While pieces like The Little Match Girl and The Emperor's New Clothes by Hans Christian Andersen are all too familiar to Chinese families, the translation and understanding of the Danish writer's fairy tales has evolved in stages in the past century.

Li Wenjie, a Yunshan Youth Scholar of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, received the Hans Christian Andersen Award in April for her research into the Chinese translation and dissemination of Andersen's fairy tales, following Chinese scholars Lin Hua, who received the award in 1997, and Shi Qin'e in 2006. Lin and Shi both translated Andersen's fairy tales.

Founded in 1996 to mark outstanding research and promotion of Andersen's works, the award has been presented to about 60 individuals and organizations from 18 countries and regions.