Confucian institutes around the world will celebrate the 2,569th birthday of the philosopher on Friday.

Backed by the China Confucius Foundation, the celebrations will be held in 20 Confucian temples across China, including Confucius' birthplace Qufu in Shandong Province, the federation website said.

Other institutes researching Confucianism in the US, South Korea and Japan will also celebrate the event.

A forum on Confucian culture on Wednesday in the city of Qufu drew 263 scholars from China and overseas to discuss Confucianism, international politics, religion and humanity, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Students from Ji'nan's Nanxinzhuang primary school on Thursday held a cultural festival to honor Confucius, reading sections of Analects and held a calligraphy competition, local media reported.

Confucius was an educator and a thinker who epitomized traditional Chinese culture and the celebrations will nurture people's reverence for the sage and spread traditional Chinese culture across the world, the federation said.

But honoring Confucius does not mean going backwards into ancient Chinese culture, the federation announcement stressed.

Yao Zhongqiu, a professor at Beihang University in Beijing and a Confucian scholar, told the Global Times that Confucian philosophy is increasingly popular in academia and government as it offers solutions to divided global governance and remains relevant for its universal values.

"Confucian values are practical and comprehensive," Yao said.

China's foreign policy of building a community of shared future for mankind also complies with Confucianism, Yao asserted.

The celebrations will air for about three hours starting 8:30 am Friday on the Shandong TV channel.

The ceremonies date back to 478 BC and were once hailed as the "ceremony for the nation."