20 News from the European Alliance Regional Editor The Region for Asian Studies The Department of Asian Studies at Palacký University

Jaroslav Průšek (普實克, 1906–1980) was Augustin Palát (1923–2016) was a student a sinologist. He graduated from Charles of Průšek and replaced him in Olomouc in University in Classic history. He learned 1948, when Průšek could no longer fulfil his Far left: Jaroslav Průšek Chinese in private before continuing his commitments in both Prague and Olomouc. (普實克, 1906–1980) Source: Czech Academy studies under Bernard Karlgren (1889-1978) Palát taught in Olomouc until 1951, when of Sciences. and Gustav Haloun (1998-1951) first in the Oriental Studies were closed. After Gôteborg and later in Halle, where he finished several years in the diplomatic services Near left: Augustin Palát (1923–2016). Source: his doctoral degree in 1930. Průšek was he returned to the Oriental Institute until Lu Xun Library, Oriental employed by the Oriental Institute and in his forced retirement in 1973, under similar Institute Prague. 1932 sent to China and Japan. He returned to circumstances as Průšek. He produced a Czechoslovakia in 1937 and taught Chinese number of language textbooks and works on and Japanese. In 1945 Průšek started the Chinese medieval history. He is known for his Department of East Asian Studies at Charles translations of Tang poetry. University and was one of the founders of the journal Nový Orient [New Orient]. Průšek Karel Werner (1925–2019) was an indologist was a close friend of Fischer and between and religious studies scholar. He belonged 1946-1948 taught in Olomouc. He developed to the circle around Josef Ludvík Fischer the Olomouc sinology program and trained who attracted him to Olomouc. He studied Augustin Palát, who replaced Průšek in 1948. philosophy and classical Chinese with In 1952 Průšek became the director of the Jaroslav Průšek. Privately he learned in Olomouc were closed down in the autumn under similar circumstances as Průšek and Oriental Institute in Prague. He was forced out and modern Chinese. Later he pursued the of 1951, Werner became one of the early Palát in 1976. He returned to the academic in 1971 during the Normalisation that followed studies of Chinese under Vincenc Lesný victims of Communist prosecution. He lost life in 1990s and taught in Olomouc from the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia and became an assistant in the Indology his academic position, despite the appeals 1994. His life-work is a prosodic description of of 1968. He is known for his work on mediaeval section. He defended his PhD in comparative by Lesný and Fischer. During the 1950s he spoken Chinese, based on a large transcribed and modern Chinese literature, oral tradition linguistics and appointed to teach Sanskrit worked as a clerk. Privately he continued his corpus of recordings accompanied by a and history of Chinese civilisation. and Indian history. After the Oriental Studies studies and published in academic journals grammatical description. A research cluster in the UK, Germany, India and Sri Lanka, led by David Uher continues Švarný’s work which led the Secret Police to bring spying on Chinese prosody. charges against him. He was sent to work The department publishes its own journal in coal mines, worked as a plumber and Dálný východ [Far East]; its editor-in-chief a tram driver during the 1960s. is David Uher (https://kas.upol.cz/en/ During the same period Werner turned academics-research/journals/dalny-vychod- his attention to hatha and led a secret far-east/) Its most recent issue is dedicated circle of practitioners and published about it to Švarný’s work on the prosody of Spoken in samizdat. His appeal for rehabilitation in Chinese that appeared in English or German 1968 was turned down and he left to exile two and summarises his work published in Czech. days after the Soviet occupation in August Research interests of the department 1968. He became a Cambridge University members cover a wide range of topics from librarian and was appointed as a supervisor linguistics to international relations and of Sanskrit in Churchill College. In 1969 history. Recent titles published in English are: Werner was appointed Lecturer in Indian • On 'doing friendship' in and through Philosophy and Religion in the University talk: Exploring conversational of Durham where he remained for the rest interactions of Japanese young people of his career. (H. Zawiszová, 2018), • Koreans in Central Europe: To Yu-ho, Han Hŭng-su, and Others (A. Schirmer, 2018), 1991: Asian studies starts • Japanese Given Names: A Window Into Contemporary Japanese Society Central European Institute for the third time (I. Barešová, 2016), In 1991 the rector of UP Josef Jařab • The exotic other and negotiation of of Asian Studies initiated the reopening of Chinese philology. Tibetan self: representation of Tibet in The task was entrusted to Jiří Černý, Head of Chinese and Tibetan fiction of the 1980s Department of Romance languages. The Far (K. Hladíková, 2013). East Section was established and scholars The Department also organises an Annual were recruited to prepare the Chinese and Conference of Asian Studies (http://acas. he Central European Institute of Some of the notable CEIAS publications Japanese programmes. In the pre-Bologna upol.cz) and a Summer School for graduate Asian Studies (CEIAS) https://ceias.eu include: system, these were five-year double-degree students. Tis an independent think tank with • Monthly briefing about most programmes initially in combination with While we still face various challenges, branches in the cities of Bratislava important policy-related news from English philology. Both programmes