Ji'nan Culture and history
		With a history of over 2600 years, Ji'nan is of the most famous historical and cultural cities of China. The area has been inhabited for at least 4000 years, and some of the earliest reminders of this are the relics unearthed in the town of Longshan, 30 km east of Ji'nan. Although Ji'nan was established 2600 years ago (the Spring and Autumn period), it was named in the early Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) after the section fo the Yellow River (Ji'shui) flowing through the northern part of Ji'nan. During the Han, it served as an administrative town. During the Three Kingdom period (220AD-280AD), it was a prefecture of the state of Wei. From 313AD to 1116AD, the prefectural offices of several dynasties were set here. From 1116 to 1911, Ji'nan was the seat of local government. After 1911, Ji'nan became an administrative town of Licheng county till 1929 when it became a municipality. In 1948 Ji'nan was liberated. Ji'nan is known as the 'Spring City' because there are 72 springs here. The major historic relics include the ruins of Chenziya and Liubu, the Simen Pagoda, the carvings on the Qianfo Cliff, the Jiuding Pagoda, the Daming Lake, the Thousand Buddha Mountain, the Divine Rock Temple, and the Baotu Spring. Lu opera is the premier local traditional opera. Locally-made traditional artifacts are feather pictures, embroidery of Lu style and dough figurines. The embroidery of Lu style dates back to the Yuan Dynasty. Some rare embroidered needlework is kept in the Palace Museum. Ji'nan is the birthplace of the cuisine of Lu that is one of the most famous cuisine specialties of China.