A Revered Cultural Mediator

Translator Li Huaying honored for his unremitting efforts in promoting Chinese-Arabic cultural communication

At a low-key award ceremony held in Beijing on July 2， Li Huaying， a senior translator with China Pictorial Publications and an accomplished scholar of Arabic-Islamic cultural studies， received a Lifetime Achievement Award in Chinese-Arabic Translation granted by the Zhenghe International Peace Foundation. Recently， the octogenarian sat down for an interview with China Report ASEAN， talking about his lifelong attachment to Arabic and Islamic culture.

Throughout the two-hour-long interview， Li impressed this reporter with his passion， modesty， gratefulness and eloquence. From mosque education in his hometown to the Beijing-based China Islamic Institute， from a small post office on the Qinghai plateau to China International Publishing Group （a forerunner of China’s international communication） and from an ordinary exchange teller to a prestigious scholar of Islamic culture， Li has led a life journey full of changes， opportunities and growth.

It All Began with a Poem

Born into a traditional Muslim family in Qinyang City in northern China’s Henan Province， Li Huaying began to be exposed to Islamic culture as a child. The mosque education in his hometown laid a solid foundation for his later advanced study of the Arabic language. In 1954， he was admitted to the Intensive Arabic Class at Beijing Hui School. The following year， in the wake of the Asian-African Conference， the China Islamic Institute was founded on the basis of the Intensive Arabic Class， and Li became one of the first 24 students to be enrolled at the Institute.

Li still remembers that back then， the student subsidies provided by the Islamic Institute were almost twice the rate of ordinary colleges. “In 1957， as the school’s first group of graduates， we had a chance to meet with Party and state leaders including Mao Zedong， Zhou Enlai and Deng Xiaoping at Zhongnanhai [the seat of China’s central government] and even took a group photo with them，” Li explained with pride.

However， reality is often far from expectation. Around the time of his graduation， affected by China’s domestic political climate at that time， religion was marginalized， and Li’s attempts at finding an Arabic-related job in Beijing or any of China’s other large cities ended in failure. Eventually， to earn a living， he moved to Qinghai， about 2，000 kilometers from Beijing， where he began to work as an exchange teller at a small post office. Unable to flex the knowledge he had acquired over the years， and due to homesickness， Li felt sad and frustrated.

Soon enough， however， Lady Luck finally smiled upon the young man. One day in 1959， while he sorted the newspapers at the post office’s distribution room， a line of words reading “Arabic Translation and Editing Department of Foreign Languages Press” popped up before his eyes， rekindling his hope. He immediately translated the modern Chinese poem Our Greatest Festival into an Arabic version and sent it to the Foreign Language Press （FLP）， a subsidiary under China International Publishing Group （CIPG）， along with his resume.

The poem completely changed his fate. At the time， there was a shortage of Arabic translators across the country， and professionals in this field were highly sought-after. In March 1962， with his poem translation recognized by foreign experts employed by the FLP， Li moved back to Beijing， entering the organization to start his lifelong career as an Arabic translator.

The young translator was quite aware that he still lagged behind most of his colleagues in Arabic proficiency， so he studied hard to improve his professional skills. Just one year later， his translation work won him an award from FLP. In 1970， he was transferred to China Pictorial Publication， also under CIPG， serving as director of the Arabic Translation and Editing Department. The organization’s flagship monthly magazine， China Pictorial， was then published in 21 languages and distributed to more than 120 countries and regions around the world. During his decades-long tenure with the organization， Li translated and edited articles totaling 8 million Chinese characters for more than 400 issues of the Arabic version of China Pictorial.

In 1983， alongside two other experts in the field of Arabic studies in China， Li Huaying was elected as the first-term Council Member of the Translators Association of China. In the two consecutive terms that followed， he was reelected. In 1985， he obtained the professional title of Senior Translator （professor-level）， becoming the first to receive this honor since the evaluation of professional titles in Arabic translation was resumed after reform and opening-up. Later， he served as a member of the National Higher Translation Professional Title Evaluation Committee for 15 years running. Beginning in 1992， Li has enjoyed the Special Government Allowance from China’s State Council for his outstanding contribution to the country’s international communication.

