Quzhou commemorates 2,577th anniversary of Confucius' birth

A grand ceremony was held Monday in Quzhou, eastern China's Zhejiang province, to commemorate the 2,577th anniversary of the birth of Confucius.

A ceremony to commemorate the 2,577th anniversary of the birth of Confucius is held in Quzhou, eastern China's Zhejiang province, on Sept. 28, 2026. [Photo/China.org.cn]

Held at the Southern Confucius Ancestral Temple, the event was hosted by the Quzhou municipal government. 

Since 2004, Quzhou has developed a contemporary approach to honoring Confucius, with participants wearing modern attire and bowing, while grains, fruits, and vegetables are used as sacrificial offerings. Chanting, string music, and ceremonial music are also incorporated into the rites.

This year, participants sang "Lu Ming" from the "Book of Songs" before a series of traditional rites were performed. Kong Lingli, the 76th-generation lineal descendant of Confucius, later led participants to the Confucius Cultural Park, where representatives recited passages from Confucian classics and all participants bowed before a statue of Confucius.

Nearly 200 representatives of Confucius' descendants and clan members from 20 provincial-level regions across China, including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, as well as from overseas, attended the event.

In 2011, the Southern Confucius memorial ceremony was inscribed on China's national intangible cultural heritage list. In 2024, Quzhou's ceremony was held on the same day as the Confucius memorial ceremony in Qufu, Shandong province, for the first time.

Monday's ceremony was also one of the key activities of the 2026 Southern Confucianism Cultural Tourism Season.