HISTORY

Since it was founded 60 years ago, CIPG has fine-tuned its international publication network and development strategy，to meet the new needs of presenting China to the world.

July 1, 1950, Chairman Mao Zedong wrote the magazine name of the debut issue of the Chinese version of China Pictorial.
  • January 1949, CIPG founded.
  • December 1949, International Bookstore founded. Later changed its name into China International Bookstore.
  • January 1950, English biweekly magazine People's China was launched, which later had its Russian, Japanese, Chinese, French and Indonesian editions.
  • May 1950, El Popola Ĉinio (People’s China Report), a monthly magazine in Esperanto launched. Later changed its name into China Report.
  • July 1950, China Pictorial launched. Chairman Mao Zedong inscribed the magazine’s cover. The magazine then had English, Russian, Indonesian, Korean, Japanese, French, Spanish, Vietnamese, German, Hindu, Indonesian, Arabic, Burmese, Swedish, Swahili, Italian, Urdu, Romanian, Thai, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uygur and Kazakhstan editions.
  • January 1951, Foreign Language Printing Factory began operation, mainly printing publications in foreign languages.
  • March 1951, All-China Esperanto League founded.
  • October 1951, English edition of Chinese Literature launched followed by a French edition.
  • January 1952, China Reconstructs (became China Today in 1990) launched. It had simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Spanish, French, Arabic, Russian, German and Portuguese editions.
  • July 1952, Foreign Language Press founded.
  • March 1958, the English edition of Beijing Review launched. It went on to have Spanish, French, Japanese, Indonesian, German, Arabic and Portuguese editions.
  • November 1958, Peace Bookstore opened in Hong Kong.
1962, state leaders Zhou Enlai, Soong Ching-ling, Chen Yi and Deng Yingchao visited the commemorative exhibition for the 10th anniversary of China Reconstructs
  • January 1962, Premier Zhou Enlai wrote words of encouragement, “Spread Chinese people’s kind wishes for people of all countries farther and strengthen our unity with them,” for the tenth anniversary of China Reconstructs.
  • February 1966, New World Press founded.
  • August 1967, paper company under CIPG founded.
1985, Deng Xiaoping, chief architect of China’s reform and opening-up drive, met with Fan Jingyi (first right), then CIPG President, and Zhang Yan (second left), deputy editor-in-chief of China Reconstructs (now China Today).
  • November 1981, Morning Glory Publisher founded.
  • June 1982, the Translators Association of China founded, administered by CIPG.
  • January 1985, Cypress Book Co. (UK) Ltd. founded.
  • April 1985, Deng Xiaoping met with Fan Jingyi (first right), then CIPG President, and Zhang Yan, deputy editor-in-chief of China Reconstructs.
  • June 1986, Chinese Literature Publishing House founded.
  • July 1986, CIPG hosted 71st Universal Esperanto Congress in Beijing.
  • In October 1987, ChinAfrica launched in English and French.
1992, after Beijing Review’s exclusive interview, then Chinese President Jiang Zemin wrote an inscription for Beijing Review, the English news magazine in China, that it is “a window on China and a friend of the world.”
  • November 1990, China Book Trading GMBH founded in Germany.
  • April 1992, Chinese President Jiang Zemin wrote inscription for Beijing Review, “A window on China and a friend of the world."
  • （3） April 1995, Chinese President Jiang Zemin met with Israel Epstein, veteran foreign expert of CIPG and honorary editor-in-chief of China Today, at the Great Hall of the People. Jiang congratulated Epstein on his 60th anniversary of working in China and his 80th birthday.
  • December 1997, Premier Li Peng wrote: “Work hard on Chinafrica to contribute to the Sino-African friendship,” for the tenth anniversary of ChinAfrica.
  • May 1998, on the eve of the 45th anniversary of People’s China (Japanese edition), Chinese President Jiang Zemin wrote, “Work hard on People’s China to make new contributions to friendship between Chinese and Japanese people.”
During the 2004 Lunar New Year banquet of Chinese Central Government, Chinese President Jiang Zemin had a conversation with Israel Epstein, veteran journalist of CIPG and former editor-in-chief of China Today
  • October 2000, China Internet Information Center (www.china.org.cn) founded.
  • October 2003, the Center of China Aptitude Test for Translators and Interpreters founded
  • January 2004, the Center for International Communication Studies founded.
  • July 2004, CIPG organized the 89th Universal Esperanto Congress in Beijing.
  • October 2004, the Latin American Branch and Middle Eastern Branch of China Today launched in Mexico City and Cairo in Egypt respectively.
  • April 2005, President Hu Jintao visited Israel Epstein at his home to congratulate him on his 90th birthday.
  • June 2005, China Pictorial Publishing House, Morning Glory Publisher, Sinolingua and Dolphin Books became independent in terms of administration.
  • June 2005, the Beijing Review North America Bureau founded.
  • August 2005, the delegation of Translators Association of China bid successfully to host the XVIII World Congress of the International Federation of Translators (FIT).
  • December 2005, the Moscow Bureau of China Pictorial founded.
  • June 2006, President Hu Jintao and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf both wrote inscriptions for Beijing Review’s special edition on the 55th anniversary of China-Pakistan diplomatic relationship.
  • July 2006, China International Book Trading Corporation became an enterprise group after merging the printing plant and paper company under CIPG.
  • July 2006, the Information and Technology Center of CIPG founded.
  • October 2007, Beijing Review interviewed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.