Sinophile

A Sinophile is a person who demonstrates fondness or strong interest in China, Chinese culture, Chinese history, Chinese politics, or Chinese people.

Sinophile
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese親華派/親華者
Simplified Chinese亲华派/亲华者
Hanyu PinyinQīn huá pài/Qīn huá zhě
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinQīn huá pài/Qīn huá zhě
Wu
RomanizationChin1 Gho6 Pha5 (tɕʰin53 ɦo23 pʰʌ34)
Hakka
Pha̍k-fa-sṳTshîn-fà-phai / Tshîn-fà-chá
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingCan1 Waa4 Paai3 / Can1 Waa4 Ze2
Southern Min
Hokkien POJChhin-hôa-phài / Chhin-hôa-chiá
Tâi-lôTshin-huâ-phài / Tshin-huâ-tsiá
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabetthân Trung Quốc, thân Trung Hoa, thân Tàu
Chữ Nôm親中國, 親中華, 親艚

Etymology

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a 17th–18th century German polymath who made significant contributions in many areas of physics, logic, history, librarianship, and studied numerous aspects of Chinese culture

The word Sinophile is derived from the prefix Sino- (referring to anything in relation to China) and the suffix -phile (meaning the lover of something). The word itself emerged in the early 20th century.

Louis XIV, a 17th-century French monarch whose Grand Trianon, spread of Chinoiserie, centennial new year bash, and Confucian translations were influenced by Chinese culture

Notable Sinophiles

Europe

United Kingdom

France

Germany

  • Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a 17th-century German polymath who wrote about his admiration of the Chinese "idea of things being created by their natural propensity and by a pre-established harmony" in a letter written in the last year of his life (1716).

Italy

Russia

Oceania

Australia

North America

United States

  • Allen Iverson (born 1975), former NBA star basketball player who has expressed affinity for the country
  • Stephon Marbury (born 1977), former NBA star basketball player who joined the Beijing Ducks and has expressed affinity for the country
  • James Veneris (1922–2004), US soldier who defected to China after the Korean War and remained in the country expressing positive feelings until his death in 2004
  • Jeffrey Sachs (born 1954), American economist from Columbia University who has been a strong advocate for greater China-US engagement and friendship between the two peoples
  • Hasan Piker (born 1991), popular socialist American Twitch Streamer who has expressed affinity and admiration for the Chinese people and visited China to help American left-wingers better understand the country

Asia

Iran

Iraq

  • Jalal Al-Hanafi [ar] (1914-2006), a well-known Iraqi scholar who taught Arabic in China and enthusiastically promoted cultural exchanges between the two countries.
  • Hadi Alwai (1932-1998), a prominent exiled intellectual who travelled periodically between Syria and China, and held deep affinity for Chinese philosophies.

Thailand

  • Sirindhorn (born 1955), Thai princess who has received awards in China for promoting friendship between the two countries

