Paul French’s City of Devils Review

July 11, 2019

It is a bit tedious to recommend a book that’s already heavily promoted by the BBC, the New York Times and the Economist magazine (all of which I despise for their anti-China propaganda). Yet, this […]

Colonization Of Europe Now A Banned Subject

June 19, 2019

According to Google’s Dictionary, colonialism is “the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically.” Now, isn’t this all too obviously observable […]

John Cleese Is Right: London Not English

May 31, 2019

You’ve heard it from your family, from friends and from relatives, or from complete strangers who just returned from their London trip: London is not an English city any more. It is full of immigrants. […]

I’m 93% White, Sorry… Not

May 27, 2019

Not sorry. A year ago, I used a so-called ethnicity analyser or heritage scanner to find out, from my facial features alone, h ow much white, Asian, Latino, or other I was. The answer: I […]

Mr Ratburn Is Now Gay Hello

May 20, 2019

The gayification of cartoons has begun. In case you missed the kids TV show ‘Arthur’: Mr. Ratburn, Arthur’s teacher, suddenly turned gay and got married. On the show. To Patrick. The cartoon show is on […]

What is 21st Century Philosophy?

August 29, 2018

Hello and a Warm Welcome to ’21st Century Philosophy’, a new video project in which we shall capture the revolution and counter-culture in the fields of philosophy and Eastern thought that have swept academia, media, […]

The New World Language ISN’T ENGLISH

August 20, 2018

How will we speak in the near future? BRUSSELS - After Britain’s exit from the European Union there is no reason to speak English, let alone maintain English as the official EU language. That’s because […]

Dysfunctional USA: 2 Genders, 2 Systems of Law

November 30, 2017

The female of the species is more deadly than the male* The Second Law: Females steal, lie, abuse children, and are, on average, more prone to depression and mental illnesses, taking drugs and following militant […]

What’s going on in Akihabara?

October 15, 2017

Every time we visit Akihabara town in Tokyo, we are amazed by what’s on public display in those tourist shops. And mind you, this is not the age-restricted areas of which we couldn’t possibly show […]

REPORT: Berlin is quite useless

October 11, 2017

Berlin underperforms as Capital A new study from a think tank in Cologne found that Berlin is the only capital in Europe that drags down its country’s average GDP per person. It means that Germans […]

#ADayWithoutAWoman #HerVoiceIsMyVoice

March 9, 2017

Twitter and Youtube: Away from Web Neutrality and into the Steering and Indoctrination of the Masses #ADayWithoutAWoman called for a women’s day off. To do what? Changing diapers? Playing with the kids? [Fat chance!] Thinking […]

#ImWithHer is a riot

March 6, 2017

Hashtag gains in the Old World as European Parliament tries to stop France from leaving the damned European Union. So desperate. And sad.

THE TAO OF… EVERYTHING_TM

May 12, 2016

Stepping out of the highly elitist and inflexible world of professional sinology, observers will find a Taoist world that looks much more vibrant and diverse, but also increasingly deregulated and unpredictable. We are talking, of […]

The EURO-TAO: Tao Feminism & Political Correctness

May 12, 2016

This atmosphere of systematic cultural censorship and sinophobia in Europe makes it often difficult for pro-China voices to speak their mind, let alone talk Taoism. In the West, there is a constant propaganda about the […]

