The Penghu (,

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: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arch ...

of 90 islands and

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanen ...

s in the

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 ...

, located approximately west from the main

island of Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territor ...

, covering an area of . The largest city is Magong, located on the largest island, which is also named Magong. The Penghu islands had its first historical record during the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

and were inhabited by Chinese people by the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the res ...

, during which it was attached to Jinjiang County of

Fujian 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 ...

. The archipelago was formally incorporated as an administrative unit of China under the jurisdiction of

Tong'an Tong'an District () is a northern mainland district of Amoy which faces Quemoy County, Republic of China. To the north is Anxi and Nan'an, and to the south is Jimei. Tong'an is also east of Lianxiang and Changqin to the West. It covers

County of Jiangzhe Province in 1281 during the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

. It continued to be controlled by Imperial China with brief European occupations, until it was ceded to the

Japanese Empire The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...

in 1895. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Penghu has been governed by 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 ...

(ROC). Under the terms of Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty and the subsequent

Taiwan Relations Act The Taiwan Relations Act (TRA; ; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Thôi-van Kwan-hè-fap''; ) is an act of the United States Congress. Since the formal recognition of the People's Republic of China, the Act has defined the officially substantial but non-diplo ...

between the ROC and the US, Penghu is defined and geographically acknowledged as part of Taiwan. The archipelago collectively forms 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 ...

and is the smallest

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 ...

of Taiwan.

Name

The "Penghu" islands were mentioned in a series of poems during the

(618–907). During the

(960–1279), it was mentioned that during the Tang period, "Pinghu" barbarians from beyond

Quanzhou Quanzhou, alternatively known as Chinchew, is a prefecture-level port city on the north bank of the Jin River, beside the Taiwan Strait in southern Fujian, China. It is Fujian's largest metropolitan region, with an area of and a popul ...

laid siege to

Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute ...

, now the capital of

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 ...

. In 1171, the poet Lou Yue described a place across the sea from

, identified as Penghu, that had thousands of sandbars called "Pinghu" (flat lake) because of the "encircling shape of its inner coastline". Song sources describe migrants from Fujian cultivating land on Pinghu. In 1225, the Song historian Zhao Rukuo called the islands attached to Jinjiang County "Penghu". In 1227, Wang Xiangzhi described Penghu as a group of 36 islands in an "outlying region" which took three days to reach by sailing from Jinjiang. In the

Southern Min Southern Min (), Minnan ( Mandarin pronunciation: ) or Banlam (), is a group of linguistically similar and historically related Sinitic languages that form a branch of Min Chinese spoken in Fujian (especially the Minnan region), most of Taiwa ...

language, both Pinghu and Penghu are pronounced similarly, and scholars in Taiwan believe them to be the same place.方豪，1994，《台灣早期史綱》，頁33-34，台北：學生書局. . In Southern Min it is pronounced ''Phêⁿ-ô·''. According to official ''Penghu County Chronicle'', Penghu's original name had been "Pinghu"(平湖), but as "Ping"(平) sounded similar to "Peng"(彭) in

, "Pinghu"(平湖) was also written as "Penghu"(彭湖), and ultimately upon consensus, it is written as "Penghu"(澎湖). The name "Pescadores" comes from the Portuguese name ''Ilhas dos Pescadores'' ("Fishermen Islands"). The

European Portuguese European Portuguese ( pt, português europeu, ), also known as Portuguese of Portugal ( Portuguese: português de Portugal), Iberian Portuguese ( Portuguese: português ibérico), and Peninsular Portuguese ( Portuguese: português peninsular), re ...

pronunciation is but, in English, it is typically closer to . The islands have also been called ''Pehoe'' from the Minnan name ''Phêⁿ-ô·''.

History

Prehistory

Penghu 1 Penghu 1 is a fossil jaw (mandible) belonging to an extinct hominin species of the genus ''Homo'' from Taiwan which lived in the middle-late Pleistocene. The precise classification of the mandible is disputed, some arguing that it represents a ne ...

