Chiayi City (sometimes romanized as
Jiayi) is a city located in the plains of southwestern
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
. It is surrounded by Chiayi County and is currently governed as a
provincial cityProvincial cities , sometimes translated provincial municipalities, are cities lesser in rank than direct-controlled municipalities of the Republic of China...
of Taiwan Province,
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia that has evolved from a single-party state with full global recognition and jurisdiction over China into a democratic state with limited international recognition and jurisdiction only over Taiwan and minor islands, though it...
. Formerly called
Kagee during the late
Qing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty , also known as the Manchu Dynasty, was the last ruling dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912...
and
Kagi during the
Japanese eraThe Japanese colonial period, Japanese rule in the context of Taiwan's history, refers to the period between 1895 and 1945 during which Taiwan was a Japanese colony...
, its historical name is
Tirosen.
History
First inhabited by the
HoanyaThe Hoanya are a Taiwanese aboriginal people who live primarily in Changhua county, Chiayi city, Nantou county, and near Tainan City.Their language, the Hoanya language, is now extinct....
aboriginesTaiwanese aborigines is the term commonly applied in reference to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan...
, the region was named Tirosen.
With the arrival of
Han ChineseHan Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and, by most modern definitions, the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92 percent of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98 percent of the population of the Republic of China , 75 percent of the...
in southwestern Taiwan, the name Tirosen evolved to become Chu-lô-san (
Chinese characterA Chinese character, also known as a Han character , is a logogram used in writing Chinese , Japanese , less frequently Korean , and formerly Vietnamese , and other languages...
s: 諸羅山) in the Holo (Taiwanese) language. Eventually, Chu-lô-san was shortened to simply Chu-lô. Because of the choice of the characters, it has been mistakenly suggested that the origin of the name Chu-lô-san or Chu-lô came from the expression "mountains surrounding the east." "Peach City" is another name for Chiayi City due to its peach-shaped territory in ancient times. The tip of the peach is around current Central Fountain and was called "Peach-tip" by citizens.
Chulôsan was once the foothold from which a large scale of people from mainland immigrated in. In 1621, Yen Szu-Chi, who came from
ZhangzhouZhangzhou is a prefecture-level city in southern Fujian province, People's Republic of China. Located on the banks of the Xi River, Zhangzhou borders the cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou to the northeast, Longyan City to the northwest and the province of Guangdong to the southwest.In older English...
,
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
Province, first led his people to cultivate this land after they landed at Penkang (Peikang). In 1661 (the 15th year of
Yung-LiThe Prince of Gui or the Yongli Emperor, was an emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty in China. His era name means "Perpetual calendar". He was the last surviving Southern Ming emperor who lived long enough to see the collapse of the last vestiges of the Ming dynasty in mainland China...
,
Ming DynastyThe Ming Dynasty , or Empire of the Great Ming , was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history," was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
),
KoxingaKoxinga is the traditional Western spelling of the popular appellation of Zheng Chenggong . He was a Ming loyalist and military leader during of the Southern Ming Dynasty that opposed the Manchu-ruled Qing Dynasty...
defeated the Dutch based in Taiwan. Then he established one province, Cheng-Tien-Fu (承天府), and two counties, Tien-Hsing (天興縣) and Wan-Nien (萬年縣), demarcated by the Hsin-Kang River (新港溪, the Yen-Shui River now). Chiayi was under the jurisdiction of the Tien-Hsing County.
In 1684 (the 23rd year of Kangxi, the
Qing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty , also known as the Manchu Dynasty, was the last ruling dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912...
, see
Taiwan under Qing Dynasty ruleThe Chinese Qing Dynasty ruled Taiwan from 1683 to 1895. Qing China in 1683 sent an army led by general Shi Lang and annexed Taiwan.-History:Qing Emperor Kangxi annexed Taiwan because he wanted to remove the remaining resistance forces against the Qing Dynasty...
), Taiwan was established as Taiwan Sub-Province governing three counties, Taiwan (台灣) and Feng-Shan, which were divided from Wan-Nien County in Ming Dynasty, and Chu-Lo (諸羅縣), which was changed from Tien-Hsing County. The county government of Chu-Lo County was in Chia-li Hsing (佳里, modern Jiali, Tainan).
In 1704 (the 43rd year of Kangxi), the county government of Chu-Lo County moved from Chia-li Hsing to Chulosan, the current Chiayi City, with city walls in wood railing. In 1727 (5th year of the
Yongzheng EmperorThe Yongzheng Emperor , born Yinzhen was the fourth emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and the third Qing emperor to rule over China, from 1722 to 1735. A hard-working ruler, Yongzheng's main goal was to create an effective government at minimum expense...