裴德思:关于刘延东副总理和她《中华思想文化术语》的活动

February 23, 2015

北京日报的采访: 1 、如您文章中所说,您对同事在翻译中华文明的核心词时几乎完全抛弃中文愿意而采用外国表达的做法,经常感到大惑不解,你指的同事是哪里的同事,是在中国的吗? 裴德思:是的!是我在中国工作时候的同事,不过这里我更泛指许多世界的汉学家们在国际性的场合上一般也是用英文里的术语来表述中国文化中的一些概念。 2、采用国外表达,据您研究,是有什么特别的渊源吗? 裴德思回答:之所以会采用国外的表达的方式,我认为一个概念的发明者或者命名者往往具有很大的优势与主导权,正是基于这样的理由,截至目前为止,西方世界才采取以他们的思维为中心而出发的表述方式。 3、采用国外表达翻译中华文明核心词,会造成哪些问题?或者会造成某些尴尬吗,这方面您能给我们讲一些非常具体的例子来进行说明好吗?比如最简单的一个例子是,我们知道“胸有成竹”被翻译成“胸中有根竹子”。 裴德思回答:关于这个问题,事实上,在我的研究里面已经一再提到,最具代表性的,就是我关于“圣人”这个概念的表述问题。其实,在我的研究里,并不是要探讨这样的翻译方式会造成什么问题或产生什么尴尬,而是要指出,这是某种意识形态的高涨所造成的结果。因此,我才主张要限制或终止翻译。 比方说,我认为,中国人无论在国内或国外,并不需要把自己的姓和名反过来写。另外,我认为任何一个文化的核心词,都是中华文明的产权,所以一定要保护它。到目前为止,虽然有一些中国的概念,像yin-yang(阴阳)和kungfu( 功夫 )这样的词汇被西方语言吸收并被他们的人民所接受。可是这样的例子毕竟少数。我个人认为,任何一个中国名牌想Baidu百度,Weibo微博,茅台等等都不用翻译。传统食品类似baozi包子,jiaozi饺子,kaoya烤鸭等等一样不需要翻译。例如日本的ramen拉面,shusi寿司,wasabi芥末等,都已经是原原本本被世界认同的日文术语。而在中文的思想概念中,例如ru儒,fo佛,dao道,ren仁,wu-wei无为,taiji太极,wushu武术等等,我认为均不需要翻译。虽然很多人认为这不太可行,但我们需要以共同语言进行沟通,我同意英语是最重要的国际语言,但却不是未来的世界语言。未来的世界语言将不得不采取数万个亚洲等地的词语和概念。 4、您是在什么时候萌发了想要写一篇文章,以改变现状?写这篇文章的缘由是什么? 裴德思回答:因为我在大学时代开始学习了汉语以及中国文化,当我深入理解汉语之后,发现许多词汇的概念与我在德语或者英语里所理解的有些出入和不同,特别是我发现了“圣人”这个概念的定义是十分不同的。当我发现这个问题时,十分震惊,同时,通过我的研究,我发现印度社会里的佛陀(释迦)的概念已完全被世界接受与认可,而圣人却不是如此。因此萌发我想要更加深入研究的念头,而且,我认为中国文化博大精深,应该以最贴近汉语意思的表述方式让世界理解,这样才能让中国文化在世界发扬光大。 5、您的文章发表后,据说被刘延东看到了,并引发了中华传统思想术语的启动,对这样的结果您是怎么看,事先没有想到会引起这么大的轰动,对吗? 裴德思回答:是的!我非常惊讶与非常荣幸得知自己的研究结果受到了贵国刘延东副总理的关注,同时也更加感到责任重大。事实上,我做发表这篇文章的时候,就是希望能借此促进中国文化在世界能被更加认可与理解,也希望能引起更多的中国人能够认同与支持。因此我十分高兴有这样的结果。 6、在您看来,对中华文明核心词进行准确、统一的翻译,并进行发布,这样的好处在哪些方面? 裴德思回答:我认为,时机已经到来!!中国应当把“文化财产权利”看的与领土与海洋权利一样重要。看现实21世纪的中国有伟大的经济实力,但却没有软实力。中国花多少钱也不能要求全世界来学习中国的语言,因为学习外语太困难也太复杂。但是,中国可以做得事情时,向全世界普及一些重要的中国概念词汇。 7、为这些核心词进行翻译并定制一个标准,存在推广的问题,我也担心国际上是否认可,这方面,您认为有什么经验可以借鉴? 裴德思回答:是的,确实推广起来并不是一件容易的事情,我认为资本主义已经告诉我们争夺资源和市场的份额。所以我们还必须争取我们的核心词汇。为了沟通,我们需要一个共同的语言,不可否认现在英语是国际语言,但它不是全球语言。未来的全球语言势必将接纳与吸收成千上万的亚洲等地的概念,我想这是一个渐进的过程,只要坚持做下去,中国文明再次在世界扬眉吐气的一天定会到来。 2014年12月21日 [北京日报]