, a fossil jaw (mandible) dating to the late

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

that belonged to a member of an extinct

hominin The Hominini form a taxonomic tribe of the subfamily Homininae ("hominines"). Hominini includes the extant genera ''Homo'' (humans) and '' Pan'' (chimpanzees and bonobos) and in standard usage excludes the genus ''Gorilla'' (gorillas). The ...

species, was discovered in the

Pescadores Channel The Pescadores Channel, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency () is the body of water that separates the Pescadores Islands from Taiwan island and links the Taiwan Strait to the northeastern South China Sea. The channel has been ...

around 2008. Finds of fine red

cord-marked pottery Cord-marked pottery or Cordmarked pottery is an early form of a simple earthenware pottery made in precontact villages. It allowed food to be stored and cooked over fire. Cord-marked pottery varied slightly around the world, depending upon the cla ...

at Guoye, Huxi, indicate that Penghu was visited by Austronesians from southwestern Taiwan around 5,000 years ago, though not settled permanently.

Song dynasty

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 ...

from southern

began to establish fishing communities on the islands in the 9th and 10th centuries, and representatives were intermittently stationed there by the

Southern Song The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

and Yuan governments from around 1170. Chinese fishermen had settled on the Penghu Islands by 1171, when a group of "Bisheye" bandits with dark skin speaking a foreign language landed on Penghu and plundered the fields planted by Chinese migrants. The Song government sent soldiers after them and from that time on, Song patrols regularly visited Penghu in the spring and summer. A local official, Wang Dayou, had houses built on Penghu and stationed troops there to prevent depredations from the Bisheye. Coins dating to the Xining (1068-1077) and Zhenghe (1111-1117) reign periods as well as many Song pottery and porcelain shards have been unearthed in Penghu. In 1225, the '' Book of Barbarian Nations'' anecdotally indicated that Penghu was attached to Jinjiang, Quanzhou Prefecture. A group of Quanzhou immigrants lived on Penghu.

Yuan dynasty

In November 1281, the

under Emperor Shizu officially established the ''Penghu Patrol and Inspection Agency'' under the jurisdiction of

County, incorporating Penghu into China's borders 403 years earlier than Taiwan.

Wang Dayuan Wang Dayuan (, fl. 1311–1350), courtesy name Huanzhang (), was a Chinese traveller of the Yuan dynasty from Quanzhou in the 14th century. He is known for his two major ship voyages. Wang Dayuan was born around 1311 at Hongzhou (present-day Na ...

gave a detailed first-hand account of the islands in his '' Daoyi Zhilüe'' (1349).

Ming dynasty

In the 15th century, the

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han pe ...

ordered the evacuation of the islands as part of their maritime ban. When these restrictions were removed in the late 16th century, legal fishing communities, most of which hailed from

County, were re-established on the islands. These fishermen worshiped at the Mazu Temple that gave Magong its name and themselves gave rise to the Portuguese and English name ''Pescadores''. The Ming established a permanent military presence starting in 1597. At this time, the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

was trying to force China to open a port in

to Dutch trade and expel the Portuguese from

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

. When the Dutch were defeated by the Portuguese at the

Battle of Macau The Battle of Macau in 1622 was a conflict of the Dutch–Portuguese War fought in the Portuguese settlement of Macau, in southeastern China. The Portuguese, outnumbered and without adequate fortification, managed to repel the Dutch in a much-ce ...

in 1622, they seized Penghu, built a fort there, and threatened raids on Chinese ports and shipping unless the Chinese allowed trading with them on Penghu and that China not trade with Manila. In response, the Chinese governor of Fujian demanded that the Dutch withdraw from Penghu to Taiwan, where the Chinese would permit them to engage in trade. The Dutch continued to raid the Fujian coast between October 1622 and January 1624 to force their demands, but were unsuccessful. In 1624, the new governor of Fujian sent a fleet of 40–50 warships with 5,000 troops to Penghu and expelled the Dutch, who moved to Fort Zeelandia on Taiwan.

