Since ancient times, Xiamen has been a vital trading port fueling national prosperity, a maritime gateway of China's external cooperation, and a window for inter-cultural dialogue. As a city where the mountains embrace the sea and the East meets the West, Xiamen is known for diversity, openness and inclusiveness as embodied in its maritime wisdom, trade tradition and folk customs.

Maritime Legacy

The story of Xiamen begins from an island. Early settlers made their home by the sea, farming the waters and dwelling on boats. This age-old bond with the ocean has been preserved as a living tradition across millennia. Mazu customs and Ong Chun ceremony are inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Local folk practices as such demonstrate the city's profound, time-honored ties to the ocean.

Pulse of Maritime Silk Road

As early as the Song and Yuan dynasties (960-1368 CE), Xiamen was already exporting Chinese porcelain overseas via the Maritime Silk Road. In the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 CE), the opening of Xiamen as an official foreign-trade port catalyzed its rise to a vital hub for global commerce. Merchant vessels carried local tea, porcelain and cane sugar to the world, bringing back spices and handicrafts. This exchange of goods became a conduit for cultural exchange, molding over time Xiamen's character into one of openness and inclusiveness.

Fusion of Diverse Cultures

Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, a world-renowned UNESCO World Heritage site hailed as an "Island of Music" or the "Piano Island", brings together a diverse array of architectural styles including Classical Revival, Southeast Asian arcades, traditional Minnan (Southern Fujian Province) courtyard houses, and the Amoy Deco Style. It is therefore acclaimed as the "World Architecture Expo".

In Xiamen, time-honored cultural traditions like Nanyin Music and Gezi Opera blend seamlessly with modern art expressions such as symphonies and operas, painting a vivid tapestry of cultural diversity.