Taipa

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Taipa
Chinese name
Chinese:	氹仔島
Transliterations Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin: Dàngzǎi Dǎo Yue (Cantonese) - Jyutping: Tam5 Zai2 Dou2
Portuguese name
Portuguese:	Taipa

Taipa is the smaller of the two islands in Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (formerly the Portuguese colony of Macau). It is 2.5 kilometres from Macau Peninsula and east of the Lesser Hengqin Island of Zhuhai, Guangdong Province. Macau International Airport, University of Macau, Macau Jockey Club and Macau Stadium are situated in Taipa, and three bridges connect the island to Macau Peninsula.

• Area: 6.33 km² (1.5 x 3.5 km)
• Population: 7,000

Most Chinese settlement of Taipa occurred during the Southern Song Dynasty, while the Portuguese occupied the island in 1851. Prior to land reclamation, Taipa consisted of two islands: Greater Taipa and Lesser Taipa.

The 159.1-metre Big Taipa Hill (大氹山) is to the east, and Small Taipa Hill (小氹山) to the west. Central Taipa is plain as a result of siltation and land reclamation. Initially Taipa was connected to Coloane Island only by the Estrada do Istmo (路氹連貫公路); but the town Cotai, built on reclaimed land, has now essentially connected the two islands into one piece of land, which is home to newly constructed mega-resorts, casinos, and convention and exhibition centers as of 2006. Taipa is connected to peninsular Macau by Governador Nobre de Carvalho Bridge, Friendship Bridge and the Sai Van Bridge.

Taipa is predominantly a growing up-scale residential area, with many new apartment complexes under construction as of 2006.

[edit] The names of Taipa

In Chinese, Taipa has been known by many names over time, including 龍環 (Longhuan in Mandarin, meaning "Dragon Ring"), 雞頸 (Jijing, "Chicken's neck"), 潭仔 (Tanzai, "Pool"), and 龍頭環 (Longtouhuan, "Dragon's-Head Ring").

The Portuguese and English name "Taipa," according to legend, comes from an exchange between early Portuguese settlers on Taipa and local Chinese settlers. The Portuguese asked the Chinese the name (nome in Portuguese) of the place. The Chinese settlers were local grocery shopkeepers and spoke no Portuguese, but took the Portuguese nome for the Chinese 糯米, "sticky rice", which is pronounced similar to nome in Cantonese. Thinking the Portuguese settlers were asking if they sold sticky rice, the Chinese responded with "大把," pronounced "dai ba" in Cantonese, meaning "a lot." The Portuguese, hearing the response, took this to be the name of the place. There is, however, no historical evidence to support this story.Interestingly "Taipa" is what the Portuguese call the clay-mud,rammed into moulds, used to build mud houses in Portugal in times gone by, in recent times referred to as Rammed Earth.

It is also worth noting that, as the great majority of the population in Taipa and Macau is Chinese, most people refer to this island by its Cantonese name, "Tamzai", and most taxi drivers and bus drivers will not understand if asked how to go to "Taipa."

[edit] Tourism

Religious:

• Pou Tai Un Temple (菩提園 or 菩提襌院): named after bodhi tree
• Small Kun Yam Temple (觀音岩)
• Tin Hau Temple (天后宮)
• Sam Po Temple (三婆廟): dedicated to the elder sister of Tin Hau
• Pak Tai Temple (北帝廟): dedicated to the Taoist God of the North
• Four-faced Buddha (四面佛): purchased from Thailand in 1985
• Church of Our Lady of Carmel (嘉模聖母教堂): Catholic, Taipa belongs to the Nossa Senhora do Carmo Parish (聖嘉模堂區).

Other:

• Rua do Cunha, Taipa Village
• Macau Jockey Club
• Macau Stadium
• Taipa House Museum (龍環葡韻住宅式博物館): Portuguese-styled houses [1]
• Taipa Fort (砲台)
• Macau International Airport
• University of Macau
• Macau University of Science and Technology

[edit] External links

• Heritage on Taipa
• Satellite image of Taipa by Google Maps

Coordinates: 22°9′26.33″N, 113°33′11.14″E

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