ChineseToday | Scholar devotes himself to China-Tajikistan cultural exchange

DUSHANBE, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Xia Ran, 40, is a scholar dedicated to cultural exchange between China and Tajikistan.

In 2006, Xia came to Tajikistan for the first time for work. Since then, he has fallen in love with the country.

Nineteen years later, Xia has become a teacher at the Confucius Institute at Tajik National University, a Ph.D. candidate in history, a translator of several books on China-Tajikistan culture, and a blogger with 50,000 subscribers.

"Over the years, I've noticed that Chinese people know relatively little about Tajikistan. On the other hand, Tajiks also need to enhance their understanding of Chinese culture and history," said Xia, "I believe it's both necessary and meaningful to build a cultural bridge between the two countries."

To this end, Xia devotes almost all his spare time to collecting, compiling, and translating classic works from both countries and participating in relevant exchange activities. He firmly believes that every individual has a mission, and his is to contribute to China-Tajikistan cultural exchange.