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Lady Youde,
Dr. Cullen,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It gives me great pleasure to host the reception on the occasion of the launch of the volume on Ceramic Technology, the latest book of the Science and Civilization in China series. First of all, on behalf of the Chinese Embassy, I would like to express warm welcome to all of you to attend this reception. I would like to take this opportunity to offer my warm congratulation to Ms. Rose Kerr, Professor. Nigel Wood and their colleagues for their painstaking work and great accomplishment of this project on the history of Chinese ceramics. I would also like to thank the Needham Research Institute and the Cambridge University Press for their long-term unswerving efforts in promoting a better understanding of China. I would also like to congratulate Dr. Lee Seng Tee of Singapore whose long-term support for the Needham project is honored by the dedication of this book to him and his father.
Ceramic is one of the important inventions of the Chinese people. Porcelain is not only a practical household article for daily use, but also a very important art in its own right. The fact that porcelains are very much favored by collectors and museums throughout the world fully demonstrates its historic and artistic value. As we all know, that the word "china" in English refers to both the porcelain and the country of its origin. This shows how important porcelain culture is to the Chinese civilization. During my holiday back to China last summer, I had the opportunity of visiting the Chinese porcelain capital--Jingdezhen, a beautiful city in Jiangxi Province. I heard an interesting story about the origin of the word china. As you probably know, Jingdezhen was named after the title of the emperor Jingde of the Song dynasty in 1004. Before that, the city was called "Changnan" because the city is situated on the southern bank of the Chang River. In the local dialect, the pronunciations of "China" and "Changnan" sound almost the same. Foreigners simply took "China" for "Changnan". Since Changnan was already well known for its porcelain, porcelain was later referred to as china or chinaware.
The Chinese invention of porcelain has profoundly influenced the world. As the beauty of Chinese fine porcelain has mesmerized the world, it also gained the oriental land worldwide fame. The ceramic technology has been regarded as one of the most important contributions made by the Chinese people to the scientific and technical heritage of mankind. It also demonstrated the wisdom and creativeness of the Chinese people. Indeed, our ancestors had created a splendid ancient culture and made immense contributions to the world heritage. China used to be well advanced among nations for centuries. However for various reasons, since the 19th century, China had lagged behind. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and especially in the past 25 years, great changes have taken place in China. China today is in its process of national revitalization. China has 23 percent of the world's population. With further development and modernization, I am sure my country will make even greater contribution to mankind.
At the launching of this latest book of the Science and Civilizations in China series, we can't but deeply miss the late Dr. Joseph Needham, a great scientist, a great historian and a great Sinologist. More than half a century ago, he cast his eyes upon China. With great ambition and determination, he embarked on the study of Chinese ancient science and technology. His life's work on the Science and Civilization in China series opened up a new window on Chinese history and built a new bridge between the oriental and western civilizations. He depicted China's contributions to science and technology as an essential part of the civilization of the whole mankind. This unique in-depth perspective has radically changed the ways in which scholars and scientists in the west evaluate the history of Chinese culture and science. And it also changed many prejudices and misconceptions in the west about China and its people. His name is now listed in the textbooks of Chinese history for China's middle school. I'm sure he will be remembered not only by the Chinese people, but also by people throughout the world.
Today, we are living in the era of economic globalization. Dialogue and mutual understanding between different civilizations are becoming even more important than ever. In this sense, the launching of this new book on Chinese ceramics is of special significance. This book is published at a time when the exchanges between China and UK in the field of culture, education, science and technology are expanding on an unprecedented scale. There is a growing interest in China among the British people. They want to learn more about China, its culture, history and economic development. I am sure at such a time, the Needham's project will play a more important role in further promoting the understanding and friendship between our two countries and the two peoples, I sincerely wish the Needham Research Institute greater success and more fruitful research in the years to come.
China needs to learn more about the world and the world also needs to learn more about China. We support every effort to promote understanding and friendship among peoples. We deeply appreciate what our friends have done in this respect. I sincerely hope that by joining hands, we can make greater progress and create a better world.
Thank you.
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