Chiayi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 City Flag |
 City Seal |
| Abbreviation | Jia 嘉市 |
| Nickname | Peach city 桃城 |
| Capital | East Dist.(東區) |
| Region | Southwestern Taiwan |
| Mayor | Huang Ming-Hui (黃敏惠) |
| Area | 60.0256 km² (Ranked 24 of 25) |
| Population (May 2004) | |
| - Population | 270,143 (Ranked 21 of 25) |
| - Density | 4,500 /km² |
| Districts | 2 |
| Website | English Trad. Chinese |
| Symbols | |
| - Bird | - |
| - Flower | Hong Kong orchid tree (Bauhinia blakeana) |
| - Tree | Hong Kong orchid tree |
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Chiayi City (sometimes romanized as Jiayi) (traditional Chinese: 嘉義市; Hanyu Pinyin: Jiāyì Shì; Tongyong Pinyin: Jiayì Shìh; Wade-Giles: Chia-i Shih; Taiwanese: Ka-gī chhī) is a city located in the plains of southwestern Taiwan. It is surrounded by Chiayi County and is currently governed as a provincial city of Taiwan Province, Republic of China. Formerly called Kagee during the late Qing Dynasty and Kagi during the Japanese era, its historical name is Tirosen.
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[edit] History
First inhabited by the Hoanya aborigines, the region was named Tirosen. With the arrival of Han Chinese in southwestern Taiwan, the name Tirosen evolved to become Chu-lô-san (Chinese characters: 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 Zhangzhou, Fujian Province, first led his people to cultivate this land after they landed at Penkang (Peikang). In the 15th year of Yung-Li, the Ming Dynasty (1661), Koxinga defeated the Dutch based in Taiwan. Then he established one province, Cheng-Tien-Fu, and two counties Tien-Hsing, and Wan-Nien demarcated by the Hsin-Kang River (the Yen-Shui River now). Chiayi was under the jurisdiction of the Tien-Hsing County.
In the 23rd year of Kangxi, the Qing Dynasty (1684), Taiwan was established as Taiwan Sub-Province governing three counties, Taiwan and Feng-Shan, which were divided from Wan-Nien County in Ming Dynasty, and Chu-Lo, which was changed from Tien-Hsing County. The county government of Chu-Lo County was in Chia Li Hsing (the current Chia-Li Town of Tainan Hsien). In the 43rd year of Kang-Hsih, the Qing Dynasty (1704), the county government of Chu-Lo County moved from Chia Li Hsing to Chuloshan, the current Chiayi City, with city walls in wood railing. In the 5th year of Yung-Cheng, the county magistrate, Liu Liang-Bi rebuilt the gatehouses and set a gun platform for each gatehouse. The four gatehouses were named: "Chin Shan" for East, "Tai Hai" for West, "Chung Yang" for South, and "Kung Chen" for North. In the 12th year of Yung-Cheng, magistrate Lu-Hung built piercing-bamboo to better protect the city. In the 51st year of Qianlong, the Qing Dynasty (1786), Lin Shuang-Wen headed his people to siege Chuloshan 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 "Chuloshan" for praising the citizens' loyalty. In the 11th year of Kuang-Hsiu, Qing Dynasty, 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 Japan in the Treaty of Shimonoseki. 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 modem. Industries and trades started to flourish. In 1907, the construction of forest railroad to Alishan (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 China. 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.
[edit] Administration
- East District(東區)
- West District(西區)
[edit] 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)
- University of Chiayi
- Chiayi Museum
- Culture Road (文化路) Night Market
- Carrefour Night Market
- Wenhua Night Market
| 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.
[edit] Sister cities
Hsinchu City, Republic of China (2002)
Syracuse, New York, United States (1995)- Juneau, Alaska, United States
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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Learning resources |
- Chiayi travel guide from Wikitravel
- Chiayi City Government Website (Chinese)(English)
- Chiayi City/County Tourism Website
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