Qing dynasty

For a period in the mid-17th century,

and the archipelago were ruled by the

Kingdom of Tungning The Kingdom of Tungning (), also known as Tywan by the British at the time, was a dynastic maritime state that ruled part of southwestern Taiwan and the Penghu islands between 1661 and 1683. It is the first predominantly Han Chinese state in ...

under the Zheng family, which was overthrown by 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 ...

in 1683 after the

Battle of Penghu The Battle of Penghu () was a naval battle fought in 1683 between the Qing dynasty and the Kingdom of Tungning. The Qing admiral Shi Lang led a fleet to attack the Tungning forces in Penghu. Each side possessed more than 200 warships. The Tungn ...

. Military personnel were stationed on Penghu afterwards. Penghu became a sub-prefecture of Taiwan Prefecture,

, during the Qing period. The Penghu archipelago was captured by the French in March 1885, in the closing weeks of the

Sino-French War The Sino-French War (, french: Guerre franco-chinoise, vi, Chiến tranh Pháp-Thanh), also known as the Tonkin War and Tonquin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885. There was no declaration of war. The Chinese arm ...

, and evacuated four months later. The Pescadores Campaign was the last campaign of Admiral Amédée Courbet, whose naval victories during the war had made him a national hero in France. Courbet was among several French soldiers and sailors who succumbed to

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium '' Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting an ...

during the French occupation of Penghu. He died aboard his flagship ''

Bayard Bayard may refer to: People *Bayard (given name) * Bayard (surname) *Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard (1473–1524) French knight Places * Bayard, Delaware, an unincorporated community * Bayard (Jacksonville), Florida, a neighborhood * Bayard ...

'' in

Makung Magong ( POJ: ''Má-keng'') is a county-administered city and seat of Penghu County, Taiwan. Magong City is located on Penghu's main island. Name The settlement's temple honoring the Chinese Goddess Mazu, the deified form of Lin Moniang ...

harbour on 11 June 1885.

Empire of Japan

Towards the end of the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the p ...

, having defeated the Qing in northern China, Japan sought to ensure that it obtained Penghu and Taiwan in the final settlement. In March 1895, the Japanese defeated the Chinese garrison on the islands and occupied

. The Japanese occupation of Penghu, with its fine harbor, gave the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

an advanced base from which their short-range coal-burning ships could control the Taiwan Straits and thus prevent more Chinese troops from being sent to Taiwan. This action persuaded the Chinese negotiators at Shimonoseki that Japan was determined to annex Taiwan, and, after Penghu, Taiwan and the

Liaodong Peninsula The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River ...

had been ceded to Japan in the Sino-Japanese

Treaty of Shimonoseki The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China and in the period before and during World War II in Japan, was a treaty signed at the , Shimonoseki, Japan on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, ending the Firs ...

in April, helped to ensure the success of the Japanese invasion of Taiwan in May. Penghu County was then called the Hōko Prefecture by the Japanese government of Taiwan. During

, Makō (Makung) was a major base for the Imperial Japanese Navy and the embarkation point for the invasion of the Philippines.

Republic of China

In the Cairo Declaration of 1943, the United States, the United Kingdom and China stated it to be their purpose that "all the territories that Japan has stolen from the Chinese, such as Formosa and The Pescadores, shall be restored to the Republic of China". On 26 July 1945, the three governments issued the

Potsdam Declaration The Potsdam Declaration, or the Proclamation Defining Terms for Japanese Surrender, was a statement that called for the surrender of all Japanese armed forces during World War II. On July 26, 1945, United States President Harry S. Truman, Uni ...

, declaring that "the terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out". However, the United States and the United Kingdom have regarded the aforementioned documents as merely wartime statements of intention with no binding force in law. Following the

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Na ...

on 2 September 1945,

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the United States-led Allied occupation of Japan following World War II. It issued SCAP Directives (alias SCAPIN, SCAP Index Number) to the Japanese government, aiming to suppress its "milit ...

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was ...

issued General Order No. 1, which directed Japanese forces to surrender to the Allied Powers and facilitate the occupation of Japanese territories by the Allied Powers. The Office of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers ordered Japanese forces in China and Taiwan to surrender to

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

, who the Allied Powers delegated to accept the surrender. On 25 October 1945, Governor-General

Rikichi Andō was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and 19th and final Japanese Governor-General of Taiwan from 30 December 1944 to October 1945. Biography Early career Andō was a native of Miyagi Prefecture. He served as an instructor at the Army ...

handed over the administration of Taiwan and the Penghu islands to the head of the Taiwan Investigation Commission,

Chen Yi Chen Yi may refer to: * Xuanzang (602–664), born as Chen Yi, Chinese Buddhist monk in Tang Dynasty * Chen Yi (Kuomintang) Chen Yi (; courtesy names Gongxia (公俠) and later Gongqia (公洽), sobriquet Tuisu (退素); May 3, 1883 – June ...

