An Investigation on Wushu as the Main Cultural Symbol of China in Africa

Abstract

This study investigates the claims that Chinese wushu is the main cultural symbol of the Chinese culture in Africa, highlights the communication processes of Chinese Wushu on the continent and probe into its localization and interaction with local cultures. The study relies on written documents from primary and secondary sources. Primary sources include libraries, specialized archives from some cultural institutions both located in China and Africa. Secondary sources include scientific journals and articles as well as official reports most of which are available online. Our research methods also include interviews, surveys, oral history and participant observation. As result of this investigation, the growing influence of Chinese Wushu through Kungfu Movies in Africa since the late 1970s following the emergence of Bruce Lee et al. has laid down the footprints of a China’s image and cultural identity to the African audiences, and therefore shaped their cognition of China through visual and bodies memories. In such a way that the Chinese Wushu has become the main cultural symbol of China in Africa. Meanwhile, the visual cognition of the Chinese Wushu has resulted to the creation of a “cultural gap” with regards to reality. Therefore, the main significance of this study, is not only to illustrate the existing cultural gap in the “Image Cognition” of China by Africans, but also to ascertain through facts that the Chinese wushu remain the main symbol of the Chinese culture in Africa and therefore an important window for African to visualized China.