About Confucius – Chinese philosopher and thinker

Confucius the Chinese philosopher and thinker, who lived from 551BC to 479BC, has long been a symbol of wisdom on matters of personal morality, social relations and justice. His teachings which were collected together many years after his death in the ‘Analects of Confucius’ initially gained prominence during the Han Dynasty which ran from 206BC and 220AD. Over the next 1000 years or so Confucian philosophy gradually gained a foothold as it became the most important tool for those who wished to become government officials in China and because of this established itself as the foundation of the modern Chinese education system. It was also taken up in Europe after being introduced by the Jesuits in the 16TH Century.

‘Confucius he say’, ‘Confucius say’ or ‘Confucius says’ is a phrase that both serious and more frivolous commentators often use to introduce a piece of ‘home spun’ philosophy, which has given rise to a wealth of Confucius quotes. On this site we look at both what Confucius actually said, what he might have said (or possibly not!) in a modern context and what others have attributed to him. We also explore the idea that Confucius was at times funny and would have enjoyed the Confucius jokes.

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