. The Republic of China and Japan signed the Treaty of Taipei on April 28, 1952, and the treaty came into force on August 5, which is considered by some as giving a legal support to the Republic of China's claim to Taiwan as "de jure" territory. The treaty stipulates that all treaties, conventions, and agreements between China and Japan prior to 9 December 1941 were null and void, which according to Hungdah Chiu, abolishes the

ceding Taiwan to Japan. In the 1956 ''Japan v. Lai Chin Jung'' case, it was stated that Taiwan and the Penghu islands came to belong to the ROC on the date the Treaty of Taipei came into force. However, in 1954, the United States denied that the sovereignty over Taiwan and the Penghu islands had been settled by the Treaty of Taipei. In the following year, the United States also stated its position that Taiwan and Penghu were handed over to the Allied Powers, and that the Republic of China was merely asked to administer these territories for the Allied Powers pending a final decision as to their ownership. In the 1960 ''Sheng v. Rogers'' case, it was stated that, in the view of the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

, no agreement has purported to transfer the sovereignty of Taiwan to the ROC, though it accepted the exercise of Chinese authority over Taiwan and recognized the Government of the Republic of China as the legal government of China at the time. Boat people fleeing Vietnam in the 1970s and 1980s who were rescued by Taiwan's ships in the South China Sea were sent to Penghu. On 25 May 2002, China Airlines Flight 611, a

Boeing 747-200 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...

aircraft flying from

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 ...

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 List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

, disintegrated and exploded over the Islands. The wreckage slammed into the Taiwan Strait, a couple of miles off the coast. All 225 passengers and crew on board were killed.

Climate

Penghu County has a dry-winter

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

: Cwa), bordering on a regular

(

: Cfa).

Geology

Penghu is the remnant of a

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

aged

shield volcano A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more vi ...

, the stratigraphy of the island is dominated by two to four layers of

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

interbedded In geology, interbedding occurs when beds (layers of rock) of a particular lithology lie between or alternate with beds of a different lithology. For example, sedimentary rocks may be interbedded if there were sea level variations in their sedi ...

with

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...

and

mudstone Mudstone, a type of mudrock, is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Mudstone is distinguished from '' shale'' by its lack of fissility (parallel layering).Blatt, H., and R.J. Tracy, 1996, ''Petrology.' ...

deposited in shallow marine conditions.

Demographics

Ethnicities

Majority of the populace (72%+) in Penghu are descendents from

county.明萬曆年以後，澎湖第二次有移住民，以福建泉州府屬同安縣金門人遷來最早; 其後接踵而至者，亦以同安縣人為最多。彼等捷足先至者，得以優先選擇良好地區定居之，澎湖本島即多被同安人所先占; 尤其素稱土地沃之湖西鄉，完全成為同安人之區域。
李紹章《澎湖縣誌》，《續修澎湖縣志（卷三）｜人民志》

Population

Language

In Penghu, the native language is

Taiwanese Hokkien Taiwanese Hokkien () (; Tâi-lô: ''Tâi-uân-uē''), also known as Taigi/Taigu (; Pe̍h-ōe-jī/ Tâi-lô: ''Tâi-gí / Tâi-gú''), Taiwanese, Taiwanese Minnan, Hoklo and Holo, is a variety of the Hokkien language spoken natively by about ...

, with

dialect being the most prevalent speech.

Government

Penghu County is administered by

Penghu County Government The Penghu County Government () is the local government of Penghu County, Taiwan. Penghu County Hall is located in Magong City. History Penghu County government was established on 22 January 1946. Organizational structure City and township o ...

headed by Magistrate

Lai Feng-wei Lai Feng-wei (; born 20 September 1953) is a Taiwanese politician. He is the Magistrate of Penghu County since 25 December 2018 after winning the 2018 municipality election of the Republic of China on 24 November 2018. Political careers 2018 ...

