"Innovation" named Chinese Character of the Year
(Chinadaily.com.cn), Updated: 2017-12-25
Dancers dressed in traditional Chinese clothing of the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220) announce the beginning of the 2017 Cross-Straits Chinese Character Festival. [Photo/ xmnn.cn] |
"创" (meaning "innovation" in English) was named the Chinese Character of the Year at the awards ceremony for the 2017 Cross-Straits Chinese Character Festival held in Taipei, capital of Taiwan province on Dec 15.
The selection process attracted numerous cross-Straits residents and celebrities, from political elites and cultural masters to prominent business people and sports stars.
Hao Longbin, vice-president of the Chinese Kuomintang, recommended "生" (meaning "vitality" in English). He believes that both Taiwan’s development and the cross-Straits relations show infinite vitality.
Yang Mu, a musician from Taiwan, maintains that Taiwan and the Chinese mainland are destined to integrate together which explains why he selected "融" (meaning "integration" in English) as the Chinese Character of the Year.
The successful character was decided by online popular vote from the recommended 40 candidate characters from the end of November to the beginning of December, following the recommendations of the celebrity guests and the public.