IHAC 40.an.

Series of Academic Events of the 40^th Anniversary of IHAC

It is a long tradition among the researchers of Northeast Normal University (NENU) to work on the history of classical antiquity. In 1984, according to a directive (File# (84)Edu.Hi.-I-054) from the Ministry of Education and based on the faculty of History of NENU, Professor LIN Zhichun (also known as Rizhi) took the lead in establishing the Institute for the History of Ancient Civilizations (IHAC), aiming to provide more professional trainings for scholars on the studies of ancient civilizations among the peers of domestic academia of PRC.

     It has been 40 years that IHAC has inherited the tradition, working with the source materials on the studies of the history of classical antiquity, since the establishment of NENU in 1950s among the scholars based here. Holding on this thought and going with the traditional classification of disciplines, IHAC has started with three branches: Assyriology, Egyptology and (Graeco-Roman) Classics. And since 2014, the faculty of Byzantine Studies and of Hittitology have also been introduced.

     Over years, the IHACers have deducted researches, taking grander and comparative views on Sino-Western Classical civilizations, working on unveiling the peculiarities and shared traits among ancient civilizations, and pivoting on the interrelationships and interactions among ancient civilizations. In recent years, IHACers have research methods beyond Philology, and especially from Epigraphy, Numismatics and other ancillary disciplines.

     More recently, the growing development of new technologies has rendered Humanities anew and made a great influence on teaching and researching. By applying new technologies on the studies of ancient civilizations, the technological development, vice versa, shall gain unique opportunities of myself amelioration. Holding the traditional virtue–“苟日新，日日新，又日新” cited by Professor Lin from Daxue[1]–on studies, and with an open mind, IHACers have taken the initiatives on drawing inspirations from tide of setting up faculty of Digital Humanities. Aiming to utilize the novice of Digital Humanities on the research of history, several pertinent courses have, thus, been put on curriculum and several conferences have been held in IHAC.

     The year 2024 is the 40th anniversary of the establishment of IHAC. On September 23^rd, a documentary of IHAC under the named “薪火相传绎旧籍 弦歌不绝谱新篇”[2] has been released on the TV Program Jilu Dongfang of China Central Television (CCTV), as well as on China Network Television (CNTV).[3] A series of celebratory academic programs for IHAC40 has already been commenced.

Stay tuned for further academic proceedings.