of its Department of Linguistics and Philosophy hasn’t exactly been long. Before 1977, the linguistics research team of MIT had to be credited as a branch of the Department of Humanities. It wasn’t until 1977 that with the campaigning and efforts by Prof. Morris Halle, the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy was finally founded at MIT and started to teach linguistics in a problem-oriented fashion. The establishment of a department of linguistics at MIT did not just mean another innovative discipline for the engineer-science-dominated MIT, but also it has produced profound impact on the advancement of world linguistics. To start, the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy of MIT would soon become a cradle for training of talents in theoretical linguistics; many graduates from the Department would go on and become leading figures in the theoretical linguistics field, for example, Prof. C.-T. James Huang, Professor of Department of Linguistics, Harvard University, and Changjiang Scholar of Beijing Language and Culture University, indeed was trained at MIT; Prof. Luigi Rizzi, renowned linguist from the University of Geneva and Prof. of the Yin Zhi Project of BLCU, also worked at the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at MIT. The two professors know the history better than any of us.

It is a pity that so far the Chinese linguistics community has not played a very significant role in the world linguistics community. The reason, of course, is manifold, but I think one of the most important reasons lies indeed in the fact that there has never been a department of linguistics in the modern sense in China. No one will deny that the Chinese linguistics community has its own profound admirable traditions and that it has never ceased in making efforts to catch up with the world linguistics community; however, because of the barriers with respect to discipline structures and institutional setup, the Chinese linguistics forces have been made dispersed, lacking an internal core that could unite the different forces. This has led to inadequacy in keeping up with the world frontier linguistics and weakness in power of discourse in the academia. To get to the roots of the problem, we must draw lessons from first-class universities in the world, to allow sufficient independence for linguistics and campaign to link the Chinese linguistics community with the international linguistics community, so as to improve the impact and power of discourse of the Chinese linguistics community in the international linguistics community.

The founding of a department of linguistics in the modern sense stands in line with the goal of BLCU at reinforcing educational strengths and striving to become a first-class university. As the only university in China that is named in “language”, from the day when it was founded, the Beijing Language and Culture University has made it its goal to develop linguistics and other related subjects. In recent years, the University further identifies as its stretch goal “to become a world-class language university”. As such, the last leadership of BLCU, guided by Secretary Li Yuming and President Cui Xiliang, has had systematic planning and made necessary arrangements to make it possible to establish a department of linguistics at the University. Such efforts have laid down a solid foundation  in terms of awareness and academic facilities to pursue a department of linguistics, and have contributed enriched experience and valuable academic resources for the growth of the Department of Linguistics. In the years since BLCU was founded, numerous pioneers of BLCU have made extraordinary contributions in language teaching and research; the famous Zhang Qingchang, Wang Huan, Sheng Cheng, Zhong Qin, Fu Weici, Yuan Shuren, Lv Bisong, Fang Li, amongst many others, have broken new grounds and paved the ways for advanced teaching and research. As of today, another generation of experienced devoted young and middle-aged scholars has caught attention in the field. They would continue to root in BLCU and aim toward greater goals and deeper explorations. In the following years, we are committed to bring in more young talents that have received systematic training of modern linguistics to join the Department of Linguistics and break new grounds. In the meantime, as an international university itself, BLCU will have more and more graduates from the University to devote to international exchanges in relation to linguistics. The installation of the Department of Linguistics will greatly expand the academic vision of the BLCUers, and improve their capabilities in participating in international dialogues. Sufficient to say, on the basis of the 60-year development of BLCU, in the specific context of being a “language university”, the founding of a department of linguistics at BLCU seems nothing but natural. The historic achievements and growths of the University has provided the sufficient condition and drive for the development and growth of the Department of Linguistics, while the founding of the Department of Linguistics will add up to the exiting achievement of the University and have the University to reach further height and make further contributions.

I would also like to take this opportunity to raise two points for the attention of the Department of Linguistics on its development and growth.

First, I hope that the Department could accommodate a greater diversity, drawing from the essences of all different branches of world linguistics. The contemporary landscape of world linguistics features a never-than-before greater diversity, which seems natural if we consider the complexity of human languages. The ultimate truths of all language mysteries probably need the joint efforts of various approaches. An open outlook to take in and pass out various theories and knowledge is beneficial for students to assemble a more thorough system of expertise, which will enable the students to conduct critical thinking, make independent judgment, and arrive at novel approaches in conducting research.

My second hope is that the Department of Linguistics could attach adequate importance to studies of Chinese grammar and characters in both the traditional fashion as is represented by “xiao xue (Chinese literature)”, or in the modern fashion as is represented by Mashi Wentong. While carrying on the important principles and achievements of both the traditional study and analysis on Chinese grammar and characters and the modern studies, and help to make them part of dialogues of modern-day linguistics, we should also further promote and utilize their great traditions in plain rigor and emphasis of materials, so as to make a department of linguistics set in a Chinese university embody the Chinese spirits and the Chinese pride, and make the Chinese linguistics “international” by being “national”.

Here, I sincerely hope that the linguists and scholars present here to get involved with the development of the Department of Linguistics at BLCU in a more diverse and profound way. With linguistics as the tie, let’s join hands in bringing the great cause of linguistics in China to a brand new level of prosperity. In the meantime, I sincerely hope that young students who have an interest in language studies and research could pay more attention to the Department of Linguistics and select it as a destination for their further studies. I believe, with the guidance and help by all the predecessors in linguistics, and the great support by the experts and scholars from home and abroad, the Department of Linguistics at BLCU is bound to be able to meet with the expectations, generate abundant yields in research, and foster its own characteristics.

Finally, I’d like to thank you all again for your presence and guidance! I wish the International Forum on Frontiers in Linguistics a great success, and wish all the guests a happy time here in Beijing!

Thank you!