Qufu
Qufu is a county-level city in southwestern Shandong province, East China. It is located about south of the provincial capital Jinan and northeast of the prefectural seat at Jining. Qufu has an area of 815 square kilometers, and a total population of 653,000 inhabitants, of which, 188,000 live in urban areas.
Qufu is best known as the hometown of Confucius, who is traditionally believed to have been born at nearby Mount Ni. The city contains numerous historic palaces, temples and cemeteries. The three most famous cultural sites of the city, collectively known as San Kong, the Cemetery of Confucius, and the Kong Family Mansion. Together, these three sites have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1994.
Etymology
The name Qufu literally means "crooked hill", and refers to a mile-long hill that was part of the city during its time as capital of the state of Lu.Before the wide adoption of Pinyin, the name of the city was transcribed in English in a variety of ways, such as Ch'ü-fou-hien, Kio-feu-hien, Kio-fou-hien,
Kiu-fu,
Kiuh Fow, Keuhfow, Kufow, and Chufou.
Japanese city Gifu was partially named after Qufu. After Oda Nobunaga conquered Inabayama Castle in 1567, he renamed it as Gifu. Gi came from Qishan, a legendary mountain from which most of China was unified, whereas fu came from Qufu. Nobunaga chose those characters because he wanted to unify all of Japan and he wanted to be viewed as a great mind.
Administrative divisions
The city of Qufu is divided into 4 subdistricts, and 8 towns. The city government is located within.| English name | Pinyin | Hanzi | Subdivision Type |
| Lucheng Subdistrict | 鲁城街道 | Subdistrict | |
| 书院街道 | Subdistrict | ||
| 时庄街道 | Subdistrict | ||
| 小雪街道 | Subdistrict | ||
| 吴村镇 | Town | ||
| 姚村镇 | Town | ||
| 陵城镇 | Town | ||
| 尼山镇 | Town | ||
| 王庄镇 | Town | ||
| 息陬镇 | Town | ||
| 石门山镇 | Town | ||
| 防山镇 | Town |
History
Pre Qin era
During the Shang, the area around Qufu was home to the people of Yan, who were counted by the Chinese among the "Eastern Barbarians" or Dongyi. Along with Pugu and Xu, Yan joined the Shang prince Wu Geng and the Three Guards in their failed rebellion against the Duke of Zhou BC. After the rebels' defeat, the Duke launched punitive campaigns against the Dongyi, forcing their submission and placing their territory under loyal nobles. The territory of the Yan became part of the state of Lu, who made Qufu their capital throughout the Spring and Autumn period. This city had walls considerably larger than the present Ming-era fortifications, including more land to the east and north.Imperial era
During the Tang dynasty and the early days of the Song dynasty, the city was centered around the present-day Temple of Duke Zhou, at the northeastern corner of today's walled city. At 1012, Qufu was renamed to Xianyuan County, and relocated to the new site, some east of today's walled city, next to the supposed birthplace of the legendary Yellow Emperor and the tomb of his son Shaohao. A temple in honor of the Yellow Emperor was built there; all that remains today are two giant stelae.After the conquest of the northern China by the Jurchens, the new Jin dynasty renamed Xianyuan back to Qufu, but the city stayed at its Song location. It was not until the reign of the Jiajing Emperor of the Ming dynasty that the present-day city wall was built. The site of the city in 1012–1522 is now Jiuxian Village.
During the Southern Song dynasty the descendant of Confucius at Qufu, the Duke Yansheng Kong Duanyou fled south with the future Song Emperor Gaozong to Quzhou in Zhejiang, while the newly established Jin dynasty in the north appointed Kong Duanyou's brother Kong Duancao who remained in Qufu as Duke Yansheng. From that time up until the Yuan dynasty, there were two Duke Yanshengs, one in the north in Qufu and the other in the south at Quzhou. An invitation to come back to Qufu was extended to the southern Duke Yansheng Kong Zhu by the Yuan dynasty emperor Kublai Khan. The title was taken away from the southern branch after Kong Zhu rejected the invitation, so the northern branch of the family kept the title of Duke Yansheng. The southern branch still remained in Quzhou where they lived to this day. Confucius's descendants in Quzhou alone number 30,000. The Hanlin Academy rank of Wujing Boshi was awarded to the southern branch at Quzhou by a Ming emperor while the northern branch at Qufu held the title Duke Yansheng. Kong Ruogu, also known as Kong Chuan 47th generation was claimed to be the ancestor of the Southern branch after Kong Zhu died by Northern branch member Kong Guanghuang.
