A symposium on selecting China's abacus into UNESCO's "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" was held in Beijing

Website photo location Wang Wenzan, President of China Academy of Art and Director of China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center, delivered a speech at the symposium

On December 12, 2013, the "Symposium on the Protection of China's Abacus Selected into UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage" sponsored by China Academy of Art and China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center was held at China Academy of Art.

Wang Wenwen, President of the China Academy of Art and Director of the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center, Ma Wenhui, Director of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Department of the Ministry of Culture, Deputy Directors Ma Shengde, Wang Fuzhou and Jiang Mingqing, Secretary of the Party Committee and Vice President of the China Academy of Art, Gao Xianli, Director of the China Arts and Crafts Museum, Lu Pintian and Niu Genfu, Vice Presidents of the China Academy of Art, Luo Wei, Executive Deputy Director of the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center, Zhou Xiaopu, Vice Chairman of the National Expert Committee on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Ding Xianjue, President of China Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Association and President of the World Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Federation, Chi Haibin, Special Consultant of China Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Association, Vice President Su Jinxiu and other leaders and experts attended the symposium.

Abacus is a major invention in ancient China.

It is the knowledge and practice of numbers of China.

With simple calculation tools and unique mathematical connotations, it embodies the extraordinary creativity of the Chinese nation and is of great significance to promoting the development of Chinese civilization.

China's abacus has been included in UNESCO's "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity", which helps expand the influence of this intangible cultural heritage, raise awareness of its importance, and promote and protect the diversity of human culture.

The symposium was held to summarize the successful experience of China's abacus application, discuss the protection and inheritance of this heritage, and strengthen international exchanges and cooperation on this intangible cultural expression.

Wang Wenwen, president of China Academy of Art and director of China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center, delivered a speech at the symposium.

He briefly reviewed the history of my country's application for the first batch of representative works from the end of 2000, and elaborated on the important historical, cultural and scientific value of Chinese abacus as intangible cultural heritage and its inclusion in the "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity".

The significance and role of the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center in applying for the representative list of human intangible cultural heritage to UNESCO and the direction of future work.

He proposed that the inclusion of China's abacus in the "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" will help more people around the world understand this magical creation of human wisdom based on "number" and draw the impetus for continuous innovation from diverse human cultures.

After China's successful application for abacus, China has become the country with the largest number of projects selected in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List with a total of 38 projects.

It is also one of the few countries with projects included in the UNESCO "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity","List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Urgent Need of Protection", and "List of Excellent Practices".

This not only fully demonstrates to the world the unique value of China's intangible cultural heritage, but also demonstrates my country's positive attitude and innovative and pragmatic protection practices in implementing protection work.

Wang Wenzen particularly emphasized that declaration is only a means.

Only when protection work is done in accordance with scientific laws can our declaration be meaningful.

In the future, more pragmatic and effective measures must be used to promote protection work.

Website Picture Location Ding Xianjue, President of China Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Association, spoke at the symposium Website Picture Location Chi Haibin, Special Consultant of China Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Association, spoke at the symposium

Ding Xianjue, President of China Abacus and Mental Arithmetic Association, and Chi Haibin, Special Consultant, spoke at the symposium as representatives of project applicants.

Ding Xianjue believes that including abacus in the "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" will help promote the country and society to pay attention to the inheritance and protection of abacus culture, systematically organize and inherit academic schools from the cultural level, and carry out theoretical research on abacus culture., and do a good job in the protection and inheritance of abacus culture; Especially at present, the function of abacus has been expanded from the simple computing function in the past to education, systems, health care and other aspects, which will help promote the application of abacus in culture, education, scientific research, health and other aspects, and make it better serve Human society.

As a community organization that inherits and develops abacus culture, China Abacus and Mental Abacus Association must take the protection and inheritance of this precious cultural heritage as its unshirkable sacred responsibility in accordance with the provisions of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Intangible Cultural Heritage Law of the People's Republic of China and the requirements of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Finance.

Chi Haibin elaborated on the scientific value, economic value and cultural value of abacus culture, and took abacus education in Japan and Malaysia, as well as experiments by the Central Institute of Educational Science of the Ministry of Education and the National Laboratory of Zhejiang University as examples to introduce the role of abacus education in developing children's potential and its practical value and significance in today's society.

Ma Wenhui, Director of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Department of the Ministry of Culture, delivered a speech at the symposium

Ma Wenhui, Director of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Department of the Ministry of Culture, explained the social and cultural functions of abacus and its far-reaching impact, and introduced my country's efforts in selecting and organizing the application of "Representative Works of Human Intangible Cultural Heritage" and its follow-up protection of abacus in China.

He believes that the inclusion of China's abacus in the "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" reflects the international community's recognition of its outstanding historical, cultural and scientific values, and will allow more people to broaden their horizons and deeply understand this human achievement and its connection with nature and the universe help enhance people's respect for the cultural creativity derived from daily human life.

Abacus contains unique ways of thinking, behavioral characteristics and values.

Inclusion in the list will provide substantial assistance to understanding intangible cultural heritage, promoting mutual respect, and enhancing mutual appreciation, thereby sharing "our common heritage" and advocating cultural diversity., witness human creativity.

Zhou Xiaopu, Vice Chairman of the National Expert Committee on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Qi Qingfu, Professor of the Central University for Nationalities and Member of the National Expert Committee on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Chen Zui, Chen Feilong and Li Rongqi, Researchers of the China Academy of Art, Ding Yan, Director of the Digital Protection Center of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Bamoqubumo, researcher at the Institute of Ethnic Literature, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Zhang Ling, deputy director of the International Division of the External Relations Bureau of the Ministry of Culture, and other experts, Scholars spoke at the symposium.

They were selected into the UNESCO "Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" based on abacus, combined with the "Law of the People's Republic of China on Intangible Cultural Heritage", the "Convention on the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage" and current protection work practice, put forward their respective views and suggestions on the declaration, protection and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage.

This symposium took the successful "application" of abacus as an opportunity.

On the basis of summarizing the successful experience of abacus application in China, it was proposed that application is a key link in confirming heritage, an important process of protection, and a higher starting point for deepening the implementation of effective protection of intangible cultural heritage.