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China celebrates 2,575 years since Confucius’ birth with cultural festival in Shandong

The 2024 China International Confucius Culture Festival in Shandong province will bring together Confucianist experts from across the world

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People dressed as ancient Chinese scholars attend the 2021 China International Confucius Culture Festival at the Temple of Confucius in Qufu, Shandong province, China on September 28, 2021. The 2024 festival runs from September 28 to October 7. Photo: Getty Images

This weekend, Shandong province in eastern China will celebrate the birth of its most famous son: Confucius.

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The 2024 China International Confucius Culture Festival begins today in the city of Qufu, running until October 7.

Born 2,575 years ago, in 551BC, Confucius was the first teacher in China to advocate education for all. He also introduced a set of ethical and moral codes, known as Confucianism, which is still widely observed not only in China but in other parts of Asia, such as Korea.

The festival sets out to foster a greater understanding of his cultural significance.

A view of the world’s largest Confucius statue, in Qufu, Shandong province. Photo: Weibo/CGTV
A view of the world’s largest Confucius statue, in Qufu, Shandong province. Photo: Weibo/CGTV

The theme of this year’s festival is “Dialogue with Confucius, Mutual Learning among Civilisations”. For the first time, the festival will be a collaboration between the main venue in Qufu and Quzhou, in Zhejiang province.

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Jining, a former capital of Shandong, will also host 103 cultural tourism activities, with one theme being “Following Confucius to Jining”.

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