Wade–Giles
Wade–Giles () is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Francis Wade, during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert A. Giles's '' Chinese–English Dictionary'' o ...
Hokkien
The Hokkien () variety of Chinese is a Southern Min language native to and originating from the Minnan region, where it is widely spoken in the south-eastern part of Fujian in southeastern mainland China. It is one of the national languages ...
Hakka
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
on the east coast of
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
. It is the largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous
terrain
Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin word ...
, has one of the lowest populations in the country. The county seat and largest city is
Hualien City
Hualien City (; Wade-Giles: Hua¹-lien² Shih⁴; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-chhī'' or ''Hoa-liân-chhī'') is a county-administered city and the county seat of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located on the east coast of Taiwan on the Pacific Oc ...
.
Most of the population resides in the Huadong Valley, which runs north to south, sandwiched between the
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
and Hai'an mountain ranges. Due to the rural nature of the county, Hualien attracts many visitors for its natural environment, which includes Taroko Gorge,
Qingshui Cliff
Qingshui Cliff () is a 21 kilometer length of coastal cliffs averaging 800 meters above sea level in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. The tallest peak, Qingshui Mountain, rises 2408 meters directly from the Pacific Ocean. The cliff is loc ...
and
Qixingtan Beach
The Qixingtan Beach or Chihsingtan Beach () is a beach in Xincheng Township, Hualien County, Taiwan facing the Pacific Ocean.
Naming and history
Qixingtan Beach was originally located at the east of Hualien airport. Its shape is like the Big Di ...
.
History
Early history
Modern-day Hualien City was originally called ''Kilai'' (), after the Sakiraya
Taiwanese aborigines
Taiwanese may refer to:
* Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien
* Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa)
* Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan
* Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan
* Taiwanese peo ...
and their settlement.
Spanish settlers arrived in 1622 to pan for gold. Picking up the sounds of native words, these settlers called the area ''Turumoan'' ().
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive v ...
settlers arrived in 1851.
Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
records give the name of the region as ''Huilan'' () due to the whirling of waters in the delta.
Empire of Japan
During Taiwan's Japanese colonial period (1895–1945) the island's Japanese governors opted not to transliterate the name "Kiray" because the Japanese pronunciation of the word resembled the Japanese word for . The official name became . Karenkō Prefecture consisted of modern-day Hualien County. Toward the end of World War II the Governor-General of Taiwan moved many Japanese residents of Taiwan to the area to develop agriculture.
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...
in October 1945, Hualien was established as a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
named Hualien County of
Taiwan Province
Taiwan Province (; PFS: ''Thòi-vàn-sén'' or ''Thòi-vân-sén'') is a nominal administrative division of the Republic of China (ROC). Its definition has remained part of the Constitution of the Republic of China, but the province is no lo ...
on 9 January 1946. In 1951 Hualien was the first county in Taiwan to be governed according to the ROC local autonomy law. Today the Hualien area serves as the key population centre on the east coast as well as the one of five main life circle regions in Taiwan, together with
Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
,
Taichung
Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of T ...
,
Tainan
Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" for its over 200 years of his ...
and
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung City ( Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Ka ...
.
2021 train derailment
On 2 April 2021, a Taroko Expressderailed at the north entrance of Qingshui Tunnel after striking an unattended
flatbed truck
A flatbed truck (or flatbed lorry in British English) is a type of truck which can be either articulated or rigid. As the name suggests, its bodywork is just an entirely flat, level 'bed' with no sides or roof. This allows for quick and easy loa ...
that had fallen onto the tracks. The accident is the deadliest train accident in Taiwan since 1948, with at least 50 passengers reported dead and more than 150 injured.
Geography
Hualien County is situated in eastern Taiwan Island. It faces the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...
towards
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
(
Okinawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest cit ...
Nantou County
Nantou County (; Hokkien POJ: ''Lâm-tâu-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Nàm-thèu-yen'') is the second largest county of Taiwan by area, located in the central part of the country. It is also the only non-coastal county in Taiwan. Its name derives fro ...
and
Kaohsiung City
Kaohsiung City ( Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Ka ...
Taitung County
Taitung County (; Mandarin pinyin: ''Táidōng Xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Tâi-tang-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Thòi-tûng-yen''; Paiwan: ''Valangaw'';lit:Eastern part of Taiwan) is the third largest county in Taiwan, located primarily on the island ...
to the south. It stretches around from north to south with its width ranging from long from east to west. Its area is about and occupies one eighth of Taiwan's total area.
