Shenkeng District () is a rural
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 ...
in central
New Taipei City
New Taipei City is a special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, be ...
in northern
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 ...
. Formerly an agricultural and mining town, it is now famous for its numerous
tofu
Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super firm ...
restaurants and vendors.
History
The area is first recorded as the preserve of a tribe of
Pingpu aborigines during the
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 ...
period in Taiwan. When
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 va ...
farmers eventually moved in to develop the area, they bought the low-lying land from the aborigines and began cultivation in the main valley. The modern name of the township, Shenkeng, literally means ''deep pit'' or ''deep mine''. The area used to have several active coal mines. The name has also been explained with reference to the mountains surrounding Shenkeng on all sides, which make the terrain similar to a pit.
On December 25, 2010, Shenkeng Township () became Shenkeng District ().
Geography
![Txu-oclc-6557994-index-457](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Txu-oclc-6557994-index-457.jpg)
Shenkeng is a rural district which borders
Taipei City
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the Capital city, capital and a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Regions of Taiwan, Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of t ...
's
Wenshan District
Wenshan District is a District (Taiwan), district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is the southernmost district of the twelve districts in Taipei. ''Wenshan'' previously referred to the region south of the Taipei Basin (including Sindian City, Xindian and ...
to the west,
Nangang District to the north, and the
Shiding District of
New Taipei City
New Taipei City is a special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, be ...
to the east.
Politics and government
Politics in Shenkeng have largely been uneventful; the town is considered a safe seat for 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 Tai ...
. An exception was in 1996, when several members of the council were arrested on suspicion of connection with organised crime.
Administrative divisions
Shenkeng District includes eight
urban villages:
* Shenkeng (), Puxin (), Wanshun (), Wanfu (), Tuku (), Laizhong (), Arou (), Shenggao ()
Demographics
In the years 2012 to 2017, the population of Shenkeng District hovered around 23,600 with a steadily
ageing population
Population ageing is an increasing median age in a population because of declining fertility rates and rising life expectancy. Most countries have rising life expectancy and an ageing population, trends that emerged first in developed countries ...
.
Education
Shenkeng is home to
Tungnan University
Tungnan University (TNU; ) is a private university in Shenkeng District, New Taipei, Taiwan.
History
TNU was originally established as Tungnan Junior College of Technology in August 1970. In 2000, the college was promoted to Tungnan Institute of ...
, a private technical university. There is also a Junior High School and an Elementary School in the town.
Tourist attractions
The economy of Shenkeng is centred on tourism, and that tourism is based largely on
tofu
Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super firm ...
. The district is sufficiently well known in culinary circles that it has been a subject of media interest in
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 north ...
and
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
.
[Chung] The tofu from Shenkeng has an unusual ratio of soybean to
gypsum
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywall. ...
, giving it a yellowish colour and distinctive flavour.
[ The town has become so readily identified with tofu that it has earned the epithet "The Tofu Capital".
There are also extensive hiking trails, some of which were in use during the ]Japanese era
The , also known as , is the first of the two elements that identify years in the Japanese era calendar scheme. The second element is a number which indicates the year number within the era (with the first year being ""), followed by the literal ...
by anti-Japanese guerilla fighters.
* Shenkeng Old Street
The Shenkeng Old Street () is an old street in Shenkeng District, New Taipei, Taiwan.
History
In the 1980s, local residents campaigned against the demolition of the buildings along the street as part of the proposed road widening and redevelopm ...
Transportation
Transportation in Shenkeng is limited to roads only; there is as yet no railway or mass transit service, although proposals have been made to extend the Wenshan Line of the Taipei Metro
Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), branded as Metro Taipei, is a rapid transit system serving the areas of Taipei and New Taipei City, New Taipei in Taiwan, operated by the State-owned enterprise, government-owned Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation ...
into Shenkeng.[Chiu] Three bus companies offer passenger services within Shenkeng and between Shenkeng and surrounding settlements.
See also
* New Taipei City
New Taipei City is a special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, be ...
Notes
References
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External links
*
VTS 02 1
(about Tofu in Shenkeng)
{{Districts in Taiwan
Districts of New Taipei