Culture

Jining, seen as the cradle of Chinese civilization for being the birthplace of Confucius, Mencius - well-known ancient Chinese philosophers and other ancient sages, has fused the cultural features of northern and southern China to form its own characteristics since the Jining section of the Grand Canal opened in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).

It has a variety of unique cultural relic sites, three of which are under State-level protection: the Confucius Family Mansion, and the Temple and Cemetery of Confucius. The mansion claims to be "the best in China" and is a historic and cultural heritage approved by UNESCO. The old-line magnitude temple is deemed to be of the highest rank, and the cemetery was the largest artificial garden in ancient China. These relics attract thousands of worshippers and tourists from home and abroad every year.

An aerial view of the Three Confucius Sites in Qufu, Jining, Shandong province: the Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion. [Photo/VCG]

Administrative divisions

The city consists of two districts – Rencheng and Yanzhou, two county-level cities – Qufu and Zoucheng, and seven counties – Sishui, Weishan, Yutai, Jinxiang, Jiaxiang, Wenshang and Liangshan.

There are also four functional zones – Jining national high-tech industrial development zone, Taibai Lake new area, Jining economic and technological development zone and Qufu cultural demonstration zone.

[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]