Chinese civilization is one of the oldest continuous civilizations in the world. Its long and rich history awaits further discovery and understanding by those who are interested in Chinese language, history, philosophy, arts, literature, and many other aspects. Chinese is spoken by one-fifth of the world’s population and its written language is shared by Chinese communities across the world. Given China’s growing international presence and influence in the 21st century, Chinese has become one of the fastest growing languages studied by Tufts students.

Chinese students at Tufts study a combination of language, culture, and related courses. Culture courses include foundations of Chinese thought, pre-modern and modern literature, film, popular culture, and a series of special topics. Students can significantly improve their language skills and enrich their cultural experience by studying abroad in China at Tufts-in-Beijing at Beijing Normal University, one of the top ranking universities in China. Students who have completed 4th year Chinese at Tufts or its equivalent can continue their Chinese language study at the 5th and 6th year levels. In addition to the regular Chinese minor, there is also a special Chinese minor for engineering students.

Sample Classes:

• Elementary Chinese
• From Beijing to Bollywood
• Chinese Science Fiction
• Classical Chinese Literature
• Advanced Chinese

Photo credit: Mark CC BY-NC 2.0 from Flickr