Polish translator Ms. Yi Lijun died at the age of 87

After many inquiries, the Beiqing Daily reporter learned that Professor Yi Lijun, a Polish translator, professor at Beijing University of Foreign Chinese and Doctoral Supervisor, died of illness in Beijing at 4:35 p.m. on February 7, 2022, at the age of 87.

Yi Lijun, a native of Huanggang, Hubei Province. In 1960, he graduated from the Faculty of Polish Language and Literature of the University of Warsaw, Poland, with a master's degree. He has successively served as an editor and reporter of the Soviet And Eastern Europe Department of the Central Broadcasting Bureau, a teacher, professor and doctoral supervisor of the Department of European Languages of Beijing Foreign Chinese University, and a director of the Beijing Translation Association. He has been awarded the Polish Medal of Merit for Cultural Merit (twice), the "Knight's Cross of the Republic of Poland" and the "Cross of the Officers' Cross of the Republic of Poland" by the President of Poland, the Medal of Merit of the Polish National Education Council, the Honorary Doctorate of the University of Gdansk, and the title of "Senior Translator of Foreign Literature" by the Association of Translators of China.

Professor Yi Lijun has been engaged in Polish language teaching, literary translation and research for a long time, and has authored "Polish Literature", "History of Polish Post-War Literature", etc., translated the poems of Adam Mitskevich "Ancestor Sacrifice", the epic poem "Mr. Tadusch" (co-translation), the "historical trilogy" of Henshinkovicz (i.e., the long historical novel "Fire and Sword", "Torrent", "Vvodyyovsky Knight"), "Crusader Knight" (upper and lower, co-translation), Vigambrović's "Ferdidukai" (co-translation), Ottokalchuk's "Otokyoc" Taikoo and Other Times (co-translation) and dozens of others.

At about 12:00 a.m. on February 8, Professor Zhao Gang, vice president of Beijing University of Foreign Chinese, released a message and wrote: "Professor Yi Lijun has been loyal to the party's educational cause all her life, teaching and educating people, and acting as a model for the people; she has turned her pen into a sail; she has used books as a bridge to make outstanding contributions to mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Polish peoples; she is erudite and wise, optimistic and accessible, indifferent to fame and fortune, and willing to be a ladder, setting up for us the outstanding style of a generation of masters." The death of Professor Yi Lijun makes us extremely sad! This is not only a loss to the Polish speaking community in China, but also a loss to China's non-lingua franca education and a huge loss to the cause of Sino-Polish friendship. Heaven has the privilege of adding a wonderful pen, and the world has been a young lijun since then. Mr. Yi Lijun went all the way! ”

Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Zhang Zhiyi

Editor/Ying Qiao