BULGARIAN-CHINESE CULTURAL COOPERATION: CONFUCIUS INSTITUTE AND DAMYAN DAMYANOV HIGH SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES
Authors: Kostadinova Diana , Koycheva-Ivanova Aneta 
Published: March 2024

Friendship, cooperation and cultural exchanges have been established between Bulgaria and China 70 years ago. In the dynamic 21st century they stabilize and develop and their priority is education. In 2022 the High school for extended study in humanities „Damyan Damyanov“ in the town of Sliven will celebrate 25 years since its establishment – it is a school with its own spirit and with interests and searches in the field of humanitarian education. It is our aim to find a way for modern technologies to work in favor of humanitarianism. The beginning of the cooperation between our chool and the Confucius Institute at Veliko Tarnovo university ”St. Cyril and Methodius” was in 2016 with the first volunteer – Zhao Panyu. Her followers were Tun Yachi, Chai Jouyan, Shi Sanzhuang and Yunhan Li. Each of the girls, who resided in our city, left her bright mark in our school community. In the conditions of distance learning, Yunhan Li found a wonderful way to reach her students. Using social media, she had every class as a video event in Chinese language and culture lessons. Yunhan Li translated into Chinese some of the best poems of Damyan Damyanov. The e-book she created is bilingual – the poems are published so that both the Bulgarian and Chinese version can be seen. Moreover, readers also have the opportunity to hear how the words of the beloved poet sound in Chinese, performed by Yunhan Li. We are convinced that the e-book Leah created contributes not only to promote Bulgarian poetry in the Republic of China but also to increase the interest in our country in Chinese language and culture. We are honored that in this way we can participate in the cultural exchanges between our countries. Friendship, cooperation and cultural exchanges have been established between Bulgaria and China 70 years ago. In the dynamic 21st century they stabilize and develop and their priority is education. In 2022 the High school for extended study in humanities „Damyan Damyanov“ in the town of Sliven will celebrate 25 years since its establishment – it is a school with its own spirit and with interests and searches in the field of humanitarian education. It is our aim to find a way for modern technologies to work in favor of humanitarianism. The beginning of the cooperation between our chool and the Confucius Institute at Veliko Tarnovo university ”St. Cyril and Methodius” was in 2016 with the first volunteer – Zhao Panyu. Her followers were Tun Yachi, Chai Jouyan, Shi Sanzhuang and Yunhan Li. Each of the girls, who resided in our city, left her bright mark on our school community. In the conditions of distance learning, Yunhan Li found a wonderful way to reach her students. Using social media, she had every class as a video event in Chinese language and culture lessons. Yunhan Li translated into Chinese some of the best poems of Damyan Damyanov. The e-book she created is bilingual – the poems are published so that both the Bulgarian and Chinese version can be seen. Moreover, readers also have the opportunity to hear how the words of the beloved poet sound in Chinese, performed by Yunhan Li. We are convinced that the e-book Leah created contributes not only to promote Bulgarian poetry in the Republic of China but also to increase the interest in our country in Chinese language and culture. We are honored that in this way we can participate in the cultural exchanges between our countries.