The School of History and the Institute for Global History, Beijing Foreign Studies University

: The School of History and the Institute for Global History of Beijing Foreign Studies University was founded in December 2017. It aims to become a significant platform in China for international scholars to conduct research on global history. The school offers course on the histories of China and regions across the world from a global perspective. In terms of research, it is the school ’ s goal to understand history through interactions, especially the interaction between China and the world in modern terms. The school pays special attention to the fields of the history of ideas, the knowledge transfer and scholarly exchange, and the cultural and linguistic contact between the East and the West.


Overview
The School of History and the Institute for Global History of Beijing Foreign Studies University is a young and vibrant academic community for cutting-edge research and education in the field of global history. The Institute was founded in December 2014. On basis of that, under the direction of Professor Li Xuetao, the School was established three years later in December 2017. Over the past few years, a team of academic elites has been formed with approximately 14 academic staff, two administrative staff, eight honorary professors and fellows, 23 graduate students and 32 undergraduate students. With a multilingual background in Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Latin, Portuguese and Spanish, it is the School's goal to become an important platform for international scholars to conduct research on global history.

Education
The School offers courses for undergraduate and postgraduate students on the histories of China and regions across the world from a global perspective. The courses cover a wide range of areas, ranging chronologically from antiquity to the contemporary world.

Research
The School of History focuses on the research of world history since the Age of Discovery as well as the study of modern and contemporary Chinese history. With a global perspective, the School aims to understand history through interactions, especially the interaction between China and the world in modern terms. The School keeps an open-minded view towards any modes of thinking and is against any forms of centralism. In the field of world history, the School probes into the economic, social, political and cultural evolution of various countries and regions in the world, basing on the University's strength in multilingual subjects.
The School has a strong and devoted team of academic scholars specialized in various fields in global history. Structured around the specific theme of interaction, the School pays special attention to the fields of the history of ideas, the knowledge transfer and scholarly exchange, and the cultural and linguistic contact between the East and the West, providing the guiding thread for the eight research centers of the School. Research

Database
Current research projects of the School give birth to the following three databases that aim to provide online platforms for academic research in the related fields: Database on the History of Chinese Students Abroad, Research Platform of Modern Conceptual History, and Global China Studies Online.
"Database on the History of Chinese Students Abroad" collects information on various aspects of Chinese students studying abroad since the late nineteenth century. It contains the dates of going abroad and returning to China, the country of study, the major of study, the degree obtained, and the field of employment, academic achievements, and employment after returning to the country. The database helps us to understand the pioneering role of returning students in the social development and construction of China, as well as their impacts on various academic disciplines and different aspects of social life.
"Research Platform of Modern Conceptual History" is a specialized research platform for investigating the neologisms and translated words using modern Chinese characters in East Asia. It aims to provide basic sources on the modern vocabulary exchange in the cultural circle of Chinese characters and the reconstruction of the vocabulary system of various languages in East Asia, as well as the history of modern vocabularies and concepts. The database has collected a total of 7714 homographs in modern Chinese and Japanese, with a focus on academic terms and abstract words. The database lists the origin of every one of the 7714 words from Chinese and Japanese literatures and verifies the changes of their meanings.
"Global China Studies Online" aims to build a database of multilingual literature in Chinese studies, which is able to fully demonstrate the history and current situation of Chinese studies globally. The database integrates sources on Chinese studies from both China and overseas.

International Academic Events
The School initiates close collaboration with institutions and scholars around the world, in terms of co-organizing conferences and delivering lectures. The School's honorary professors include but not limited to Professor Wolfgang Kubin and Professor Ralph Kauz from Bonn University, Professor Shen Guowei and Professor Uchida Keiichi from Kansai University, Professor Alfons Labisch from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf. These scholars have played significant part in building a vibrant academic environment within the School.
From 2016 to 2019, the School launched the lecture series "Global History and China" with more than 100 lectures given by leading scholars around the world. Specifically, in 2017, Professor James Z. Lee from Hong Kong University of Science  About academic journals, the School has published four in Chinese, one in English and two bilingual ones in German and English. Specifically, "Global History and China (in Chinese)" is co-edited by Professor Wolfgang Kubin and Professor Li Xuetao. "Journal of Cultural Interaction in East Asia (in English)" is coedited by Professor Li Xuetao and Professor Shen Guowei from Kansai University, basing on the 9th Annual Meeting of Society for Cultural Interaction in East Asia. "minima sinica (in German and English)" and "Orientierungen (in German and English)" are co-published with Bonn University. The aforementioned journals contain peer-reviewed articles, book reviews and research notes, bring together some of the expertise in sinology, Chinese culture and history, and global history from China, Germany and Japan, and offer platforms for academic discussion in related fields.

Website and Contact Details
More details about the School's teaching program, past and future activities, and publications are available on the official website: http://www.globalhistory.cn/index.htm The School can be contacted at: E-mail: gh@bfsu.edu.cn The School of History and the Institute for Global History