UN Chinese Language Day celebrated in Washington D.C.

The Chinese Embassy in the United States hosted a celebration on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. to mark the 2026 United Nations Chinese Language Day, which fell on Monday.

The event attracted about 500 attendees, including teenagers interested in Chinese culture and friends from all walks of life.

Speaking at the event, Minister Qiu Wenxing of the Chinese Embassy in the United States said that Chinese is one of the fastest-growing foreign languages among college students in the U.S., with nearly 400 primary and secondary schools in 31 states offering Chinese courses and more and more American friends joining the ranks of Chinese learners.

He noted that the essence of the Chinese language lies in harmonious coexistence. At present, China-U.S. relations are facing challenges, which calls for even greater need to draw wisdom from the way of harmony and cooperation.

At the event, a touring troupe composed of teachers and students from four universities in central China's Henan Province presented performances such as folk music, martial arts, and Henan opera.

Chinese Language Day, established by the United Nations in 2010, is celebrated annually on Guyu, or Grain Rain, the sixth of the 24 traditional Chinese solar terms, to highlight the global significance of the language.

UN Chinese Language Day celebrated in Washington D.C.

A herd of 30 Przewalski's horses was released into the wild at the Kalamaili Nature Reserve in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Wednesday.

This marked the reserve's 19th release of Przewalski's horses - the world's only remaining wild horse species, native to the Junggar Basin in Xinjiang and parts of Mongolia.

Identifiable by their robust build, tan color and upright, dark mane, the horse is listed as a national first-class protected animal in China and remains endangered globally.

Though the species had been extinct in the wild since the 1960s, China has invested heavily in reintroduction programs, establishing a wild horse breeding research center and initiating the "Wild Horse Return Program" in 1986, and releasing 24 horses from abroad in to the wild..

By the end of 2025, 392 Przewalski's horses had been released into the wild in Xinjiang, raising hopes the species can thrive again in its native land.

New herd of Przewalski's horses released into wild in Xinjiang