Madou District () is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

of about 43,071 residents in

Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), 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" ...

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 nort ...

. It owes its name to the

Siraya language Siraya is a Formosan language spoken until the end of the 19th century by the indigenous Siraya people of Taiwan, derived from Proto-Siraya. Some scholars believe Taivoan and Makatao are two dialects of Siraya, but now more evidence shows that ...

word ''Moatau'' or ''Mattou''. ''Mattau'' was one of the four core Sirayan villages during much of Taiwan's colonial history and figured heavily in the formation of colonial policy in

Dutch Formosa The island of Taiwan, also commonly known as ''Formosa'', was partly under colonial rule by the Dutch Republic from 1624 to 1662 and from 1664 to 1668. In the context of the Age of Discovery, the Dutch East India Company established its presence ...

. Currently, it is a well-known town in Tainan for its local culinary specialties and historical sites, and has become more prosperous in recent five years due to the presence of two universities. As an example of the increased attention Madou is receiving, the New Year Countdown Night for 2006 in Tainan was held at Madou Junior High School.

History

In the 17th century, ''Mattau'' was a village of about two to three thousand; the name was also spelled variously ''Matau'', ''Mataw'', ''Mattouw'', ''Mathau'', ''Matthau'', ''Mattauw'' and ''Mandauw''. Mattau was the largest and most powerful of four main aboriginal villages near Taoyuan, and had been the most troublesome for the Dutch, "massacring soldiers, destroying buildings, and uprooting crops". Located about 25 km northeast of the former Dutch base of Fort Zeelandia, the place later grew into a market-town called Moa-tau.

Republic of China

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the

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 northeast ...

in 1945, Madou was organized as an

urban township An urban township is a designation of a unit of local government in several countries. United States The term is called ''urban township'' Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio and urban town in Wisconsin. Generally, an urban township is afforded more loca ...

Tainan County Tainan County was a county in southern Taiwan between 1945 and 2010. The county seat was in Sinying City. History Tainan County was established on 7 January 1946 on the territory of Tainan Prefecture () shortly after the end of World War II ...

. On 25 December 2010, Tainan County was merged with Tainan City and Madou was upgraded to a

of the

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 ...

Administrative divisions

Guxing, Baoan, Tungjiao, Jinjiang, Xiangkou, Zhongxing, Xingnong, Xinjian, Youju, Beishi, Dacheng, Zongrong, Longquan, Nanshi, Liaobu, Xiaobei, Beitou, Dashan, Haipu, Zhuangli, Gangwei, Makou, Antung, Anye, Anxi, Xiean, Zhongmin, Anzheng and Zhuanjing Village.

Education

* Aletheia University *

Taiwan Shoufu University Taiwan Shoufu University (TSU; ) is a private university in Madou District, Tainan, Taiwan. TSU runs independently with 2 hotels in Kaohsiung. History The university was originally established as Diwan College of Management () in 2000. In 2 ...

Tourist attractions

Madou Daitian Temple The Madou Daitian Temple () or Temple of the Heavenly Viceroys is a temple in Nanshi Village, Madou District, Tainan, Taiwan. History The temple was originally constructed in the 17th century as the Baoning Temple. After an earthquake, the temp ...

* Tsung-Yeh Arts and Cultural Center * Madou Old Harbor Park * Madou Wenheng Temple

Specialty

Shaddock is one of the special foods of Madou. It has a various

nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient n ...

. Being harvested about the time of mid-autumn, it is usually associated with

Mid Autumn Festival The Mid-Autumn Festival ( Chinese: / ), also known as the Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated in Chinese culture. Similar holidays are celebrated in Japan (), Korea (), Vietnam (), and other countries in Ea ...

. The Madou Farmer's Association even holds a beauty contest relevant to the shaddock every year.

Notable natives

Wu Shu-chen Wu Shu-chen (; born 11 July 1953 in Tainan County, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese politician. She served one term in the Legislative Yuan from 1987 to 1990. As the wife of President Chen Shui-bian, Wu was the First Lady of the Republic of China from 200 ...

First lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

(2000–2008)

References

External links

* {{Districts in Taiwan Districts of Tainan Taiwan placenames originating from Formosan languages