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 ...

and headquartered at the Penghu County Hall.

Administrative divisions

Penghu County is divided into one

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 five rural townships. It is further divided into 97 villages. Like Lienchiang County, Penghu County has no

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 ...

s. The county seat is located at Magong City where it houses the Penghu County Hall and Penghu County Council. The main islands of Magong City/Huxi Township, Baisha Township, and Xiyu Township are the three most populous islands and are connected via bridges. Two shorter bridges connect Huxi and Baisha. The

Penghu Great Bridge The Penghu Great Bridge or Penghu Trans-Oceanic Bridge () is a bridge in Penghu County, Taiwan. It connects Siyu Island and Baisha Main Island. History The idea of the bridge construction came after knowing the sea current between Siyu Isla ...

connecting Baisha and Xiyu is the longest bridge in

Politics

The county elects a single representative to 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 ...

. In the 2016 Republic of China legislative election, this seat was won by 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 ...

with 55.4% of the vote.

Political dispute

Despite the controversy over the

political status of Taiwan The controversy surrounding the political status of Taiwan or the Taiwan issue is a result of World War II, the second phase of the Chinese Civil War (1945–1949), and the Cold War. The basic issue hinges on who the islands of Taiwan, P ...

, both the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China agree that Penghu is a county in (their own respective) "Taiwan Province" (

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 ...

, Republic of China and

Taiwan Province, People's Republic of China Taiwan Province is a nominal administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The PRC constitution defines Taiwan as part of its territories despite the fact that the PRC has never controlled any part of Taiwan since the ...

). However, geographically, the

does not include Penghu, although it is closer to Taiwan than mainland China. Thus, Penghu is listed separately from "Taiwan" in some contexts, e.g. the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu (the official WTO name for the Republic of China) and in the Treaty of Shimonoseki, the Cairo Declaration, and the Treaty of San Francisco.

Economy

Due to its restricted geography, fisheries have been the main industry for Penghu. The Agriculture and Fisheries Bureau of the

governs matters related to agriculture and fisheries in Penghu. In 2016, the bureau placed a ban on the harvesting of

sea urchin Sea urchins () are spiny, globular echinoderms in the class Echinoidea. About 950 species of sea urchin live on the seabed of every ocean and inhabit every depth zone from the intertidal seashore down to . The spherical, hard shells (tests) o ...

s due to their declining population. However, the ban was lifted in 2017 but catches are limited only to those species larger than in

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid f ...

Education

Education-related matters in Penghu County are administered under the Education Department of the

. The county houses the

National Penghu University of Science and Technology National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

Energy

Penghu is powered by the

Chienshan Power Plant The Chienshan Power Plant () is a fuel-fired power plant in Huxi Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. With the total capacity of 140 MW, the power plant is the largest diesel fuel-fired power plant in Taiwan. Chienshan Power Plant is the only major ...

, a 140 MW diesel-fired power plant commissioned in 2001, and the Hujing Power Plant on Table Island. On 24 December 2010, the Taiwan-Penghu Undersea Cable Project of Taipower was approved by the

Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Its leader is the Premier, who is appointed by the President of the Republic of China, and requires confirmation by the Legislative Yuan. ...

to connect the

electrical grid An electrical grid is an interconnected network for electricity delivery from producers to consumers. Electrical grids vary in size and can cover whole countries or continents. It consists of:Kaplan, S. M. (2009). Smart Grid. Electrical Power ...

in Taiwan Island to Penghu. Under a wind power development project approved in 2002 by the

, the ROC government plans to set up a total of 200 wind turbines in Penghu within 10 years. However, only 14 turbines have been set up . On 1 October 2015, Taipower announced the construction of another 11 new wind turbines across the island, of which six will be constructed in Huxi Township and five in Baisha Township. The current total

desalination Desalination is a process that takes away mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination refers to the removal of salts and minerals from a target substance, as in soil desalination, which is an issue for agriculture. Salt ...

capacity of the county to provide clean water to its residents is 15,500 m³ per day. To reduce its

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit ...

use, in November 2015 the county secured a contract of building an additional desalination plant with 4,000 m³ capacity per day, construction of which is expected to be completed by May 2018.

