Silk Road
The Silk Road generally refers to the important overland trade routes linking China to the West in ancient times. During the Han Dynasty in 138 B.C., Zhang Qian embarked on a diplomatic mission to the Western Regions, opening a gate to the West. Along the routes, merchants carried Chinese silk westward to Central Asia, West Asia, Europe, and North Africa and brought back other high value goods. Historically originating in Chang'an (today's Xi'an of Shaanxi Province) and Luoyang (today's Luoyang of Henan Province), the Silk Road crossed Gansu and Xinjiang, traversed to Central Asia and West Asia, and reached Europe and North Africa, serving as a bridge for exchange between Eastern and Western civilizations.
By serving as an important platform for exchange between multiple nationalities, ethnic groups, religions, and cultures, the Silk Road has facilitated connectivity of countries in Eurasia and cultural exchange and mutual learning between the East and West, making major contributions to human advancement. The term "Silk Road" was coined by German geologist and geographer Ferdinand von Richthofen as recently as 1877 in his book China, and it was widely disseminated since. As time went on, the Silk Road was expanded to refer to all channels for exchange between China and the West in ancient times. In 2013, China proposed an important initiative of jointly building the Silk Road Economic Belt, which drew extensive attention and received strong endorsements from the international community. In 2014, Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor, a joint application by China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, was listed as a World Heritage. From the ancient Silk Road to the Belt and Road Initiative today, China has built on traditional friendship with countries along the routes and achieved fruitful results in people-to-people exchange and business cooperation.
丝绸之路
丝绸之路，一般指陆上丝绸之路，是古代连接中西方的重要商道。在公元前138年的中国汉代，张骞出使西域， 开始打通东方通往西方的道路。通过丝绸之路，商人们将中国生产的丝绸等运往中亚、西亚、欧洲和北非，再把欧洲和中亚等地的奇珍异宝输往中国。历史上的丝绸之路曾以长安（今陕西省西安市）、洛阳（今河南省洛阳市）为起点，经甘肃、新疆通往中亚、西亚，到达欧洲、北非，成为古代连接亚欧大陆的东西方文明交汇之路。
丝绸之路是古代多民族、多种族、多宗教、多文化的重要交往平台，促进了亚欧大陆各国互联互通，推动了东西方文明交流互鉴，为人类文明发展进步作出了重大贡献。1877年，德国地质地理学家李希霍芬在《中国》一书中第一次将这条西域交通道路命名为“丝绸之路”，这一概念由此广泛传播。随着时代发展，丝绸之路成为古代中国与西方各领域往来通道的统称。2013年，中国提出共建“丝绸之路经济带”重大倡议，得到国际社会高度关注和积极响应。2014年，中国、哈萨克斯坦、吉尔吉斯斯坦联合申报的陆上丝绸之路东段“丝绸之路：长安-天山廊道的路网”入选世界文化遗产。从开辟古代丝绸之路到今天共建“一带一路”，中国与丝路沿途各国友谊源远流长，历久弥坚，人文交流、经贸合作硕果累累。
