On July 11, China's 12th Navigation Day as well as the 611th anniversary of Zheng He's maritime expeditions. Moreover, the 2016 Kunming Zheng He International Cultural and Tourism Festival was held in Jinning County, the birthplace of the great navigator and peace messenger, Zheng He. The opening ceremony was attended by guests from Cambodia and Bangladesh as well as Kunming's Myanmar Consulate General. Representatives from Shanghai, Nanjing Zheng He Research Societies, and Zheng He's descendants were also present.
Zheng He was born in Jinning, Yunnan in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In the 28 years from 1405 to 1433, Zheng He led more than 200 boats and 20,000 sailors to as many as 30 Asian and African countries. The seven voyages covered over 100,000 kilometres, setting up a bridge of trade and cultural exchanges connecting China with Asian and African countries.
Zheng He's fleet brought advanced agricultural and handicraft products as well as a sophisticated financial system to South and Southeast Asian countries. The introduction of new technologies promoted the development of agriculture, manufacturing and commerce in these areas. Most notably, the financial system has been in use in Southeast Asia for several centuries to date.
Additionally, many places in Southeast Asian countries are named "Sam Po", the original name of Zheng He. In Thailand, there is Sam Po Keng Temple and Sam Po City, and Malaysia has a Sam Po Hill (Bukit China) and Sam Po Well. Likewise, in Indonesia, there is Semarang and Sam Po Harbour. In some temples, Zheng He is worshiped as a god. Also, a few literary works describe Zheng He as capable of driving away evil spirits and curing all diseases.
In northern European countries, such as Denmark, Norway and Sweden, some scholars include Zheng He's voyages in their studies of shipbuilding, geography, cartography and navigation.There are institutes and researchers devoting themselves to the study of Zheng He. Model ship exhibitions and academic seminars on Zheng He are held from time to time.