德国学者裴德思说:包子烤鸭不需要翻译

January 6, 2015

裴德思,德国人,北京大学高等人文研究院研究人员,在大学时代就开始学习汉语以及中国文化,“中华思想文化术语传播工程”得以启动,和他穷究其里研究中华传统文化分不开。2013年他的相关研究文章《怎么翻译中华文明的核心词》引起中国有关方面的关注,并成为该工程得以启动的一个诱因。 在接受本报记者专访时,裴德思回忆起写这篇文章的前前后后。“当我深入理解汉语之后,发现许多词汇的概念与我在德语或英语里所理解的有些出入和不同,比如‘圣人’这个概念的定义就十分不同。”他因此萌发更加深入研究的念头,他发现,像Yin-Yang(阴阳)和Kungfu(功夫)这样的词汇,已经被西方语言吸收并被他们的人民所接受。但这样的例子毕竟是少数,“我个人认为,任何一个中国名牌,像Baidu(百度),Weibo(微博)等都不用翻译。传统食品,类似Baozi(包子)、Jiaozi(饺子)、Kaoya(烤鸭)等也不需要翻译。”裴德思说,中国文化博大精深,应该以最贴近汉语意思的表述方式让世界理解,这样才能让中国文化在世界发扬光大。“现在时机到了,中国应当把‘文化财产权利’看得与领土、海洋权利一样重要,向全世界普及一些重要的中国文化词汇。” [北京日报]

Translation and the Death of Cultures (Video)

December 2, 2014

Many Chinese ideas are deceased in world history yet behave in China as if alive: they are truly undead concepts. The West’s disregard for foreign socio-cultural originality has become a real problem for the rest […]

Будущее Ханьбань и Институтов Конфуция

June 21, 2014

Торстен, как вам удалось получить место в Институте Конфуция? Ведь, как известно, организация представляет собой в некоторой степени закрытый бастион для иностранцев. В апреле прошлого года Пекинский университет направил меня на встречу с должностными лицами от […]

Peking University Vs Tsinghua University - Two World Class Universities In Comparison

June 2, 2014

Beida vs Tsinghua – China’s world class universities and global players BEIJING– Beida and Tsinghua are the two most prominent universities in China, a country of 1.35 billion people. (There are many other famous ones like […]

Catching up with the Chinese on Political Thought

January 14, 2014

“With China’s new government under Xi Jinping evidently almost laughing off Western democracy as a role model and instead pursuing its centenary goal of ‘Socialism with Chinese Characteristics’, maybe it is time for Germany’s dichter und […]

What Is The Global Language Movement?

December 12, 2013

What’s The Global Language Movement? The Global Language Movement encourages writers from all corners of the world to limit their translations of cultural key terminologies in order to contribute to the formation of a global […]

On Christmas with Chinese Characteristics

December 9, 2013

Ding dang, ding ding dang… THE CHRISTMAS that we used to know is essential a Pagan tradition taken by Christianity and exploited by Capitalism. The Christmas tree is clearly a pagan element; Saint Nicholas is […]

东风与西风:一个德国人眼中的中西方文化 (裴德思)

November 18, 2013

NEW The East-West Dichotomy manifesto available from Foreign Language Press: Amazon.cn 东风与西风:一个德国人眼中的中西方文化 East Wind and West Wind: A German Scholar’s Meditations on the Differences between China and the West A UNIVERSE of differences separates the […]

