Metropolitan Ethnic Cultures Congress Closes in Beijing

The most important international congress for anthropologists and ethnologists ever to be hosted in China ended in Beijing Friday. With a schedule of discussions on "Metropolitan Ethnic Cultures: Maintenance and Interaction," the congress has attracted more than 360 delegates from about 46 countries and regions.

Tudao Doje, deputy minister of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, presided over the closing ceremony, saying that the five-day long International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) 2000 Inter-Congress offered a great opportunity for anthropologists and ethnologists worldwide to exchange experiences in various academic areas.

More than 200 academic papers, field reports, and documentaries were submitted to the organizing committee and over 170 experts worldwide expressed their views on issues in the field at the congress.

IUAES holds an international conference every five years, and usually attracts some 3,000 to 5,000 delegates from over 100 countries, earning the nickname of the "Olympic games" of anthropology and ethnology.

IUAES sponsors two smaller inter-congresses during the international event's off-years.



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