The scenery of Daming Lake has been a topic of Chinese literature for at least about 1,500 years. The lake is mentioned in ""Commentary on the Waterways Classic"" () by Northern Wei Dynasty writer and geographer Li Daoyuan (died 527). It is described in ""A Trip to Jinan"" by the Jin dynasty poet Yuan Haowen (1235) and was also described by Marco Polo a bit later. The scenery of Daming Lake is also featured in the novel ""The Travels of Lao Can"" by Liu E and the essay ""The Winter of Jinan"" () by Lao She.