Shengren at Dengfeng - Translation History Aims At Reviving Chinese Words

September 9, 2013

Thorsten Pattberg with Qiao Song, Major of Dengfeng, Henan Province SHAOLIN - In this talk at Songshan Forum in Dengfeng, Henan Province, we will have a look on the most important 36 German, French/Latin, and […]

The American Confucianism Complex

August 24, 2013

HOW the perfect American Confucianism ought to be constructed. (feat.  TU Weiming, Roger T. Ames, and T. Pattberg,) Read FULL STORY at BIG THINK. About Dragons and Pandas: “Long” and “xiongmao” are the two creatures that have come to […]

Peking University fetes Comparison between China and the West, July 12-14, 2013

July 10, 2013

BEIJING – From July 12-14, 2013, Peking University, The Institute of World Literature, hosts one of the cultural key events the year entitled: COMPARING CHINA AND THE WEST - Dialogue, Equality, and Mutual Understanding and […]

Ta Kung Pao: The Rectification of Names, by Yi Xiangren (feat. Pattberg) 名不正言不顺\易湘壬

July 7, 2013

This news article has been published in Ta Kung Pao 《大公报》, the “oldest active Chinese language newspaper in China” by YI Xiangren on 04 July 2013: 名不正言不顺\易湘壬 在北京大学做研究工作的德国人裴德思告诉中国人:“我们不能要求所有的美国人和欧洲人都学习中文,但是我们需要做的是向西方广大民众普及一些重要的中国观念。就当下而言,即使是最有教养的西方人都没有听 说过‘ren’(仁),‘datong’(大同),‘tianxia’(天下)和‘tianrenheyi’(天人合一)。”西方人常用一个他们熟悉的概念来“翻译”这些概念。裴德思还提醒我们:“是时候了,中国应当把‘文化财产’看得和海洋权利一样重要。一个概念的发明者或者命名者往往具有很大的优势。德国人把它叫做‘Deutungshoheit’,意思是拥有给思想定义的主权。”“在我看来,目前中国最大的挑战,不仅在于自由、经济和人力资源等方面与西方国家的竞争,也在于能否用中国人的方式重新参与世界历史,在此过程中,使用中国术语是通往这个目标的必由之路。子曰:‘名不正则言不顺’。” 一个德国人学习中华文化能有如此心得,令人感佩。反思我们自己,除了汗颜之外,是有许多实际工作该做的。那么多表征中华文明的核心词,我们是不是应当静下心来梳理一下?譬如,“仁义礼智信”是我国古代先哲高度概括出的五个道德范畴。民间和官方完全可以结合当代社会实践,赋予其体现时代精神的新内涵,其中政府更有一份特殊的责任。先看“仁”,“仁者,人也”。对政府来说,“仁”的含义就是以人为本,尊重人、关心人,保障公民各项权利的实现。对公民个人来说,“仁”的含义首先是爱人,即关爱别人。“仁”的另一层含义是自省和加强个人修养,即能够约束自身,提高自己的道德修养。 接着看“义”,对政府和社会来说,“义”的最基本含义是公平正义。政府应当成为公平正义的化身。对公民个人来说,除了追求公平正义外,“义”还包括忠、孝等内容,即对国家和民族的忠心,对家庭和夫妻关系的忠诚,对本职工作的尽职,对上级和朋友的忠义,对父母的孝顺。再看“礼”,对公民和社会来说,“礼”首先是一种外在表象,指礼仪、礼貌、礼节的规矩。“礼”还是一种内在精神,即尊敬人,这种内在精神对当代人来说,最需要提倡的就是平等、尊重、理解和宽容。进一步来看“智”,在现代社会,“智”的含义首先是创新。“智”还包括对知识的尊重,并意味着因势利导、知人善任、遵循规律。最后来看“信”,对公民和社会来说,“信”的第一层含义是信仰。一个民族、一个社会需要有信仰、有追求。“信”的第二层含义是诚信。一个诚信的社会需要政府、社会、企业以及每个人都能恪守诚信。 人们常议论,我们文化里的精华需要保护,但保护有两种途径:一是形式的保护,即把它们做成标本或像动物园里的动物一样圈养起来;二是修复它们生存的生态,这种方式尤为重要。举个例吧,我们央视每年要评出“感动中国人物”,颁奖大会全场电视直播,得奖者都是道德楷模,影响很大。我们为什么不索性称这些获奖者做“君子”呢?我们的文化里早把君子作为普遍的人格理想。君子虽难有一个确切定义,但一 定是道德高尚的人,他们祖先还设定了君子的对立面——小人。而且,在一切问题上都把君子和小人进行近距离的直接对照。历来中国人只要稍有文化就能随口说出 “君子坦荡荡,小人常戚戚”、“君子求诸己,小人求诸人”、“君子喻于义,小人喻于利”、“君子和而不同,小人同而不和”……只要是中国人,即使失败了, 也希望失败得像个君子。可以断言,君子之风不仅能感动中国,而且能感动世界。 (摘编自香港《大公报》 […]