Despite its vast area, only 7% of the county area is populated. The remaining area is occupied by rivers (7%) and mountains (87%). Mountains are composed of Central Mountain Range in the west and
Hai'an Range
The Coastal Mountain Range, also known as the Hai'an Range (), is a mountain range situated on the eastern coast of the island of Taiwan, and spans the border between Hualien and Taitung Counties. The Coastal Mountain Range is the northern port ...
in the east. The main rivers in the county are the Hualian River,
Xiuguluan River
The Xiuguluan River () is the eighth-longest river in Taiwan with a total length of . It is located in the southeastern part of the island. It flows through the Huadong Valley before emptying into the Pacific Ocean in Fengbin, Hualien.
Overvi ...
and their branches. The plains stretch along the valleys between both mountain ranges with a width around . Due to the restriction of its landscape, Hualien people reside mostly on the alluvial fans of the Huatung Valley plains.
Government
Administrative divisions
Hualien County is divided into 1
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
Hualien City
Hualien City (; Wade-Giles: Hua¹-lien² Shih⁴; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-chhī'' or ''Hoa-liân-chhī'') is a county-administered city and the county seat of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located on the east coast of Taiwan on the Pacific Oc ...
is the county seat and houses the
Hualien County Government
The Hualien County Government () is the local government of the Republic of China that governs Hualien County.
Organizational structure
* Department of Civil Affairs
* Department of Finance
* Department of Public Works
* Department of Urban/Ru ...
and
Hualien County Council
The Hualien County Council (HLCC; ) is the elected county council of Hualien County, Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the ...
.
Colors indicate the common language status of
Hakka
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
Democratic Progressive Party
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a Taiwanese nationalist and centre-left political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). Controlling both the Republic of China presidency and the unicameral Legislative Yuan, it is the majorit ...
legislator to be in the
Legislative Yuan
The Legislative Yuan is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel v ...
Hsu Chen-wei
Hsu Chen-wei (; born 12 October 1968) is a Taiwanese politician. She is the incumbent Magistrate of Hualien County
Hualien County (Mandarin Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien² Hsien⁴; Pīnyīn: ''Huālián Xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-koān'' ...
of the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Ta ...
.
Climate
Demographics and culture
Population
Hualien County has 333,392 inhabitants as of December 2014 and is divided into 1
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
and 12 townships. Its late development means that many aboriginal cultures such as Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Truku, Sakizaya and Kavalan are well-preserved. As of 2014, aborigines make up 27.5% of the population of Hualien County (about 91,675). The
Hakka people
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
comprise about 30% of inhabitants.
The county has seen negative population growth since the early 2000s due to emigration to other places outside Hualien County, with an average reduction of 1,393 people per year over the past 18 years.
According to a 2015 survey on national happiness index, Hualien County was rated as the happiest place to live in Taiwan among other 20 counties and cities due to the residents happiness driven by strong levels of satisfaction with work-life balance, living condition, education, environmental quality and the performance of the
local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loc ...
.
Belief
The internationally famous Buddhist Tzu Chi foundation is headquartered in
Hualien City
Hualien City (; Wade-Giles: Hua¹-lien² Shih⁴; Hokkien POJ: ''Hoa-lian-chhī'' or ''Hoa-liân-chhī'') is a county-administered city and the county seat of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located on the east coast of Taiwan on the Pacific Oc ...
. There are also many temples around the county. Buddhism and Folk religions are popular in Hualien County. Hualien County also has the highest concentration of Roman Catholics in Taiwan at 9.46% of the population.
Sports
Hualien County is home to the Hualien Stadium and Hualien Baseball Stadium.
Because of its awesome scenic view, fresh air, fine weather, and plenty of well-maintained bike trails, Hualien County is a popular destination for cyclist enthusiasts and marathon runners. Many cycling tournaments and marathon events are held each year in Hualien County. For example,
Taiwan KOM Challenge
The Taiwan KOM Challenge is a one-day road cycling race held annually in Taiwan. Created in 2012, the event is recognized as one of the most difficult cycling races in the world due having nearly 3500m of climbing over a 105 kilometer course. Vinc ...
cement
A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel (aggregate) together. Cement mixe ...
