# Ministry of Rites > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Ministry_of_Rites > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Ministry_of_Rites.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Rites > Source revision: 1354513688 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Imperial Chinese government ministry For historical Japanese ministries, see [Ministry of Ceremonies (Japan)](/source/Ministry_of_Ceremonies_(Japan)) and [Department of Divinities](/source/Department_of_Divinities). ‹[See RfD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Redirects_for_discussion/Log/2026_May_22#Template:Chinese)› Ministry of Rites Chinese name Traditional Chinese 禮部 Simplified Chinese 礼部 Literal meaning Rites Ministry Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Lǐbù Wade–Giles Li Pu Vietnamese name Vietnamese alphabet Lễ Bộ Chữ Hán 禮部 Manchu name Manchu script ᡩᠣᡵᠣᠯᠣᠨ ᡳ ᠵᡠᡵᡤᠠᠨ Möllendorff dorolon i jurgan Ministry of Rites of [Nguyen](/source/Nguyen) The **Ministry** or **Board of Rites** was one of the [Six Ministries](/source/Six_Ministries) of government in late [imperial China](/source/Imperial_China). It was part of the imperial Chinese government from the [Tang](/source/Tang_dynasty) (7th century) until the 1911 [Xinhai Revolution](/source/Xinhai_Revolution). Along with religious rituals and court ceremonial the Ministry of Rites also oversaw the [imperial examination](/source/Imperial_examination) and [China's foreign relations](/source/Foreign_relations_of_imperial_China). A Ministry of Rites also existed in [imperial Vietnam](/source/History_of_Vietnam#Monarchical_period_(939–1862)). One of its tasks was enforcing the [naming taboo](/source/Naming_taboo).[1] ## History Under the [Han](/source/Han_dynasty), similar functions were performed by the [Ministry of Ceremonies](/source/Ministry_of_Ceremonies_(China)). In early medieval China, its functions were performed by other officials including the Grand Herald. Under the [Song](/source/Song_dynasty) (10th-13th centuries), its functions were temporarily transferred to the [Zhongshu Sheng](/source/Zhongshu_Sheng). Its administration of China's foreign relations was ended by the establishment of the [Zongli Yamen](/source/Zongli_Yamen) in 1861. ## Functions - Management of imperial court ceremonies and [ritual offerings](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ritual_offerings&action=edit&redlink=1). - Registration and supervision of [Buddhist](/source/Buddhist) and [Taoist](/source/Taoist) priests within China. - Management of the [Imperial examinations](/source/Imperial_examinations). - Foreign relations. In the [Republic of China](/source/Republic_of_China) (Taiwan), the functions of this ministry are currently carried out by the following ministries and organs: [Foreign Affairs](/source/Ministry_of_Foreign_Affairs_(Taiwan)), [Education](/source/Ministry_of_Education_(Taiwan)) and the Department of Religious and Ceremonial Affairs, the last one an organ of the [Ministry of the Interior](/source/Ministry_of_the_Interior_(Taiwan)). Whereas in the [People's Republic of China](/source/People's_Republic_of_China) the functions of this ministry are currently performed by the following ministries and organs: [Foreign Affairs](/source/Ministry_of_Foreign_Affairs_(China)), [Education](/source/Ministry_of_Education_(China)) and the [United Front Work Department](/source/United_Front_Work_Department) (also known as [National Religious Affairs Administration](/source/National_Religious_Affairs_Administration)), the last one an organ of the [Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party](/source/Central_Committee_of_the_Chinese_Communist_Party). ## See also - [China portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:China) - [History portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:History) - The *[Book of Rites](/source/Book_of_Rites)* - [Ministry of Ceremonies](/source/Ministry_of_Ceremonies_(China)) under the Han - [Bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs](/source/Bureau_of_Buddhist_and_Tibetan_Affairs) (Yuan) and [Board for the Administration of Outlying Regions](/source/Lifan_Yuan) (Qing), overseeing Tibetan Buddhism - [Ministry of Foreign Affairs (China)](/source/Ministry_of_Foreign_Affairs_(China)) - [Office of the Commissioner (Hong Kong)](/source/Office_of_the_Commissioner_(Hong_Kong)) - [Office of the Commissioner (Macau)](/source/Office_of_the_Commissioner_(Macau)) - [Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Taiwan)](/source/Ministry_of_Foreign_Affairs_(Taiwan)) - [Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Vietnam)](/source/Ministry_of_Foreign_Affairs_(Vietnam)) - [Ministry of Education (China)](/source/Ministry_of_Education_(China)) - [Education Bureau](/source/Education_Bureau) - [Ministry of Education (Taiwan)](/source/Ministry_of_Education_(Taiwan)) - [Ministry of Education and Training](/source/Ministry_of_Education_and_Training) (Vietnam) - [Home Affairs Bureau](/source/Home_Affairs_Bureau) - [Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture](/source/Secretariat_for_Social_Affairs_and_Culture) - [State Administration for Religious Affairs](/source/State_Administration_for_Religious_Affairs) under the PRC State Council - [United Front Work Department](/source/United_Front_Work_Department) ## References ### Citations 1. **[^](#cite_ref-ThierryInscriptions_1-0)** [François Thierry de Crussol](/source/Fran%C3%A7ois_Thierry_(numismatist)) (蒂埃里) (2011). ["The Confucian Message on Vietnamese Coins, A closer look at the Nguyễn dynasty's large coins with moral maxims », Numismatic Chronicle, 2011, pp. 367-406"](https://www.academia.edu/3442454). [Academia.edu](/source/Academia.edu). Retrieved 22 August 2019. ### Sources - [Hucker, Charles](/source/Charles_Hucker) (1985). *A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China*. [Stanford University Press](/source/Stanford_University_Press). pp. 306–07. - Keliher, Macabe (2019). [*The Board of Rites and the Making of Qing China*](https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520300293/the-board-of-rites-and-the-making-of-qing-china). Oakland: University of California Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780520300293](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780520300293). v t e Three Departments and Six Ministries Three Departments Shangshu Sheng Zhongshu Sheng Menxia Sheng (Secretariat-Chancellery) Six Ministries Ministry of Personnel Ministry of Revenue Ministry of Rites Ministry of War Ministry of Justice Ministry of Works v t e Government of Imperial China Nobility Monarchy Dynasty Cycle Titles Emperor List Son of Heaven Heirloom Seal of the Realm Empress Consort kin Harem Offices Grand Chancellor Mandarin (bureaucrat) Scholar-official Auxiliary academician Institutions Nine-rank system Nine Courts Five Directorates Imperial examinations Taixue Guozijian Hanlin Academy Academies (Shuyuan) Censorate Mufu Tributary system Historical capitals Territorial administration Yamen Tusi Early Imperial King Three Lords and Nine Ministers Three Ducal Ministers Nine Ministers Translated titles Middle Imperial Jiedushi Jimi system Bureau of Military Affairs Shumishi Three Departments Shangshu Sheng Zhongshu Sheng Menxia Sheng (Secretariat-Chancellery) Six Ministries Ministry of Personnel Ministry of Revenue Ministry of Rites Ministry of War Ministry of Justice Ministry of Works Late Imperial Three Bureaus Remonstrance Bureau Imperial Commissioner Grand Secretariat Imperial Clan Court Grand coordinator and provincial governor Viceroys in China Mandarin square Qing Deliberative Council of Princes and Ministers Grand Council Lifan Yuan Nine Gates Infantry Commander Ranks Administrative divisions Zongli Yamen Yuanwailang Imperial guards Tang Imperial Guards Shence Army Embroidered Uniform Guard Qing Imperial Guards Dynasties Han Tang Liao Yuan Ming Qing v t e Separation of powers Typical branches Executive Legislature Judiciary Additional branches Fourth Estate Civil service commission Auditory Electoral Prosecutory By country Australia Hong Kong Singapore United Kingdom United States See also Dual mandate Fusion of powers Judicial independence Judicial review Parliamentary sovereignty Separation of duties Unified state power This article related to the history of China is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information. - [v](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:China-hist-stub) - [t](/source/Template_talk%3AChina-hist-stub) - [e](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:China-hist-stub) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ministry of Rites](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Rites) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Rites?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.