Prof. William Shi-Yuan Wang Awarded Honorary Doctorate by the University of Macau

Prof. William Shi-Yuan Wang, Chair Professor of Language and Cognitive Sciences, was awarded a Doctor of Humanities honoris causa by the University of Macau (UM) on 2 December 2023 in recognition of his outstanding achievements and significant contributions to society. Prof. Wang, as noted by Prof. Xu Jie, Dean of UM’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities, is a “world-renowned linguist who has made world-class contributions to the fields of linguistic theory, language engineering, evolutionary linguistics, among others. His research has long pioneered the development of linguistics in many areas, making landmark contributions to Chinese and world linguistics.”

CBS MATI Student Clinches Silver Prize at National Interpreting Competition

Our CBS MATI student, Ms Zhao Yamei, won Silver Prize at the national final of the 2023 “FLTRP·ETIC Cup National University Foreign Language Competition (English Interpreting) – Understanding Contemporary China" held on 5 December. Organised by the Beijing Foreign Studies University, the FLTRP ETIC Cup Competition has been the only foreign language competition selected to the list of National University Discipline Competition Ranking since 2021. This prestigious competition puts participants' interpreting skills to the test in diverse realms of contemporary China, spanning politics, economics, society, and culture.

Faculty Dean Prof. Li Ping on Cooperation between PolyU and Hangzhou

Faculty Dean Prof. Li Ping introduced the industry-academia-research cooperation between PolyU and the city of Hangzhou at the 2nd Global Digital Trade Expo. PolyU has recently signed an agreement for the establishment of the PolyU-Hangzhou Technology and Innovation Research Institute, which will focus on areas like digital cultural tourism, intelligent operation of rail transport and AI-powered aesthetic medicine.

FH PhD Student Wins PolyU Best Research Student Award 2023

Mr Eddy Wong Chun Ho, a PhD student of our Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, has won the PolyU Best Research Postgraduate Student Award 2023. The award, established by the Graduate School earlier this year, recognises and rewards outstanding RPg students for their excellence in research, academic achievement and personal growth. It also intends to promote a sense of belonging among our RPg students and motivate them to actively participate in research-related activities.  

CBS PhD Graduate Awarded 2023 LSHK Outstanding Thesis Award

Dr Nga-Yan Hui, a 2023 PhD graduate of CBS, has been awarded the 2023 LSHK Outstanding Thesis Award under the category of PhD thesis. The award was offered by The Linguistic Society of Hong Kong (香港語言學學會) to encourage young scholars at local tertiary education institutions to conduct linguistics research. The LSHK Outstanding Thesis Award acknowledges exceptional theses that make significant contributions to any field within linguistics, including MA, MPhil, PhD, and Doctorate theses. Dr Hui’s thesis, titled “Experience and Bilingual Advantage: An Exploration of Individual Variation”, delves into how individual variances such as the age of acquisition, proficiency in a second language, and code-switching habits, influence the organisation of the bilingual mental lexicon and the retrieval of concepts from it. She introduces the Experience-based Bilingual Mental Lexicon Model, which highlights the dynamic change of language. The thesis will be presented at the LSHK’s 2023 Annual Research Forum on December 2 2023. Click here to read Dr Hui's wining thesis.

29th Congregation of Faculty of Humanities

Congratulations to the Class of 2023! The 29th Congregation (FH) has been successfully concluded on 11 November 2023. It was kicked off with opening remarks from the Faculty Dean Prof. Li Ping. This year, we were honoured to have three Guests of Honour, Mr Zhang Quan, Founder and CEO of Twelves Flavors Group, and Recipient of the Outstanding Young Alumni Award in Entrepreneurial Achievement of PolyU Faculty of Humanities 2023, in the first session; Mr Niu Yi, Founder of Unicow Education and Technology (International) Holdings Limited, Chinese IB/MYP Language Teacher/Advisor, Chinese International School and Recipient of the Outstanding Young Alumni Award in Professional Achievement of PolyU Faculty of Humanities 2023, in the second session; and Ms Doris Leung Shuk Yi, Founder of Diamond Tech (Hong Kong) Limited, Founder and CEO of Diamond Cab (Hong Kong) Limited and Recipient of the Outstanding Alumni Award in Community Service Achievement of PolyU Faculty of Humanities 2023, in the third session, to give the congratulatory address. A total number of 755 students graduated this year, including 571 students receiving postgraduate degrees and awards and 184 students receiving bachelor’s degrees. Awards and certificates were presented to students and Faculty members for their outstanding achievements and services. Once again, we wish all graduates a bright future ahead and every success in future endeavours!

Chinese Classics Recital Show Jointly Hosted by PolyU and Universities in Jiangsu and Macau

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), in collaboration with Jiangsu Normal University and the University of Macau, jointly hosted the “Mainland-Hong Kong-Macau University Students’ Chinese Classics Recital Show 2023” in Hong Kong on 13 November 2023. It was fully supported by the Ten Thousand People’s Scheme coordinated by the Ministry of Education. Following the inaugural “Suzhou-Hong Kong-Macau University Students’ Chinese Classics Recitation Exchange Competition” in 2021, the three universities once again joined hands to host this large-scale cultural exchange event. The aim is to provide a platform for young university students who love recitation and Chinese culture to exchange and showcase their talents and to further promote Chinese culture. The event began with a welcome speech by Professor Christopher Chao, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, followed by speeches by Professor Qian Jin, former Vice President of Jiangsu Normal University, Prof. Victoria Lei, Assistant Dean for Student Affairs of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at the University of Macau, and Prof. Li Ping, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at PolyU. The theme of the competition was “Reciting Ancient and Modern Classics, Inheriting Chinese Culture, and Glorifying the Spirit of Our Epoch”. The event received nearly a thousand video submissions, with participants from various universities from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, including but not limited to Jiangsu Normal University, University of Macau, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Education University, Communication University of China, Hohai University and others. After rigorous assessment, 25 outstanding works were selected for the Recital Show. In addition, students from the University of Macau and Jiangsu Normal University also presented singing and dancing performances on the occasion. A teacher from the Jiangsu Normal University demonstrated a recitation, followed by a dancing performance presented by the PolyU Hall Dance Team and recital of a famous article of Prof. Yuen Ren Chao by PolyU Faculty of Humanities students. PolyU also held a forum mainly for students from the three places to exchange their ideas, covering topics such as the inheritance and development of traditional Chinese culture, the exchange mechanism of young people in the three places, and sharing of student experiences in learning and research at each university. It aimed to allow more interaction and to have a more profound understanding among students from the three places.

FH Student Wins Prize in the 6th Cognitive Translation Studies Conference's Best Paper Awards

Ms Liu Yanjin, a DALS student from the Faculty of Humanities, presented her paper entitled "Bilingual Fine-Grained Emotion Detection through LLMs: An Examination of Emotions in English and Translated Chinese Children's Literature" at the 6th Cognitive Translation Studies Conference, winning the Third Prize in the Best Papers Awards in Cognitive Translation Studies. The conference, organised by the Cognitive Translation Professional Committee of the Chinese-English Comparative Research Association and the School of Language and Translation at Macau Polytechnic University in November 2023, provided a platform for in-depth exploration of cross-disciplinary and diverse translation research in the digital era, along with fresh insights into fundamental translation concerns from the perspective of cognitive linguistics. Notable scholars from institutions such as The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Renmin University of China, Shanghai International Studies University, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Southwest University, and other esteemed universities participated. The event featured discussions on specialised topics, and nearly twenty papers underwent rigorous evaluation during the final review. Details of the conference : https://www.mpu.edu.mo/flt-cognitivetranslation/

PolyU Information Day 2023

The PolyU Information Day 2023 was successfully held on 21 October. This event is one of the best opportunities for visitors to learn about FH’s undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes and to explore their study options. FH Departments introduced their programmes and facilities on the occasion. Information seminars, thematic talks, guided visits and many more activities were also arranged for visitors. The online information seminars can be viewed at https://www.polyu.edu.hk/study/events/infoday.

PolyU Students Win Awards in the Mainland-Hong Kong-Macau University Students’ Chinese Classics Recital Show 2023

The Mainland-Hong Kong-Macau University Students’ Chinese Classics Recital Show 2023 (2023年港澳和內地高校大學生中華經典誦讀交流展演) was co-organised by Jiangsu Normal University, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the University of Macau on 14 October 2023. Over 1,000 entries were received and 25 of them were shortlisted for the Recital Show. Two students from PolyU participated in the event and one of them was awarded the Best Recitation Award (最佳朗讀作品獎) while another received the Young Brilliance Award (青年風彩獎). Our Faculty member Ms Helen Ma(CLC) was responsible for training the PolyU participants.