People dressed in traditional Chinese costume perform at a ceremony to mark the 2567th birthday of Confucius, in Cangzhou, north China's Hebei Province, Sept. 28, 2016. Confucius, a great Chinese thinker and philosopher, has his birthday celebrated around the country here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Yuan Liwei)

Analysts said the unprecedented celebrations to mark the 2,567th birth anniversary of Confucius across the country shows the Chinese people long for a cultural revival.

In a ceremony held in Confucius' hometown, Qufu, in East China's Shandong Province on Wednesday, more than 2,000 people recited excerpts from The Analects, a collection of Confucius' famous sayings, in front of the Confucius Temple. The participants included government officials, UNESCO officials, scholars, students and descendants of Confucius, from over 20 countries and regions.

Similar ceremonies were also held in cities across China on Wednesday. In Changchun, North China's Jilin Province, about 20 of Confucius' descendants participated in a ritual in the city's Confucius Temple. A Confucius-themed museum was also opened to the public in Quzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province on the same day, displaying ancient books and materials on Confucianism.

In Jinan, Shandong Province, contestants (college students from Shandong) were seated by the T-stage and recited the eulogy for the great educator and philosopher, the China Youth Daily reported.

Over 900 Uyghur students from a primary school in Wushi county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, also recited passages from The Analects in front of Confucius' portrait.

"The ceremonies show Chinese people are trying to restore their culture after experiencing a crisis of values in the 20th century due to the impact of Western culture," Yao Zhongqiu, a professor at Beihang University and a Confucian scholar, told the Global Times.

"After years of cultural introspection, the Chinese people finally realized the value of Confucian philosophy and have become more confident than ever about it," said Yang Chaoming, head of the Confucius Research Institute.

Confucianism belongs not only to the ethnic Han but to all ethnic Chinese. It plays a significant role in building social harmony and a common civilization, Yang added.

Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke at an international seminar in 2014 to mark the 2,565th anniversary of the birth of Confucius, saying that culture is the soul of a nation, and called for mutual understanding between civilizations.