Taiwan has opened five more Sinology resource centers in central and eastern European countries in the hope of increasing the exposure of Taiwanese research in Chinese studies, National Central Library (NCL) Director-General Tseng Shu-hsien (曾淑賢) said on Tuesday.
Tseng presided over the opening of branches of the NCL-run Taiwan Resource Center for Chinese Studies during her recent trip to five countries, including Vilnius University in Lithuania.
Four other schools that are hosting the centers are the University of Tartu in Estonia, Masaryk University in the Czech Republic, Comenius University in Slovakia and Eotvos Lorand University in Hungary, Tseng said.
The NCL wants to expand interest in Taiwan in general and is planning to open a “Taiwan Corner” in the national libraries of Estonia and Lithuania to display Taiwan-themed books, she said.
The first resource centers were established in 2012 in line with the government’s policy of promoting “Chinese culture with Taiwanese characteristics” through the publication of research by Taiwanese academics.
The 37 centers set up around the world as of September last year have served as sources of knowledge in the field of Sinology at their host universities and as a driving force in promoting research by Taiwanese academics at places of learning worldwide, Tseng said.
Through the centers, researchers can find Sinology-related materials online and from about 500 to 1,000 publications from Taiwan, ranging from topics in Taiwanese literature to the Constitution, she said.
The latest addition of centers in Europe is timely, as academics from those countries who have done research in Taiwan have praised the quality of Taiwanese works, but could not access the materials when they returned home, she said.
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