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SWPS University - Main page

East Asian Civilization Research Center

Institute of Humanities

SWPS University’s East Asian Civilization Research Center (CCAW) researches the region of East Asia, in particular the Mainland China as well as Taiwan, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan.

East Asian Civilization Research Center

What we do

Our researches study the culture, economy, and politics of the East Asia region, in particular Mainland China as well as Taiwan, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan.

Our researchers

The team includes researchers specializing in culture and religion studies, literary studies, linguistics, and political science. The researchers, representing different methodologies and research approaches, are rooted in the traditions of sinology, Japanese and Korean studies, and regional studies. Our goal is to develop an innovative and inclusive platform for interdisciplinary research of the East Asia region with a broad reach in Poland and internationally.

Our history

The name of the Center has been inherited from an organizational unit established in 2003 at SWPS University by the doyen of Asian Studies, the late Professor Krzysztof Gawlikowski (1940-2021). The mission of the center established thanks to the efforts of Professor Gawlikowski included not only scientific research, but also education and promotion of knowledge about Asia. Over the years, the center led by Professor Gawlikowski had grown and in 2017-2018 it evolved into the Department of Asian Studies at SWPS University, which nowadays is part of the Faculty of Humanities in Warsaw.

Research
Team

Marcin Jacoby
Ph.D. / Associate Professor

Head of the East Asian Civilization Research Center

sinologist, translator, specializing in the history and culture of East Asia

Full bio
Ilczuk, Dorota
Bio
Tak
Permanent employee
Tak
Role in the Faculty
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Role in the Department
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Role in the Institute
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Role in the Research Center
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Specialization
Professor of Economics and Cultural Management
First and last name
Dorota Ilczuk
Academic degree or title
Professor
City
warszawa
Discipline
culture-and-religion-studies
Position
profesor
Faculty
Array
Institute
Array
Professor Dorota Ilczukeconomst specializing in creative industries management

Doctoral Students

Kamińska, Tamara
Bio
Tak
Permanent employee
Tak
First and last name
Tamara Kamińska
Academic degree or title
M.A. / Research Technical Assistant
Role in the Research Center
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Specialization
strategy consultant specializing in the creative industries sector
Discipline
Array
Role in the Faculty
[]
Role in the Department
[]
Role in the Institute
[]
M.A. / Research Technical Assistant Tamara Kamińskastrategy consultant specializing in the creative industries sector
Machajek, Piotr
Bio
Tak
Permanent employee
Tak
First and last name
Piotr Machajek
Academic degree or title
M.A. / Research Technical Assistant
City
warszawa
Role in the Research Center
{"funkcja-w-centrum0":{"Funkcja":"","\u0141\u0105cznik":"","Nazwa w mianowniku":"East Asian Civilization Research Center"}}
Specialization
sinologist
Discipline
Array
Institute
East Asian Civilization Research Center
Role in the Faculty
[]
Role in the Department
[]
Role in the Institute
[]
M.A. / Research Technical Assistant Piotr Machajeksinologist

Associated Researchers

Pejda, Katarzyna
Bio
Tak
Specialization
sinologist, researcher and translator
Permanent employee
Nie
First and last name
Katarzyna Pejda
Academic degree or title
Ph.D. / Assistant Professor, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
Ph.D. / Assistant Professor, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin Katarzyna Pejdasinologist, researcher and translator
Religa, Małgorzata
Bio
Tak
Specialization
sinologist
Permanent employee
Nie
First and last name
Małgorzata Religa
Academic degree or title
Ph.D. / Assistant Professor, University of Warsaw
Ph.D. / Assistant Professor, University of Warsaw Małgorzata Religasinologist
Szymczyński, Tomasz R.
Bio
Tak
Permanent employee
Nie
First and last name
Tomasz R. Szymczyński
Specialization
sinologist, political philosophy and cultural researcher
Academic degree or title
Ph.D. / Associate Professor, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań
Ph.D. / Associate Professor, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań Tomasz R. Szymczyńskisinologist, political philosophy and cultural researcher


Research
Projects

The Center researches a wide range of topics concerning the East Asia region (Mainland China, Korean Peninsula, Taiwan and Japan).