Branding the Zhongguo Meng

June 21, 2013

Branding the Zhongguo Meng Your author recently asked a senior editor of the Peking University News department why they never continue Chinese vocabularies into their English news. She looked at him as if a cradle […]

Having the Sovereignty over the Definition of Thought

May 14, 2013

Western domination over World History We have been there before. The West still cultivates the out-dated notion that “knowledge only exists if it’s the West that knows it.” The consequences of past Euro-centricism are far-reaching: By […]

Thorsten Pattberg meets famed culture maker Kaiser Kuo

May 6, 2013

Thorsten Pattberg meets famed culture maker Kaiser Kuo “Chinese as an international language is not going to happen if you push it. It is a pull-thing. People need to want it, to come here, and […]

Foreign Language Press Endorses East-West dichotomy

April 30, 2013

China‘s Foreign Language Press endorses The East-West dichotomy BEIJING- China’s Foreign Language Press (FLP) is publishing a revised edition of The East-West dichotomy, a globalist text that has become one of the most widely read […]

Dragons and Pandas at bigthink.com

April 22, 2013

CLICK IMAGE to go to DRAGONS AND PANDAS at bigthink.com Please support and spread the word about our new project on bigthink.com  DRAGONS AND PANDAS - Insights into Chinese soft power.

Chinese Terminologies in Global Context – by Hugo Gaarden

March 30, 2013

SHANGHAI - Hugo Gaarden, writer and journalist, wrote a letter to China Daily (Feb 22) in which he addresses Pattberg’s ‘Translations distort the reality‘ and his belief that Chinese words and concepts often contain cultural aspects that […]

Thorsten Pattberg with Liu Fangfei at CCTV-4

March 14, 2013

Thorsten Pattberg (裴德思) with Liu Fangfei (刘芳菲), famed Chinese celebrity and CCTV hostess. Check out THIS BLOG for regular updates. Check out Liu Fangfei’s BLOG HERE.  

New Confucianism Goes Global

March 7, 2013

New Confucianism Goes Global Tit for Tat for Tu Weiming in Vienna: Peking University’s Top New Confucianist Allies with United Nations to Promote Age of Dialogue VIENNA- Tu Weiming, the former Harvard-Yenching Professor and now […]

Pattberg: Time for Chinese culture to strike back

February 15, 2013

Asia Times: Time for Chinese culture to strike back BEIJING - Failure to care about “cultural property rights” as much as Beijing frets over sovereignty of lands and seas has seen too many Chinese concepts […]

Germany’s Vice-Chancellor – Looks “Too Asian” for Politics?

February 12, 2013

Germany’s Vice-Chancellor – Looks “Too Asian” for Politics? BERLIN - Philipp Rösler is a remarkable politician, obviously very bright and charismatic, but in Germany he is an understatement. The adopted son of Vietnamese origin has […]

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