He comes from a city that has a history of 3,000 years; he speaks five languages; he is a boxing champion; he is an eloquent orator; he’s one of the ten student advisors to the university president. He is Garabekov Muhammet from Mary in Turkmenistan, an undergraduate at Tianjin University, majoring in Business Chinese.
“Historical Inheritance links us together.”
Growing up in Mary, Merw in Turkmen, Muhammet can’t be more familiar with the city’s history. He frequented the remains of the ancient site a lot. “It is 30 kilometers east of the city, and one of the top scenic spots and historical sites in Turkmenistan. It is also listed as a World Cultural Heritage Site.”
Every time he stood at the site, he remembered what he has learned in history classes that the city used to be a transportation hub on the ancient Silk Road which links to another oriental country. “That’s when I got interested in China. I wanted to check out what the country on the other end of the Silk Road is like.”
Muhammet and his fellow students visit Tanchang and learn about China's poverty alleviation efforts in 2021.
His father is very supportive of him to study in China. “China’s Belt and Road Initiative kind of resonates with our memory of the old Silk Road. You feel a strange sense of inherent connection with the country that spans over time and space.” Muhammet’s father paid close attention to China’s development and saw many opportunities for his son to study in China. That nailed it. After graduating from high school, Muhammet applied for a language program in Tianjin and finally arrived at the country he has longed to behold.
“Learning is like boxing. Talent, diligence and perseverance make a genius.”
If not for his exotic features, people may mistake Muhammet for a Chinese because he speaks very authentic Chinese. But nobody knows for a while Muhammet deemed Chinese as one of the most difficult languages to master.
“I kind of speak five languages, Turkmen, Russian, Turkish, English and Chinese. Turkish and my native language are among Altaic family of languages; English and Russian belong to Indo-European languages; while Chinese is in the Sino-Tibetan family. It is comparatively easy to learn languages in the same family. So Chinese used to be very hard for me as it has totally different grammars, pronunciation and intonations, and accents.”
Muhammet shared a video in his Wechat moment recording how overwhelmed he was when starting to learn Chinese 5 years ago. “Every time I watched the video, I couldn’t help laughing,” he told the journalist in fluent mandarin.
Difficult as the language learning was at the beginning, the young boy has not for a moment thought of quitting. He has been practicing boxing for over ten years and championed in dozens of boxing events of all scales in his country. The sports not only helps him build up a good physique, but also sharpens his mind and will. Once he sets his mind on something, he tries his best to achieve it.
Muhammet is practising boxing.
“Learning is like boxing. With techniques and constant practice, I’m sure I will master the language sooner or later.” The young boy is well aware of his strength. “I believe I have some talent in language learning, and my boxing careers teach me to be resilient, patient and tough when facing difficulties.”
The young man lives up to his words. After a year’s study, he passed the highest level of the New Chinese Proficiency Test (HSK) and obtained the Level 6 certificate.
“The best way to learn a language is to blend in with its people and culture.”
“You have to test your knowledge in practice like the university motto says, seek truth from facts.” Every time he learns some expression, he tries to find a similar scenario and tries out whether he has truly mastered the language. “For example, I learn something about shopping, then I will go to a supermarket and use expressions and words I learned in class to see if the salesperson understands me. If not, I keep practicing and improving my oral Chinese.”
Muhammet thought it very important to learn a country’s culture. “Only if you know their culture, you understand why people think that way and speak that way.” He has two ways to enhance his understanding of Chinese culture, his Chinese friends and reading.
“I have many Chinese friends. They are very friendly and helpful. I learn a lot from them about Chinese culture and traditions.” He didn’t like the Chinese traditional food, hot pot very much when he just arrived in China, “It seemed time wasting.” But as he dined many times with his Chinese friends, his started to view this way of eating in a brand new perspective. “For Chinese people, I observed that eating is more than feeding, it is also a good way of socializing, especially for hot pot which creates a leisure and relaxing environment for people to talk and interact.” Now hot pot has become one of his favorite Chinese food.
Muhammet wins first prize scholarship in 2022.
Muhammet also enjoys reading Chinese literature. He has read Fortress Besieged by Qian Zhongshu, To Live by Yu Hua, Camel Xiangzi by Lao She and etc. Those books greatly enhanced his understanding of Chinese society and its people. “The books I read unveil a tip of iceberg to me in terms of Chinese history and culture. It helps me to know the people better.”
In his spare time, Muhammet joined a speech club to nurture public speech skills and critical thinking. He also served as a volunteer coach in a boxing club to get to know more people with common interests. He’s always very busy, on his way to classes, to speech club, to the sports field, to the boxing club. But Muhammet feels fulfilled and enjoys his life in China and at Tianjin University very much.
This spring, he received the honorary title of Distinguished International Students and has a clear idea about his future development, “To continue my master study at Tianjin University, of course,” Muhammet laughed.
By Eva Yin
Photo provided by Garabekov Muhammet
Video edited by Wen Zixin
