Exploring the representation of Chinese cultural symbols dissemination in the era of large language models

Cultural symbols serve as one of the most direct and tangible representations of culture spreading, including for the dissemination of Chinese civilization. This study embarks on an exploratory analysis and comparison of the portrayal of these ‘Chinese cultural symbols’ by Chinese and international mainstream large language models. Our findings reveal that calligraphy, Confucian philosophy, the Forbidden City, Peking Opera, and the Great Wall constitute the top five Chinese cultural symbols that receive the most attention from large language models. However, the depiction of the “Chinese cultural landscape” by current large language models predominantly concentrates on elements of traditional humanities and social sciences, with a noticeable absence of China’s contemporary development and technological accomplishments. Concurrently, there are significant disparities in the representation of “Chinese cultural symbols” between domestic and international large language models. This includes issues such as the international models deficiency in providing a holistic portrayal of China’s Political Ideologies and Institutional Systems. In light of these findings, this study proposes strategic suggestions and recommendations for promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations in the era of large language models.