), the county magistrate, Liu Liang-Bi rebuilt the gatehouses and set a gun platform for each gatehouse. The four gatehouses were named: "Chin Shan" (襟山) for East, "Tai Hai" (帶海) for West, "Chung Yang" (崇陽) for South, and "Kung Chen" (拱辰) for North. In 1734 (the 12th year of Yongzheng), magistrate Lu-Hung built piercing-bamboo to better protect the city.
In 1786 (the 51st year of Qianlong), Lin Shuang-Wen headed his people to siege Chulosan but failed because of the assisting defense from the inhabitants. Consequently, on November 3 of the next year, the Qing Emperor made an imperial announcement: awarded the name "Chiayi" to replace "Chulosan" for praising the citizens' loyalty.
In 1885 (the 11th year of
Guangxu EmperorThe Guangxu Emperor , born Zaitian , was the tenth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, under Empress Dowager Cixi's influence, only from 1889 to 1898...
), Taiwan was approved to be a province. Two years later, the jurisdiction was divided as three sub-provinces, one direct county, eleven counties and three bureaus. Chaiyi belonged to Taiwan sub-province and the hall was still in Chiayi.
In 1895, Taiwan was ceded to
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in the
Treaty of ShimonosekiThe Treaty of Shimonoseki , known as the Treaty of Maguan in China, was signed at the Shunpanrō hall on April 17, 1895 between the Empire of Japan and Qing Empire of China, ending the First Sino-Japanese War...
.
In 1906, a major earthquake devastated the entire city wall except the Eastern Gate. The Japanese authorities reconstructed the city and made it the most modern. Industries and trades started to flourish. In 1907, the construction of forest railroad to
AlishanThe Alishan National Scenic Area is a mountain resort and natural preserve located in the mountains of Chiayi County in Taiwan. It is 415 km² in area. It includes, among other things, mountain wilderness, four villages, waterfalls, high altitude tea plantations, the Alishan Forest Railway ...
(Mt. Ali) was begun. Chiayi became an autonomy group as Chiayi Town and later (1930) promoted as an autonomous city.
In 1945, when Japan relinquished control of Taiwan, Chiayi City was elevated to a provincial city under the jurisdiction of the
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia that has evolved from a single-party state with full global recognition and jurisdiction over China into a democratic state with limited international recognition and jurisdiction only over Taiwan and minor islands, though it...
.
In 1950, because of the re-allocation of administrative areas in which Taiwan was divided into 16 counties, 5 provincial cities, and a special bureau, Chiayi City was downgraded to a county-government status. As a result, a shortage of capital largely hindered its development.
On July 1, 1982, it was elevated again to a provincial city as a result of pressure from local elites.
Administration
| Chiayi has 2 districts In the Republic of China , districts are the only subdivision of municipalities and provincial cities. Unlike districts in mainland China, districts in Taiwan are predominantly urban and suburban, and usually do not contain rural areas....
(區 qu): |
District |
|
Population |
Land area |
| |
|
|
as of 2009 |
km² |
| ■ East-qu |
東區 |
128,282 |
29.1195 |
| ■ West-qu |
西區 |
145,786 |
30.9061 |
City Attractions
- Chiayi Park
- Sun Shooting Tower (射日塔) (in Chiayi Park)
- Lantan (蘭潭水庫) (also known as Dutch Lake or Holland Lake)
- Historic Archives Building of Chiayi City(史蹟博物館)
- University of Chiayi
- Chiayi Museum
- Wenhua Road (文化路) Night Market
- Carrefour Night Market
- The High Speed Railway
| Name |
Feature |
Location |
| Wenhua Night Market |
Thousand of venders gather here, and there are various cooked cuisine. Among these cuisines,” fountain chicken rice", "Kuo-jing-chen flat noodles soup" and "fried preserved cabbage and shrimp egg" are the famous dishes. |
At fountain traffic circle on Jungshan Rd. extend to Chuei-yang Rd., Chiai |
quote from
Tourism Bureau, MOTC, R.O.C.
- Chiayi International Band Festival
Chiayi is the city of wind music in Taiwan. The wind music festival started as a local event in 1988, when it was more like a joint performance by local wind music bands. Over the years the festival has become the most anticipated annual event in Chiayi.
Sister cities
Hsinchu City,
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia that has evolved from a single-party state with full global recognition and jurisdiction over China into a democratic state with limited international recognition and jurisdiction only over Taiwan and minor islands, though it...
(2002)
Syracuse, New YorkSyracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2000 census, the city population was 147,306, and its metropolitan area had a population of 732,117. It is the economic and educational hub of Central New...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(1995)
Juneau, AlaskaThe City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-Alaska Territory was moved from Sitka...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
External links