Zhu Xi born in Fujian

1127

The future Neo-Confucian philosopher was born to a minor Song official in southern China. In his lifetime he would synthesize the Four Books, rearrange the canon of Confucian study, and shape the Chinese imperial examination curriculum for the next seven centuries. Zhu Xi's commentaries became so authoritative that no student could pass the civil service examinations without mastering them, making him the most influential Chinese thinker since Confucius himself.