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Definition of 'Sinophile'". Collins Dictionary. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  2. ↑ "Sinophile Definition & Meaning". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
  3. ↑ Arynov, Zhanibek (22 August 2022). "Educated into Sinophilia? How Kazakh Graduates/Students of Chinese Universities Perceive China". Journal of Current Chinese Affairs. 52 (2): 334–353. doi:10.1177/18681026221110245. ISSN 1868-1026.
  4. ↑ "Sinophile", The Free Dictionary, retrieved 23 June 2022
  5. ↑ "Sino-, comb. form1". OED Online. Oxford University Press. June 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  6. ↑ "Word Power". www.csb.gov.hk. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  7. ↑ "Joseph Needham, 94; Expert on China, Cambridge Scholar". Los Angeles Times. 26 March 1995. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  8. ↑ "Emperor Kangxi and The Sun King Louis XIV".
  9. ↑ Rowbotham, Arnold H. (1932). "Voltaire, Sinophile". Publications of the Modern Language Association of America. 47 (4): 1050–1065. doi:10.2307/457929. ISSN 0030-8129. JSTOR 457929.
  10. ↑ Liu, Yu (8 November 2017). "The Intrigue of Paradigmatic Similarity: Leibniz and China". Comparative Civilizations Review. 77 (77). Brigham Young University. ISSN 0733-4540.
  11. ↑ Mackerras, Colin (2000). Sinophiles and Sinophobes: Western Views of China [Literary anthologies of Asia]. United States: University of Michigan. ISBN 9780195918922.
  12. ↑ Brook, Timothy (August 1986). "Reviewed Work: The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci. by Jonathan D. Spence". JSTOR 2056104.
  13. 1 2 Alexander Lukin (2003). The Bear Watches the Dragon: Russia's Perceptions of China and the Evolution of Russian-Chinese Relations Since the Eighteenth Century. M.E. Sharpe. pp. 314–. ISBN 978-0-7656-1026-3.
  14. ↑ Agence France-Presse (22 November 2019). "China wants to 'take over' Australian politics, former spy chief warns". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 8 May 2023. His comments are likely to stir already heated debate about Australia's relations with China and be seen as a rebuke of vocal sinophile figures like former prime minister Paul Keating.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  15. ↑ "Paul Keating blasts Age and SMH for 'provocative' China war story | Paul Keating | The Guardian". amp.theguardian.com. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  16. ↑ "Kevin Rudd goes to Harvard". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 February 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2024. Former prime minister and noted sinophile Kevin Rudd will lead research on US-China relations at Harvard University.
  17. ↑ Grubel, James (28 June 2013). "Australian PM Rudd urges China action on trade deal". Reuters. Retrieved 14 March 2023. Australia's Sinophile Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday urged China - the country's largest trading partner - to conclude a stalled free trade deal, using his first news conference since regaining power to praise the current bilateral relationship.
  18. ↑ Kerin, John (22 May 2011). "Kevin sees where Julia was blind". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 14 March 2024. The mandarin-speaking sinophile, Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, was clearly in his element yesterday.
  19. ↑ Yuan, Jingdong (2014). The Rudd–Gillard years: promises and pitfalls for Beijing (Report). Australian Strategic Policy Institute. pp. 13–14. ...the fact that he spoke Mandarin made him highly sensitive to charges of being a Sinophile and meant that every aspect of his China policy would be subjected to microscopic examination and criticism by the opposition party. Therefore, he had to be 'ruthlessly realist' in dealing with China.
  20. ↑ McCaffrie, Jack; Rahman, Chris (2010). "AUSTRALIA'S 2009 DEFENSE WHITE PAPER: A Maritime Focus for Uncertain Times". Naval War College Review. 63 (1): 65–67. ISSN 0028-1484. JSTOR 26397077. A perception that Australia might attempt to balance its international relationships by drawing closer to China was exacerbated by the election in November 2007 of a new government led by the Mandarin-speaking, self-professed Sinophile former diplomat Kevin Rudd. However, Rudd has increasingly demonstrated himself to be rather more realistic and circumspect about China and a stronger supporter of the global role of American power and of the centrality of the U.S. alliance for Australian security than initially appeared to be the case.
  21. ↑ Brophy, David (1 June 2021). China Panic. Black Inc. pp. 1952–1955. ISBN 978-1-74382-149-7.
  22. ↑ "Allen Iverson's Red-Hot Romance With China". Hashtag Legend. 2 January 2017. Archived from the original on 23 September 2021.
  23. ↑ Gonzalez, John (11 March 2020). "Where Does Allen Iverson Fit In?". The Ringer.
  24. ↑ "Marbury madness rivals Linsanity in China". Bangkok Post. 1 March 2012.
  25. ↑ Stephon Marbury discusses retiring and why he loves China, 11 February 2018, archived from the original on 22 December 2021, retrieved 21 December 2019
  26. ↑ HENRY CHU (30 March 1999). "Expatriates' Long March Through China's History". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021.
  27. ↑ 党贺. "Jeffrey Sachs: Study in China, understand China". www.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
  28. ↑ "Exclusive | Hasan Piker talks about his controversial China trip – and 'thinking Chinese thoughts'". South China Morning Post. 17 February 2026. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
  29. ↑ "Prominent director says hearts of Iranian people are with Chinese people". Islamic Republic News Agency. 31 January 2020. China International Radio described Majid Majidi as a renowned Iranian and world director whose films have won many international accolades. He is a longtime friend of the Chinese people and has traveled to China many times, the media added.
  30. ↑ "بمناسبة الذكرى المئوية لميلاده..بيت المدى يحتفي بالعلّامة جلال الحنفي وسط صمت رسمي". Al Mada (in Arabic). 19 September 2014. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  31. ↑ "العلامة العراقي جلال الحنفي في ذمة الله". Al Jazeera Arabic (in Arabic). 7 March 2006. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  32. ↑ "Hadi al-`Alawi, Scion of the Two Civilizations - MERIP". Middle East Research and Information Project. 6 May 2014. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  33. ↑ "How Do Iraqi Elites Perceive China?". Wilson Center. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2026. Hadi al-Alawi, an Iraqi Sinophile, first established this worldview. In 1976, he fled to China and began working for the Xinhua news agency and teaching Arabic.
  34. ↑ 京报网 (3 February 2022). "泰国公主诗琳通抵达北京，将出席北京冬奥会开幕式" [Princess Sirindhorn of Thailand arrives in Beijing and will attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics]. Toutiao.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  35. ↑ Jitsiree Thongnoi (22 September 2019). "Thailand's long-time Sinophile Princess Sirindhorn to receive China's Friendship Medal". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 30 December 2022.