Less than a century ago, China faced myriad challenges in catching up to a world that had passed it by technologically. In her new book, Kingdom of Characters, Jing Tsu breaks down how the monumental and transformative task of bringing the Chinese language into the modern era also modernized China itself.

Jing Tsu joined the National Committee on June 1, 2022 to discuss the visionaries, reformers, and revolutionaries whose linguistic innovations made China’s ascent to its global role today possible.

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