Opening a Window to Chinese Muslims

Apart from a superb mastery of Arabic language and translation skills， Li， unexpectedly even to himself， is also a good writer.

One day in 1979， shortly after China introduced reform and opening-up policies， Li was assigned to write an article about the history and status quo of Chinese Muslims as well as government policies on the development of Islam in China. “I still clearly remember that day when the editor-in-chief approached me， asking if I could write，” Li recalled with smiles. Then， his article “Concise Hajj History of Chinese Muslims” was published in the January issue of China Pictorial in 1980.

Offering an informative overview of Chinese Muslims and accompanied by attractive photographs showing mosques and scenes of the Eid al-Fitr celebrations in China， this article opened the first window to Chinese Muslims after the country’s years of isolation from the rest of the world and helped the international community gain an accurate understanding of the Chinese government’s attitude towards religion. Published in 21 languages and with a circulation of 1 million copies worldwide， the article proved a sensation， generating an outpouring of letters from readers in not just Arab countries but also India， Pakistan， Thailand， Japan， Canada and the United States. “Everyone was excited at the change in China’s religion policies，” Li said. “Rather than dying out， Islam was recognized and promoted in the country.”

Afterwards， Li wrote two books in Arabic， namely Mosques in China and Muslim Celebrities in China， which， alongside the book Islam in China he translated from Chinese to Arabic， enjoyed great popularity at the 1989 Cairo International Book Fair. Copies of Mosques in China were even presented as gifts to foreign government officials attending the book fair.

After retirement in 1998， Li began to focus on writing， continuing dialogue with the world in his own way. He published a series of articles which forcefully refuted some Western countries’ non-objective perceptions of China and the Arab world. “Both Chinese and Islamic civilizations are gems of humanity which have made great contributions to the history of mankind and must not be distorted，” Li asserted.

A Lifelong Career

Li Huaying has dedicated his life to Arabic-Islamic cultural studies， pursuing one goal — promoting friendship between China and the Arab world while balancing the relationship between Chinese and Islamic civilizations.

Li is very grateful. During the interview， he repeatedly mentioned words like “gratitude” and “benefactor”. He said he would never forget Ms. Zhang Jin， who made painstaking efforts to transfer him from Qinghai to Beijing after discovering his talent.

He also cherishes the fond memory of his Islamic Institute mentors. “Many of them are amazing Muslim scholars and great thinkers who benefited me enormously in my career of Arabic-Islamic cultural studies，” Li said. “They instructed and influenced me with their words， their deeds and more importantly， their virtues.”

Indeed， Li himself has followed the path his mentors had blazed. He truly loves his profession. Whenever cultural communication is mentioned， in his own words， he is full of energy. Besides translation and writing， he has also actively participated in international events for people-to-people diplomacy and cultural exchange.

Over the years， commissioned by CIPG and the China Islamic Association， Li has attended various international cultural and academic events in 15 countries （including five visits to Saudi Arabia）. During the Hajj in 1980 and 1984， Li was invited to the banquet dinners hosted by Saudi King Khalid and King Fahd， respectively. In 1994， Li headed a Chinese governmental press delegation to Kuwait， where he met with the country’s vice minister of information.

For Li， the most unforgettable event was the 18th Janadriyah Cultural Festival held in 2003 in Saudi Arabia. As one of only three Chinese scholars invited to the festival， Li delivered a keynote speech at a symposium on behalf of all scholars in attendance and exchanged views with numerous Muslim experts from around the world. “This honor was not due to me myself， but because of the growth of China as an emerging power，” Li explained modestly.

During the interview， Li quoted his mentor Chen Keli as saying， “Chinese and Arabic-Islamic culture are both ancient cultures that have played a dominant role in world history， and coordinating the relationship between the two cultures should be a priority for younger generations of Muslims.”

“It is Chen’s instruction that shines like a beacon which has guided my way all the way to today，” he concluded.