Gaotou Township - panoramic view from Jin Mt - DSCF3306-DSCF3308

Gaotou - seen from S319 SE of town - DSCF3147

Gaotou Township () is one of the

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

Yongding County Yongding () is a district under the jurisdiction of Longyan prefecture-level city in the southwest of Fujian Province, People's Republic of China. The district is a center for Hakka culture, including the traditional Hakka ''tulou'', and a local d ...

in China's

Fujian Province Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...

. Gaotou Township is located in the eastern part of Yongding County, bordering on

Nanjing County Nanjing County () is a county under the administration of Zhangzhou City, in the south of Fujian province, People's Republic of China. Administrative division Nanjing County is administratively divided into several towns: * Shancheng () - the cou ...

in the east. It is in the basin of the Gaotou Creek (高头溪, Gāotóu xī), whose waters flow (eventually) into the

Ting River The Ting River () flows from Ninghua County in western Fujian south to the port and Special Economic Zone of Shantou, Guangdong. It is a main tributary of the Han River and is also referred to Hakka Mother River (). The former prefecture of T ...

. Gaotou Township is located in the heart of Fujian's tulou country. One of the units of the UNESCO

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

object "Fujian Tulou" is the Gaobei Tulou Cluster (), located in the township's Gaobei Village (on the western outskirts of the township's main residential area). It is centered on the large and well-preserved Chengqi Lou, promoted as "the King of Tulou". The Gaobei Tulou Cluster area is well developed for tourism, with a large visitor reception center and a parking area nearby. The township's main residential area, where most government offices and businesses are located is formed by three adjacent villages - Gaobei, Gaodong, and Gaonan, situated in the valley of the Gaotou Creek. As many towns in the "tulou country", these villages today are a mix of the traditional tulou (and smaller traditional buildings, constructed using the same material and techniques) and the typical nondescript "modern" architecture found in small towns around China.

See also