Jiuwu Village located 32km north of Guilin city has a long history of up to 800 years. The village contains over 620 ancient buildings most of which were built during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Interestingly, 90 percent of residents there share the same family name-Zhou. According to historyical record, most of them are descendants of Zhou Dunyi, a famous scholar of Neo-Confucianism and writer from the Northern Song Dynasty. Perhaps influenced by their ancestor, Jiuwu people realized the importance of eduction to the society and their own social status, only through which could they achieve higher social rank. They were successful in educating the younger generations, during the Ming and Qing Dynasties around 160 persons had entered the imperial government through imperial examinations.
In the village, ancient wells, long slate alleys, stone arch bridges, exquisite wooden carvings on windows and doors deliver a vivid image of what was a affluent Chinese villages in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. So far tourism is not developed at all in the village, no hotels nor restaurants having been built.
