On the morning of October 16, the book donation ceremony for the "Biblioteca Italiana" Project was successfully held at the Book Café of the School of Foreign Languages. Mr. Federico Roberto Antonelli, Consigliere Culturale of the Embassy of Italy in China, and Professor Chen Ming, Dean of the School of Foreign Languages at Peking University, attended the ceremony and delivered speeches.

Prof. Chen welcomed Counselor Antonelli and expressed gratitude for his long-standing support of the Italian language program at Peking University. As a long-time friend of the school, Counselor Antonelli has consistently provided support for the development of the program since its establishment. The Italian language program, the youngest among the 21 undergraduate language programs at the school, has achieved significant results in talent cultivation and cultural exchange. Last year, the visit and speech of Italian President Mr. Sergio Mattarella at Peking University further inspired students to engage in Sino-Italian friendly exchanges. Prof. Chen particularly thanked the Italian government for donating nearly 600 valuable books, believing that this collection will provide robust support for the learning and research of Italian language and culture by faculty and students. He encouraged the faculty and students of the Italian language program to create a vibrant discipline that leads the development of Italian studies in China and to establish an internationally influential platform for teaching and research.

Counselor Antonelli highly praised the outstanding achievements of the Italian language program’s faculty in talent cultivation and recalled the close cooperation between Peking University and the Italian Culture Institute of the Italian Embassy in various cultural activities, including last year’s celebration of the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo’s death and the related arrangements for the visit of the Italian President Mr. Mattarella. He looks forward to more Peking University students engaging in research in Italian language, literature, culture, and international relations, contributing to the promotion of friendly exchanges between China and Italy.

During the book donation ceremony, prof. Chen and Counselor Antonelli jointly unveiled the donation. The donated books cover classical and contemporary literary works, art history, grammar dictionaries, and multidisciplinary topics, providing rich academic resources for faculty and students and further promoting Sino-Italian cultural exchange.

The ensuing cultural performance was splendid, creating a lively atmosphere. Student of the Italian Program Min Xinyun recited Giacomo Leopardi's "Infinity," while Han Yang presented the poem "I Need Silence" by Alda Merini. All the male students performed a humorous skit adapted from "Perfect Strangers," and Lu Yuehan showcased a bilingual song, "Perfect/Perfetto," with guitar accompaniment. Wang Erpeng and Luo Zengyuqing led the classic piece "Sarà perché ti amo." The performance received enthusiastic applause, bringing the event to a climax.

The event was attended by Elisa Palana, First Secretary of the Embassy of Italy in China, Addetto Culturale Daniele Galleni, prof. Fan Xing, Director of the Department of European Languages and Literatures at Peking University, Zhang Xiaoyan, director of SFL library, and all faculty and students of the Italian language program.