On March 20, 2025, the University of Bologna team led an innovative workshop at Peking University, introducing Chinese students to digital humanities methodologies through Alessandro Manzoni’s I Promessi Sposi. This international collaboration showcased how digital tools can bridge linguistic and cultural boundaries in literary studies.

Workshop Structure

The session featured two complementary presentations that provided both literary-historical context and technical methodology:

Literary Evolution Presentation

Prof. Paola Italia discussed the fascinating evolution of Manzoni’s masterpiece from its original version Fermo e Lucia to the final I Promessi Sposi, providing students with crucial literary-historical background for understanding the text’s development and significance.

Digital Methodology Presentation

Mariia Levchenko presented the technical aspects of multilingual digital editions, focusing on the LeggoManzoni platform’s innovative pipeline for integrating multiple translations across different languages and historical periods.

Hands-On Learning Experience

The workshop’s highlight was the practical XML/TEI markup session, where Chinese students learned to encode Zhang Shihua’s 1998 Chinese translation of I Promessi Sposi. This hands-on approach demonstrated:

  • TEI encoding principles applied to Chinese literary translation
  • Segment-level alignment technology enabling precise correlation between Italian source text and Chinese translation
  • Peer-to-peer learning as students collaborated on digital text encoding
  • Real contribution to the expanding TRADUCO MANZONI module

International Collaboration

This workshop represents part of a broader international collaboration between the University of Bologna and Peking University, aimed at making Italian literature more accessible through innovative digital tools. The partnership demonstrates how digital humanities can:

  • Bridge cultural gaps through technological innovation
  • Facilitate cross-linguistic scholarly exchange
  • Create reusable digital resources for future research and education
  • Train new generation of digital humanities practitioners globally

Technical Innovation

The LeggoManzoni platform’s ability to handle Chinese text encoding showcased the versatility of TEI standards for multilingual digital editions. Students experienced firsthand how:

  • Digital tools can preserve and present literary translations
  • XML/TEI markup creates structured, searchable text corpora
  • Alignment technology enables comparative literary analysis across languages
  • International scholarly collaboration can be enhanced through shared digital infrastructure

Impact and Future Directions

This workshop marks an important milestone in international digital humanities education, demonstrating how collaborative projects can simultaneously advance scholarly research and cross-cultural understanding. The encoded Chinese translation will become part of the growing LeggoManzoni multilingual corpus, contributing to global accessibility of Italian literary heritage.

The success of this workshop opens possibilities for further collaboration between Italian and Chinese institutions in digital humanities, potentially expanding to other literary works and creating sustainable models for international scholarly exchange in the digital age.