An Overview of Turkish Studies in China
In the past sixty years since the People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) was founded in 1949, Chinese scholars of history and international politics have focused on the field of Turkish studies. Most of this research was carried out after China adopted the reform and the opening-up policies in 1978. Compared to what was accomplished in the thirty years before 1978, Chinese scholars have made great progress in Turkish studies in the past thirty years. Beginning with a reevaluation and reaffirmation of the historical role of the Turkish national bourgeois, Chinese academic community has expanded their interests from the Turkish national movement to the experiences of modernization in Turkey, from the military's role in Turkish politics to the Kurdish issue, from Islamic revival to the relationship between China and Turkey, and so on. However, generally speaking, the state of Turkish studies in China has not yet reached a competent academic level. On the contrary, it suffers from several vital problems, such as the absence of studies based on first-hand sources, the lack of translations from western and Turkish works, and the shortage of original research, all of which need to be urgently addressed.
ZAN TAO
