And the character of Mole, created by Czech animator and illustrator Zdenek Miler.
These are household names in China and beyond. But what else?
Geographically, the country, with an area of about 80,000 square km, is located in the "heart of Europe," bordering Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia.
In modern history, Czech people were among the victims of the notorious Munich Agreement in 1938, which permitted Nazi Germany's annexation of portions of the then Czechoslovakia along the country's borders. Then in 1968, the Soviet Union intervened in the "Prague Spring."
During WWII, the Czech Republic was one of the first regions occupied by Nazi Germany. On Sept. 3, 2015, Zeman came to Beijing to attend events marking the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.
The 72-year-old Zeman became president in 2013. The year after, he led a big delegation on a visit to China, and the two sides reached cooperation agreements in various areas, including civil nuclear, finance, medical care and culture.
One thing you need to know: The development of bilateral relations goes way back. On Oct. 6, 1949, Czechoslovakia established diplomatic relations with China, as one of the first countries to do so. After the Czech Republic gained independence in 1993, the two countries decided to continue their relations that were established in 1949.