China Horizons: Dealing with a Resurgent China (DWARC)

The project is financed by the Horizon Europe funding scheme no. 101061700 (competition HORIZON-CL2-2021-TRANSFORMATIONS-01-07); project duration: November 1, 2022 to October 31, 2025. It is carried out by a consortium of seven partnering institutions from the EU, led by Mercator Institute for China Studies – MERICS (Germany), Bruegel AISBL (Belgium) and Copenhagen Business School (Denmark). The goal of the project is to strengthen political, economic, social and cultural understanding of contemporary China among researchers and European decision makers, with the goal to support the process of shaping EU’s policy towards China. Other goals include expanding the body of independent researchers of contemporary China in Europe and knowledge sharing among the media and the public.

The project is divided into five topic-related Work Packages (WP), namely:

  • Community and culture of the People's Republic of China (WP2)
  • Policy of the Chinese Communist Party (WP3)
  • Chinese economy and its global impact (WP4))
  • Regional and global Chinese policy (WP5)
  • EU-China Relations (WP6).

The team from SWPS University is responsible for the implementation of the Work Package no. 2 – “Society and Culture”. Our researchers will examine cultural policy of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and cultural-social themes in Chinese literature, performing arts (theatre and film), and visual arts that have been created over the last decade in the PRC.

The academics from SWPS University will aim to answer the following research questions:

  • What aspirations and dreams of young Chinese women and men are reflected in theatre, film, visual arts, and literature? How does the vision of an ideal society looks like?
  • How are gender equality, sexual identity, and other topics related to the current global social movements and trends portrayed in theatre, film, visual arts, and literature?
  • What social topics, missing from the official state discourse, are present in theatre, film, visual arts, and literature? What does it mean? What does it tell us about contemporary China?
  • How do public policies related to the cultural sector shape relationships between the state and artists?
  • How is cultural production funded in China? What are the sources of financing? Do Chinese artists enjoy artistic freedom to create? To what degree?
  • 6. How does China promote its culture abroad, in Europe and East Asia (South Korea and Japan)? What topics are selected and what messages are conveyed by the Chinese authorities?

The academics researching Chinese literature, performing and visual arts are led by Professor Marcin Jacoby from SWPS University. The research team also includes František Reismüller (Czech Republic), Cristina Bahon Arnaiz (Spain), Piotr Machajek, M.A. (SWPS University’s Interdisciplinary Doctoral School).

The study of the cultural sector of China is led by Professor Dorota Ilczuk, and the team includes Tamara Kamińska, M.A. (doctoral student at SWPS University’s Creative Economy Research Center) and Professor Marcin Jacoby.

The results of the project will be available on the Open Access platforms, in the form of articles, policy briefs, webinars and podcasts.

Read more about the project


Research platform

Hermeneutics of multilinguisticality and the translation practice of classic Chinese texts

Research approach

The platform “Hermeneutics of multilinguisticality and the translation practice of Chinese classic texts” provides an interdisciplinary collaboration platform for researchers representing four universities, including: The University of Warsaw (Małgorzata Religa, Ph.D.), the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (KUL) (Katarzyna Pejda, Ph.D.), Adam Mickiewicz University (Professor Tomasz R. Szymczyński), and SWPS University (Professor Marcin Jacoby). The goal of the team is to rigorously combine the practice and theory of interpretation and translation of Chinese classic text, using the methodological approach stemming from hermeneutics of multilinguisticality.

The hermeneutics of multilinguisticality is rooted in the work of Hans-Georg Gadamer and Jean Grondin, and combines the approaches of translation studies and reflections of practicing translators. It is an original theoretical proposition of a methodological and methodical character. It is, simultaneously, a starting point for the analysis and interpretation of the semantic fields constituted around the key terms occurring in Chinese classic texts.

Research objective

The goal of the group is not only to carry out theoretical examination concerning semantic interpretations of ancient Chinese philosophical and ethical terms, but also a close collaboration to achieve the highest possible quality of translated texts that play a crucial role in Chinese culture. In this way, the team combines translation practice and theory of interpretation stemming from hermeneutical approach, aiming to challenge the traditional differentiation between theory and practice.