The culture of China was molded by a history rich in over 5,000 years of artistic, philosophical, and political advancement, and a nation that is home to one of the world's oldest and most complex societies. Though regional differences provide a sense of diversity, commonalities in language and religion connect a culture distinguished by such universally significant contributions such as Confucianism and Taoism. The culture of China is credited with shaping much of Chinese thought, Confucianism was the official philosophy throughout most of Imperial China's history, and mastery of Confucian texts provided the primary criterion for entry into the imperial bureaucracy.
Confucianism (Traditional Chinese: 儒学, Simplified Chinese: 儒学, pinyin: Rúxué [ Listen (help·info) ], literally "The School of the Scholars"; or 孔教 Kŏng jiào, "The Teachings of Confucius") is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the early Chinese sage Confucius. It is a complex system of moral, social, political, and religious thought which has had tremendous influence on the history of Chinese civilization up to the 21st century.
参考资料：http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism