"World conference on Sinology 2007" will kick off in late March in Beijing, the first time to be held on the Chinese mainland, sources the Beijing-based Renmin University have said.

"Sinology, which is deeply-rooted in China but stems overseas, plays an increasingly important role in the world's cultural development," said Yang Heng, professor with the humanity school of Renmin University.

"The Chinese scholars have got more interested in the overseas Sinology study since the 1980s. Scholars on the Chinese mainland and overseas Sinologists have been increasingly carried out exchanges and dialogues in this regard, which is now an academic trend," said Yang.

The conference, with the theme of "civilized dialogue and harmonious world," is aimed at promoting exchanges and cooperation in international Sinological study and highlighting the value of the Chinese culture in building a harmonious world, said Chen Yulu, president with the Renmin University.

During the conference, more than 60 well-known Sinologists from the world's prestigious universities, including the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, the University of Munich and the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Culture (France), will be invited to discuss "Sinological study as civilized dialogue," "the vicissitude of Chinese image in Sinology," "promoting the Chinese language and cross-cultural communication."

The conference, co-sponsored by the office of Chinese Language Council International and the Renmin University, will be held from March 26 to 28 in Beijing this year and it will be held every two years.

(Xinhua News Agency March 20, 2007)