The Hualien County Department of Education lists in all 6 institutions of higher learning within the county's borders as well as 15 high schools, 35 junior high schools and 151 elementary schools, though some of the listed elementary campuses have been closed for years due to their remote location or to low enrollments. Hualien County is home to
National Dong Hwa University
National Dong Hwa University (NDHU; ; shortened as "") is a national research university located in Hualien, Taiwan. Established in 1994, NDHU is widely considered as the most potential research university and the most prestigious universi ...
Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology
Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology (TCUST; ) is a private university in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan.
History
Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology was established by Tzu Chi Buddhist Compassion Relief Foundation ...
Hualien County houses the hydroelectric Bihai Power Plant with an installed capacity of 61.2 MW and coal-fired Hoping Power Plant with a capacity of 1,320 MW, the fourth largest coal-fired power plant in Taiwan. Both power plants are located in Xiulin Township.
Due to the power plant, Hoping is also the location of a deep water
bulk cargo
Bulk cargo is commodity cargo that is transported unpackaged in large quantities.
Description
Bulk cargo refers to material in either liquid or granular, particulate form, as a mass of relatively small solids, such as petroleum/ crude oi ...
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...
. Hoping port is located in Hoping Village, Xiulin Township.
Yushan National Park
Yushan National Park () is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and was named after the summit Yushan, the highest peak of the park.Hehuan Mountain, Pingfeng Mountain,
Qilai Mountain
Mount Qilai () is a mountain in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. Its highest point of the range, the Northern Peak, is above sea level. It is named after the Sakizaya people.
See also
*List of mountains in Taiwan
The island of Taiwa ...
and
Qingshui Cliff
Qingshui Cliff () is a 21 kilometer length of coastal cliffs averaging 800 meters above sea level in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. The tallest peak, Qingshui Mountain, rises 2408 meters directly from the Pacific Ocean. The cliff is loc ...
Rareseed Ranch
The Rareseed Ranch or Ruisui Ranch () is a tourist attraction ranch in Wuhe Village, Ruisui Township, Hualien County, Taiwan.
History
The ranch was originally a papaya farm. It was then later transformed into a ranch. Milk produced by cows in ...
Qixingtan Beach
The Qixingtan Beach or Chihsingtan Beach () is a beach in Xincheng Township, Hualien County, Taiwan facing the Pacific Ocean.
Naming and history
Qixingtan Beach was originally located at the east of Hualien airport. Its shape is like the Big Di ...
.
Museums
Museums and historical buildings in Hualien County include
Dongli Story House
The Dongli Story House () is a rice mill in Fuli Township, Hualien County, Taiwan.
History
The building is a rice mill which was originally established in 1899 named Dongli Rice Factory. In the 1950s, the factory moved to its current bigger lo ...
Pine Garden
The Pine Garden () is a former Japanese military office in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan.
History
The area was built in 1943 during the Japanese rule as a military office. The building used to be located inside a pine forest, thus ea ...
,
Saoba Stone Pillars
Saoba Stone Pillars (), as known as Wuhe Stone Pillars (), is an archaeological site at Wuhe Village, Ruisui Township, Hualien County, Taiwan.
History
The stone pillar are artifacts from Beinan culture since Stone Age era around 2,000-3,000 ye ...
Chihsing Tan Katsuo Museum
The Chihsing Tan Katsuo Museum () is a museum in Dahan Village, Xincheng Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. The museum is close to Qixingtan Beach and is dedicated to dried bonito fish (katsuobushi).
History
The museum was once a Japanese Katsu ...
Taiwan Railways Administration
Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) is a railway operator in Taiwan. It is an agency of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, responsible for managing, maintaining, and running conventional passenger and freight railway services ...
Port of Hualien
The Port of Hualien () is an international port on the Pacific Ocean in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan. Its artificial harbor protected by breakwaters was built in 1930–1939. There are 25 wharves in Hualien Port. The annual container volu ...
*Heping Cement Port
Relative location
See also
*
List of tourist attractions in Taiwan
Popular tourist attractions in Taiwan include the following:
Attractions Historical buildings
* Beihai Tunnel, Beigan ()
* Beihai Tunnel, Nangan ()
* Daxi Wude Hall ()
* Eter ...