On the morning of April 24, 2026, at the invitation of the School of History and Culture of Shanxi University, Senior Professor Hou Jianxin from Tianjin Normal University delivered a lecture titled "Meta-elements of Medieval Society and European Civilization" for the faculty and students of the School. This lecture was chaired by Professor Wei Peiyun, Head of the Department of World History.
The lecture presented Professor Hou's latest research findings, which explore the fundamental elements that nurtured the meta-rules of European civilization within medieval society. Professor Hou first elaborated on the necessity of delving into the foundation of these meta-rules from two perspectives: the spatio-temporal positioning and the social basis of European civilization. He then constructed a system of meta-elements from five aspects: Germanic traditions, village communities, feudal contractual relations, empirical logic, and the influence of Christianity. In summary, European civilization is not a simple extension of classical civilization, but rather the result of the long-term interaction and integration of multiple elements during the Middle Ages; only medieval society served as the soil that nurtured European civilization.
Professor Hou explained profound theories in simple language and patiently answered questions from several students, demonstrating the demeanor of a scholar who consistently regards the destiny and future of the nation as his academic mission.
On the afternoon of April 24, 2026, the School of History and Culture at Shanxi University organized a symposium on the development of the World History discipline for all faculty members of the Department of World History. The meeting was held in Conference Room 205 of the Main Building. Professor Hou Jianxin, Convenor of the 7th Disciplinary Appraisal Group (World History), Senior Professor at Tianjin Normal University, and Dean of the Institute of European Civilization, was invited to attend and provide guidance. Sang Xuli, Party Secretary of the School, Xiang Jinwei, Dean of the School, and Liu Gaifang, Vice Dean, attended the meeting.
Dean Xiang Jinwei first introduced the research directions and representative achievements of the World History faculty. He frankly stated that the School is "both deeply committed and highly anxious" about the construction of the World History discipline, hoping to quickly identify a breakthrough point to achieve leapfrog development.
Professor Hou Jianxin pointed out that the current distribution of faculty across various research directions in the Department of World History is relatively balanced, which fully meets the teaching requirements of a comprehensive university. However, the relatively small number of senior academic titles and the lack of prominent areas of competitive advantage restrict the further development of the discipline. Reflecting on the current status of World History development in China, he stated that the School needs to consolidate and refine its disciplinary development directions within underdeveloped academic niches, and advance discipline construction by creating flagship research programs. Furthermore, the development of the World History discipline could leverage the momentum of "Regional and Country Studies" while maintaining a firm historical consciousness. Subsequently, the World History faculty raised questions regarding organized research and long-term academic planning, which Professor Hou addressed one by one.
In her closing remarks, Party Secretary Sang Xuli expressed gratitude to Professor Hou Jianxin for his valuable insights, explicitly stating that the expert's suggestions must be effectively translated into concrete measures for the School's development and discipline construction.