admitted we believe that we are becoming a mature (Slovakia), Olomouc (Czech Republic), Asia (in Slovak/Czech language): their first students in September 1993. The member of the European Alliance of Asian and Vienna (Austria). Building upon the https://ceias.eu/sk/asia-briefing-2 Chinese programme was developed by Studies that can educate the next generation activities of the Institute of Asian Studies • Bi-mon thly briefing about Central and Lucie Olivová (*1956, presently at Masaryk of Czech Asia scholars and offer a distinct in Bratislava, CEIAS is a joint venture of Eastern Europe’s relations with Asia University in ) and Oldřich Švarný view on Asian cultures and peoples worthy the Institute of Asian Studies, Palacky (in English, starting from January 2020). (1920–2011). The Japanese programme was of our predecessors. University’s project ‘Sinophone Borderlands • Chinese Media Watch: overview of developed by Alice Kraemerová (*1950) and – Interaction at the edges’, the Austrian Chinese media discourse of various Pavel Flanderka (*1962). Contributors to article: Institute for European and Security Policy, policy-related issues with the connection In 2002 the Far East Section became the František Kratochvíl, Sylva Martinásková, and the Department of East Asian Studies to (Central) Europe: https://ceias.eu/ Department of Asian Studies. The department Iveta Nakládalová, Joanna Ut-Seong Sio, Richard Turcsanyi. at Comenius University. chinese-media-watch-2 was led between 2002–2014 by David • CEIA S Insights: our op-ed section Uher (*1970), between 2014–2016 by Ivona The main purpose of CEIAS is to spread covering broad range of topics: Barešová (*1974) and since 2017 by František knowledge about Asia among scholars, https://ceias.eu/sk/ias-insights Kratochvíl (*1976). The department gradually Notes experts and professionals in Central • R esearch papers: Some recent ones expanded in both student numbers and its Europe and beyond, while at the same time discussed issues related to (Central) programme offer. It started language courses 1 Litterae indipetae (short for litterae ad to inform the wider world about Central Europe’s relations with China and for Korean and Malay, which were developed Indiam petentes) are petitionary letters by Jesuits sent to their generals asking European engagements with Asia. East Asia, domestic issues in China, into full-fledged programmes. Korean for for foreign missions. Only a fraction were To meet our aims, we conduct and or other aspects of Chinese inter- Business (BA) was opened in 2015. It was granted their wish; for example, out of publish our own research, organize public national relations including soft followed in 2016 by Indonesian for Tourism 114 such petitions in Poland, only 4 were seminars and conferences, support power or Belt and Road Initiative: (BA) and Vietnamese (BA) in 2019. All five granted. See Miazek-Męczyńska, M. education about relevant Asian topics, and https://ceias.eu/policy-papers-2 language specialisations are included within 2018. ‘Polish Jesuits and Their Dreams communicate with the media. Our activities a single MA programme in Asian studies about Missions in China, According to focus mainly on international relations CEIAS participates in international from 2019. Finally, the department offers the Litterae indipetae’, Journal of Jesuit and security studies in the geographical projects and initiatives. Most recently two doctoral programmes (Languages and Studies 5(3):404-420. Doi: https://doi. regions of East, Southeast, South, and these have included: Cultures of China and Japan & Asian studies). org/10.1163/22141332-00503004 2 Camenietzki, C.Z. 2003. ‘The Celestial Central Asia. CEIAS cooperates with similar Chin fluenCE: Research and public Over the last three decades the student • Pilgrimages of Valentin Stansel (1621–1705), organizations and like-minded individuals awareness project mapping Chinese enrolment has grown steadily in both BA Jesuit Astronomer and Missionary in Brazil’, in the region and beyond to help achieve influence in Central Europe: and MA programmes. In 2019, over in Feingold M. (ed.) The New Science and our goals. CEIAS researchers are regularly www.chinfluence.eu 200 students were admitted to the five Jesuit Science: Seventeenth Century quoted and contacted by media in the • CHOICE: An initiative grouping undergraduate programmes and about Perspectives. Springer. Czech Republic, Slovakia, and beyond on researchers and ‘China watchers’ 40 to the MA programme. 3 Boye, E. de. 1691. Vita et Obitus venerabilis a wide range of issues, especially related from Central and Eastern Europe: An important figure for the department patris Augustini Strobach è Societate to China and international relations. www.chinaobservers.eu was Oldřich Švarný (1920–2011), a phono- Iesu ex Provincia Bohemiae pro insulis • E TNC: European Think Tank Network logist and orientalist. Švarný studied Marianis electi Missionarii, et à Rebellibus on China as of 2019 and participates European languages and later also Chinese Sanctae Fidei in iisdem insulis barbarè trucidati Anno 1684. Mense Augusto. in all the activities of the network, and phonetics at the in Olomucii: Typis Joannis Josephi Kylian. including workshops, publications, Prague. In 1951 he joined the Oriental Institute E-book: http://eod.vkol.cz/34415 and presentations of the findings in Prague, where Jaroslav Průšek assigned 4 Liščák, V. 2014. ‘Franciscan Missions to the public. him to study Spoken Chinese and to develop to China and the Czech Crown Lands a Czech romanisation system for Chinese. (from the 16th to the 18th Century)’, He lost his position at the Oriental Institute Archiv Orientální 82:829-841.