Peking University, Jan 20th, 2015: On November 15th, 2014, the Final of the first CCTV Arabic Competition successfully concluded. Man Yuan, a senior at Arabic Department in School of Foreign Languages, Peking University, won the second prize.

Man Yuan （4th/right）

Organized by CCTV Arabic International Channel, this nationwide competition was intended to test and rate candidates' comprehensive qualities in Arabic, which covered oral expressiveness and stage performance. PKU Professor Fu Zhiming and Lin Fengmin of Arabic Department were invited to join the planning of the competition.

The preliminary contests began from June 2014 in three divisions: Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai. After live and on-line contests, 24 advanced to the national semi-final out of all the professional competitors ranging from Arabic majors in universities to Arabic practitioners off the campus.

The two-day semi-final was launched in Beijing on November 12th. Man Yuan performed remarkably well in every segment. As the top of her team, she obtained the admission ticket to the Final.

Man Yuan and her calligraphy work

Fixing  attention on the flexible use of language, the Final on November 15th consisted of talent show, short play, debate and improvising comedy. In the talent show section, Man Yuan showed her original work—a sailboat-shaped Arabic calligraphy "Department of Arabic Language and Culture", conveying her best wishes to Arabic language learners.

PKU cheering squad in T-shirts designed by Man Yuan

Ambassadors of Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt and other Arab countries were invited to attend the live Final and Award Ceremony. Professor Fu Zhiming, Dean of PKU Arabic Department watched the live Final with PKU Arabic majors as a cheering squad.

The Final was broadcasted during prime time on CCTV Arabic International Channel in December. The successful hosting of the competition offers an international platform for Arabic learners in cultural exchange.

Written by: Meng Yiran
Edited by: Li Ruiqi
Source: School of Foreign Languages