Chiayi County ( Mandarin

pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese fo ...

: ''jiā yì xiàn'';

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 ...

POJ: ''Ka-gī-koān'') is 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 ...

in southwestern

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 ...

surrounding but not including Chiayi City. It is the sixth largest county in Taiwan.

Name

The former Chinese placename was Tsu-lo-san (), a representation of the original Formosan-language name ''Tirosen''. A shortened version, Tsulo, was then used to name Tsulo County, which originally covered the underdeveloped northern two-thirds of the island. In 1704, the county seat was moved to Tsulosan, the site of modern-day Chiayi City. Following the 1723 Zhu Yigui rebellion, the county was reduced in size. In 1787, the county and city were renamed ''Chiayi'' (; ) by the

Qianlong Emperor The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 ...

to acknowledge the citizens' loyalty during the Lin Shuangwen rebellion.

History

Qing dynasty

Chiayi County was originally part of Zhuluo County 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 ...

. It was given its modern name by the

after the Lin Shuangwen rebellion in 1788 for its role in resisting the rebels.

Empire of Japan

From 1920, during the Japanese rule of Taiwan, the area of Tainan Prefecture covered modern-day Chiayi County, Chiayi City,

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

Yunlin County Yunlin County ( Mandarin pinyin: ''Yúnlín Xiàn''; Taigi POJ: ''Hûn-lîm-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Yùn-lìm-yen'') is a county in western Taiwan. Yunlin County borders the Taiwan Strait to the west, Nantou County to the east, Changhua County ...

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 northeas ...

on 25 October 1945, the area of present-day Chiayi County was administered under

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 ...

. In October 1950, Chiayi County was established as a

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 ...

. Chiayi City was designated as the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

. In July 1982, Chiayi City was upgraded to a provincial city, thus in December 1981, Chiayi County government relocated the county seat to Dongshiliao Farm in Taibao Township. In March 1989, Wufong Township was renamed Alishan Township. In July 1991, Taibao Township was reorganized as Taibao City. In November 1991, Chiayi County government relocated the county seat from Dongshiliao Farm to Hsiangho New Village in Taibao City.

Puzi Puzi ( Hokkien POJ: ''Phò-chú'') is a county-administered city in Chiayi County, Taiwan. The Chiayi County Council is located in Puzi. History The settlement was formerly called ''Pho-a-kha'' () in Hokkien. In 1920, during Japanese rule ...

Township 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, ...

was reorganized as a

county-administered city A county-administered city is a unit of administrative divisions of Taiwan, administrative division in Taiwan. Under the administrative structure of Taiwan, it is at the same level as a township (Taiwan), township or a district (Taiwan), district ...

in September 1992.

Geography

Chiayi County borders Mount Yu to the east,

Taiwan Strait The Taiwan Strait is a -wide strait separating the island of Taiwan and continental Asia. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to the East China Sea to the north. The narrowest part is wide. The Taiwan Strait is itself a ...

to the west,

Tainan City 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 h ...

to the south and

to the north. It spans over , about 5.35% of the area of Taiwan. Chiayi County is located along the

Tropic of Cancer The Tropic of Cancer, which is also referred to as the Northern Tropic, is the most northerly circle of latitude on Earth at which the Sun can be directly overhead. This occurs on the June solstice, when the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towa ...

Administration

Chiayi County is divided into 2

cities 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 ...

, 2 urban townships, 13 rural townships and 1 mountain indigenous township. Taibao City is the seat of Chiayi County and is home to Chiayi County Government. The

Chiayi County Council The Chiayi County Council (CYSCC; ) is the elected county council of Chiayi County, Republic of China. The council consists of 37 councilors lastly elected through the 2018 Republic of China local election on 24 November 2018. History The counc ...

is however located in Puzi City.

Weng Chang-liang Weng Chang-liang (; born 28 May 1965) is a Taiwanese politician. He is the incumbent Magistrate of Chiayi County since 25 December 2018. Political career Active in the Wild Lily student movement, Weng worked for the Chiayi County Government bef ...

of the

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 ...

is the incumbent Magistrate of Chiayi County. Color indicates statutory language status of the

Formosan language The Formosan languages are a geographic grouping comprising the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, all of which are Austronesian. They do not form a single subfamily of Austronesian but rather nine separate subfamilies. The Taiwa ...

in the respective subdivision.

Demographics

The current population of Chiayi County as of May 2022 is 490,423 people. The county has been experiencing a population decline since 2009 due to higher migration out of the county and a higher death rate than birth rate. In 2013, the birthrate in the county was 5.89, lower than the average in Taiwan of 8.91, and the second lowest after

Keelung Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien Pe̍h-ōe-jī, POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port Provincial city (Taiwan), city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan a ...

Education

ChungChengUniversity AdministrationBuilding

Chiayi County is home to the government-owned National Chung Cheng University and

National Chiayi University National Chiayi University (NCYU; ) is a public university located in Chiayi City and Chiayi County, Taiwan. It was formed in 2000 by merging National Chiayi Institute of Technology and National Chiayi Teachers College. The University has s ...

