Students learn the Filipino language

With Sino-Philippine ties advancing in recent years, more Chinese students are learning Tagalog, the Filipino language, and about the country’s culture.

Beijing Foreign Studies University set up a Filipino language major last year, enrolling 14 students for a four-year bachelor’s degree.

Tian Ge, 19, from Baoding, Hebei province, said she chose the major because she is interested in the Philippines, its people, traditions, culture and beautiful scenery.

“The Filipino language combines English, Spanish, Hokkien and local dialects, which means we can learn about how different languages work,” she said.

“Although most Filipinos speak English, when you communicate with them in their mother tongue, it can instantly bring people closer,” Tian said.

“When you have close interactions with Filipinos, you will find that they are very outgoing and hospitable, and we have many more similarities than differences,” she added.

“Not many people in China can speak Tagalog, but as more Chinese enterprises begin to expand their business to the Philippines under the Belt and Road Initiative, we will have a great opportunity to find good jobs when we graduate.”

Xue Jiaxi, 18, a classmate of Tian’s from Shenyang, Liaoning province, said that since Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016, Sino-Philippine relations have witnessed an overall turnaround and sustained growth.

“Language holds the key to the door of people’s hearts. When you understand their language, you become their true friends. I often talk to Filipino students at our university to improve my language ability, and we gradually become very close friends,” Xue said.

Sino-Philippine relations have improved greatly in recent years, and under the Belt and Road Initiative, there is more demand for talent that understands the language and culture of the Philippines, she said.

Huo Ran, head of the university’s Filipino Department, said Peking University used to be the only one in China that had a Filipino language major. Both Beijing Foreign Studies University and Yunnan Minzu University in Kunming launched the major last year, and several others have put forward plans to follow suit.

Huo said the strategic mutual trust between the two countries has deepened, and the warm bilateral relations have been translated into economic benefits for the peoples of both nations, adding that people-to-people exchanges are booming.

There has been close bilateral collaboration in areas such as economy and trade, agriculture, fisheries, science and technology, as well as exchanges between media agencies, universities, think tanks and cultural institutions, laying the foundation for better bilateral relations, she added.

“Young people are the future of a country. When the young people of our two countries enjoy close relations, the future of Sino-Philippine ties will reap more fruitful results,” Huo said.