ABSTRACT
Confucianism has always been one of the core genres of Chinese studies but it has not been fully studied in the field of anthropology. This tendency reflects the tradition of anthropology that is mainly concerned with common people instead of elites, and with the little tradition rather than the great tradition. It is interesting to notice that Confucianism has been differently posited in the history of the relationship between the state and society in China. After the Great Cultural Revolution that Confucius began to appear in public discourses. Return of Confucius was made first within the academic community. In November 2004, the first Confucius Institute was established at a university in Korea. In October 2009, 282 Confucius Institutes and 272 Confucius Schools were reported to have been established in higher educational institutions throughout 87 countries in the world. During the 20th century in China, Confucianism has suffered from public and official criticism, denouncement, and deconstruction.
