The Department of Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Malta, with the support of the Confucius Institute at the University of Malta, is pleased to announce the second edition of the Chinese Studies Conference in Malta. Following the success of our 2023 gathering, we once again invite scholars from around the world to join us in Malta to engage with one of the most enduring and foundational questions in Sinology: comparison.

From its earliest formulations, Sinology has been shaped by comparative frameworks, for instance, through the application of Greco-Latin linguistic models to Chinese, and the use of Western aesthetic values to interpret Chinese art. Similarly, from at least the late Ming and Qing dynasties onward, Chinese intellectuals also engaged in cross-cultural comparison, seeking to “open their eyes to the world” and to assimilate Western knowledge. This phenomenon may also be understood from a cognitive perspective: we make sense of the unfamiliar by relating it to what we already know. In this process of assimilating and accommodating new knowledge, comparison plays a fundamental role in enabling cognitive integration. But what do we actually mean when we speak of “comparison”? That is the theme we encourage participants to explore in their discussions.