Tourism

The

Penghu National Scenic Area The Penghu National Scenic Area is one of the National Scenic Areas of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and covers most, but not all of the islands and islets that form Penghu County. These islands have a total of 320 kilometers of shoreline. A ...

was established in the early 1990s, comprising most of the islands and islets of the archipelago. Tourism has since become one of the main sources of income of the county. Historical sites include Central Street, Erdai Art Hall, Tianhou Temple,

Four-eyed Well The Four-eyed Well () is a historical water well in Magong City, Penghu County, Taiwan. History The well is thought to have been dug during the Yuan or Ming dynasties. It is registered as a class 3 historical monument in Penghu. Architecture ...

Penghu Reclamation Hall The Penghu Reclamation Hall () is a museum in Magong Township, Penghu County, Taiwan, dedicated to the history of settlement in Penghu Islands. History The museum building was originally constructed in 1935 as the official residence of the Hō ...

Qimei Lighthouse The Qimei Lighthouse / Cimei Lightouse () is a lighthouse in Qimei / Cimei Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. History The lighthouse was built in 1939. It was the last lighthouse built by the Japanese government. Originally, it uses acetylene for ...

Xiyu Eastern Fort The Xiyu Eastern Fort () or Xiyu Eastern Battery ( ''Xīyǔ Dōng Pàotái'', informally ''Dōngtái Gǔbǎo'') is a former fort and battery in Wai'an Village, Xiyu Township, Penghu, Taiwan. History In the 17th century, Chinese Ming Dynasty ...

, Jinguitou Fortress and

Xiyu Western Fort The Xiyu Western Fort () or Xiyu Western Battery ( ''Xīyǔ Xī Pàotái'',Ko Shu-ling"Gun Battery Sheds Light on History, Chinese Attitudes."''Taipei Times''. 10 January 2011. p. 3. Retrieved 15 July 2016. informally ''Xītái Gǔbǎo'') is a f ...

. Museums in the county are

Chuwan Crab Museum The Chuwan Crab Museum () is a museum about crabs in Zhuwan village, Xiyu Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. The museum was opened on 1 April 2004. It displays various kinds of crabs found around Penghu Islands. See also * List of museums in Tai ...

Ocean Resources Museum The Ocean Resources Museum () is a museum in Magong, Magong City, Penghu, Penghu County, Taiwan. History The construction of the Gallery A of the museum was completed in 1994 and was opened in the same year. It was done by Jyun-han Design and C ...

Chang Yu-sheng Memorial Museum The Chang Yu-sheng Memorial Museum () is a museum about singer Chang Yu-sheng in Magong City, Penghu County, Taiwan. Exhibitions The museum exhibits Chang's various works and legacy. See also * List of museums in Taiwan This is a list of ...

and Penghu Living Museum. Other attractions in the county include the

Double-Heart of Stacked Stones The Double-heart of Stacked Stones () or the Twin-Heart Fish Trap is a stone fishing weir located on the north side of Cimei Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. It is a well-preserved ancient fish trap made by stacking stones to form a trap that r ...

, Fenggui Cave, Little Taiwan,

Whale Cave The Whale Cave () is a wave-cut platform in Xiaomen Village, Xiyu Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. History The wave is originally a basalt cliffed coast. After being continuously eroded by monsoon and seawater, it finally became an arch. Geolog ...