Modern era
During the Late Qing reforms, the Qing government planned to construct a major railroad connecting the North and South, which was known as Tianjin–Pukou Railway, and later merged into Beijing-Shanghai Railway. The originally planned route of the Tianjin–Pukou Railway did not pass through Yanzhou. Instead, it was designed to run from Nanyi, pass through Qufu, cross the Si River, and then proceed directly south to Zouxian and Tengxian. During actual construction, however, the route was altered on the grounds of protecting the Confucian Temple in Qufu: south of Xiemating in Qufu, the railway was diverted southwestward toward Yanzhou, and then turned southeast again south of Yanzhou, forming a large curve in the line.The German-proposed plan that would have passed through Qufu would have placed the railway only 50 zhang from the Confucius Cemetery, which aroused dissatisfaction among some conservative figures, who believed it would damage the site’s feng shui. Moreover, since Qufu was rich in mineral resources, some suspected that Britain and Germany intended to exploit and transport local minerals by rail after the line’s completion. Subsequently, Kong Lingyi, the Duke Yansheng, encouraged by opponents of the proposal, submitted a formal petition citing the need to protect the "sacred veins of the Kong Forest". Following his intervention, the Governor of Shandong memorialized the superintendent of the Jin–Pu Railway, requesting that the original plan be altered to avoid the sacred forest. Local gentry also submitted a joint petition demanding a rerouting in order to protect local railway and mining rights. They argued that “Qufu is surrounded by mountains rich in minerals and has long attracted German attention. From Jining to Zou, however, the land becomes flat plains with no nearby minerals", and therefore insisted that the railway must be diverted westward.
Under mounting pressure, several officials responsible for the northern section of the Jinpu Railway personally traveled to Qufu to survey the route and agreed with Kong Lingyi to shift the line five li westward. Just as construction was about to begin, the magistrate of Ziyang County submitted another petition requesting that the line be routed around eastern Yanzhou to promote local ritual activities. Consequently, the railway authorities moved the line further west to its present alignment, surveyed and designated the site of Yanzhou Prefectural Station, acquired land for station construction, and agreed to build a branch line from Yanzhou to Jining. With this, the controversy over the railway’s rerouting was brought to an end. In 1910, Kong Lingyi was summoned to Beijing to express gratitude to the new emperor Puyi for his handling of the affair and was rewarded with permission to wear a sable-trimmed court robe.
Although the successful diversion of the railway away from Qufu County was celebrated by conservatives and by Kong Lingyi himself, their actions also drew criticism. Song Huanwu, principal of the Second Shandong Provincial Normal School, once remarked: "When construction of the Jinpu Railway was first proposed, it was originally planned to establish a station in Qufu city. The Duke Yansheng’s household, clinging to superstitious notions of feng shui, strongly opposed this, and the route was therefore changed to Yaocun, eighteen li away from the city. As a result, merchants and travelers were greatly inconvenienced. Consequently, social life within Qufu County remained in a medieval state and failed to undergo modernization."
In 1948, Qufu played a minor role in the Yanzhou Campaign of the Chinese Civil War.
The artifacts of the historical sites at Qufu suffered extensive damage during the Cultural Revolution when about 200 staff members and students of Beijing Normal University led by Tan Houlan, one of the five most powerful student leaders of the Cultural Revolution, came to Qufu and destroyed more than 6,000 artifacts as part of the campaign to destroy the "Four Olds" in November 1966.
Geography
The small historical center of Qufu is surrounded by the restored Ming-era city wall and rivers/moats. The Drum Tower is in the center of the walled city; the Temple of Confucius, Confucius Mansion and the Temple of Yan Hui occupy large sections of the land within the wall.The Confucius Cemetery is located to the north of the walled city. The modern downtown is located south of the walled city. There is also a mosque and a thriving Muslim neighborhood and market that is located just outside the west gate of the walled city.
The Qufu train station and major industrial areas are on the east side, a few kilometers east of the historical city. The Shaohao Tomb and Shou Qiu historical site, are on the eastern outskirts of the modern Qufu as well, near Jiuxian village.
The town of Shimenshan in Qufu is part of the international Cittaslow movement in China.
The Si River and the both pass through the city.