. Private universities and colleges including Chang Gung University of Science and Technology,

Nanhua University Nanhua University (NHU; ) is a university located in Dalin Township, Chiayi County, Taiwan. Founded in 1996 as the Nanhua College of Management, it was elevated to university status in 1999. The university was founded by the Buddhist monk Hs ...

Toko University Toko University (TOKO; ) was a private university located in Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan. History The university was founded in 2001. In 2019, the university had only 37.23% of enrollment rate. In May 2020, the university announced its pl ...

and WuFeng University. Education-related affairs in the county is managed by the Educational Department of Chiayi County Government.

Economy

Over the past 20 years, Chiayi County had often been left out in the regional economic development due to its less strategic location, lack of infrastructure and appropriate industrial land to attract manufacturers to set up factories in the area. All of the existing industrial parks in the county were built before 1981. Class 2 and class 3 industries have been developing slowly throughout Chiayi, thus the economic development is sluggish as well, resulting in slow urban development. Three industrial parks named the Dapumei Industrial Park (), Ma Chou Hou Industrial Park () and Budai Intelligent Industrial Park are currently under planning in the county. Industrial parks in the neighboring counties and cities also contributed to the difficulty of industrial developments in Chiayi County.

Energy

The Zengwen Hydroelectric Plant and Chiahui Gas-Fired Power Plant boasted the total national grid capacity of 50 MW and 670 MW respectively. Both of the power plants are located in the county. Incinerator in the county is Lutsao Refuse Incineration Plant.

Tourist attractions

Museums

Notable museums, cultural centers and monuments in Chiayi County are the Dongshi Natural Ecological Exhibition Center,

Mei-Ling Fine Arts Museum The Mei-Ling Fine Arts Museum () is an art museum in Puzi Art Park, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan. Architecture The museum spans over an area of 1,653 m2. The building consists of the administrative office, collection area, exhibition hall ...

, National Radio Museum, Ping Huang Coffee Museum, Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum, Xikou Township Cultural Life Center and Tropic of Cancer Monument.

Natural

Bordered by mountains on one side and sea on the other side, Chiayi County holds three major national parks, which are

Alishan National Scenic Area The Alishan National Scenic Area is a mountain resort and nature reserve located in Alishan township, Chiayi County, Taiwan. Geography Alishan is in area. Notable characteristics include mountain wilderness, four villages, waterfalls, h ...

, Southwest Coast National Scenic Area and

Siraya National Scenic Area Siraya National Scenic Area () is the newest of Taiwan's national scenic areas. It was designated by the central government of the Republic of China on 26 November 2005. The scenic area is named after the Siraya people, an indigenous ethnic gro ...

, each represents a unique view of nature's wonders, from mountains, plains to ocean views. It also houses the

Chukou Nature Center The Chukou Nature Center () is a nature center in Xinfu Village, Fanlu Township, Chiayi County, Taiwan. History The site of the center was originally the sugar farm of Taiwan Sugar Corporation. It was then later turned into Chukou Nature Cent ...

, Haomeiliao Wetland and Meishan Park.

Dams

Renyitan Dam and Zengwen Dam are located in the county.

Buildings

The county houses the Dongshi Fisherman's Wharf, Chiayi Performing Arts Center and

High-Heel Wedding Church The High-Heel Wedding Church () is a high-heel-shaped building in Budai Township, Chiayi County, Taiwan. It is managed by Southwest Coast National Scenic Area Administration. History The construction was completed on 10 January 2016 and was ...

Transportation

Air

Chiayi County is served by Chiayi Airport, located at the junction of Shuishang Township, Taibao City and neighboring Chiayi City.

Rail

Taiwan High Speed Rail Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) is the high-speed railway of Taiwan consisting of one line that runs approximately along the west coast, from the capital Taipei to the southern city of Kaohsiung. With construction and operations managed by a pri ...

stops at

Chiayi Station Chiayi () is a railway station in Chiayi, Taiwan served by Taiwan Railways Administration, Taiwan Railways and Alishan Forest Railway. History The station was firstly constructed in 1896 and opened on 20 April 1902 with service on the West C ...

in Taibao City.

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 ...

stations include the Dalin Station, Minxiong Station, Nanjing Station and Shuishang Station. The

Alishan Forest Railway Alishan Forest Railway () is an 86 km network of narrow gauge railways running up to and throughout the popular mountain resort of Alishan in Chiayi County, Taiwan. The railway, originally constructed for logging, has become a tourist a ...

leads to

, with stations in Zhuqi Township, Meishan Township and Alishan Township.

Water

Budai Harbor in Budai Township provides ferry services to Magong City,

Penghu The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an area ...

Relative location

References

External links

Chiayi County Government Garden City
* https://web.archive.org/web/20100305233542/http://www.ccu.edu.tw/eng/e-index.php * {{Authority control