Xiaomen Geology Gallery The Xiaomen Geology Gallery () is a gallery in Xiaomen Village, Xiyu Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. History The gallery was opened in 2001. Architecture The gallery is divided into eight sections, which are guide of Xiaomen Island, geomorph ...

and South Penghu Marine National Park. Since 1 January 2015, tourists from

Mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...

can directly apply for the Exit & Entry Permit upon arrival in Penghu. This privilege also applies to

Kinmen Kinmen, alternatively known as Quemoy, is a group of islands governed as a county by the Republic of China (Taiwan), off the southeastern coast of mainland China. It lies roughly east of the city of Xiamen in Fujian, from which it is separat ...

and the

Matsu Islands The Matsu Islands ( or , ; Foochow Romanized: Mā-cū liĕk-dō̤), officially Lienchiang County (, ; Foochow Romanized: Lièng-gŏng-gâing), are an archipelago of 36 islands and islets in the East China Sea governed by the Republic of China ( ...

as a means to boost tourism in the outlying islands of Taiwan. The county welcomed 1.8 million tourists in 2018 with an average annual growth of around 10%. File:臺灣澎湖馬公松島艦遭難紀念碑 Memorial to the cruiser Matsushima located in Penghu, TAIWAN in 1908.jpg, Original 1908 memorial to the cruiser ''Matsushima'' pictured. Modern park memorial in Magong City, Penghu,

. File:Double-Heart of Stacked Stones 20150721.jpg,

Drug trafficking

As a lightly populated outlying island, Penghu lends itself to being used as a trans-shipment hub for drug smuggling into Taiwan from China and the Philippines. Beginning in 2016, the area became the focus of a major drug trafficking crackdown by the Taiwanese police. In 2016, Chou Meng-hsiang (周盟翔), chief prosecutor of the Penghu District Prosecutors Office, "led an investigation team in Taiwan, including officers from the Coast Guard Administration, in a bid to bring (a) drug trafficking ring to justice." A joint investigation with Philippine and Chinese authorities spanning one and a half years resulted in the seizure of "22.6 kilograms of amphetamine, 11.4 kilograms of ephedrine, and about 40 kilograms of calcium chloride" with an estimated value of NT$123 million. Eight suspects were arrested in

Cagayan Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, coverin ...

, a small island in northern Philippines, but no Taiwanese nationals were charged in relation to the importation scheme. In 2017, media reported "the biggest-ever haul of drugs in the county's history" when 506 kg of

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in ...

was seized from a Chinese fishing boat off Penghu "as part of an ongoing crackdown on the area drug trade".

Ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in ...

smuggling has increased in recent years as it has a similar structure to amphetamines and can be easily converted into

methamphetamine Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamp ...

. According to a Focus Taiwan report, "(It) can then be sold for ten times the price, in this case that would be more than NT$1 billion (US$33.33 million)." Despite the size of the drug seizure, only the five crew members of the Chinese fishing boat were detained in the operation, with authorities "unable to find the Taiwanese ship which should have turned up to take delivery of the drugs". It was unclear from media reports how the Taiwanese side of the smuggling operation knew to abort the rendezvous. The suppliers of the shipment also evaded capture. It was believed the drugs were destined to be transported from Penghu for distribution on Taiwan.

Transport

Air

Penghu is served by Penghu Airport in Magong City and

Qimei Airport Qimei Airport or Chi Mei Airport () is an airport serving Cimei, Penghu, an island in Penghu County, Taiwan (ROC). History The Penghu County Government approved the building of the airport in 1977 for those on Cimei in order to improve the tr ...

in Cimei Township. Both airports opened in 1977.

Daily Air Daily Air Corporation () is an airline with its headquarters in Songshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. It operates scheduled passenger services to offshore islands from Taiwan, including Penghu, Green Island and Orchid Island, as well as helicopter ...

operates flights between Penghu to Kaohsiung.

Water

The county has Magong Harbor and

Longmen Jianshan Pier The Longmen Jianshan Pier () is a pier in Huxi Township, Penghu County, Taiwan. Architecture The pier spans over an area of 147.7 hectares, which consists of 131.8 hectares of water area and 15.9 hectares of land area. It has a width of 120 me ...

. Magong Harbor hosts ferry connections with

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 ...

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 ...

Chiayi Chiayi (, Taigi POJ: ''Ka-gī''; ), officially known as Chiayi City, is a city located in the plains of southwestern Taiwan. Formerly called ''Kagee'' during the late Qing dynasty and ''Kagi'' during the Japanese era (), its historical name ...

and

References

Citations

Works cited

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External links

Penghu County Government

Penghu Tour Official Website

澎湖研究學術研討會第1-8屆論文輯全球資訊網-歷屆論文
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Traditional Chinese A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays ...