Tamsui District (

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: ''Tām-chúi''; Hokkien Tâi-lô: ''Tām-tsuí''; 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 ...

: ''Dànshuǐ'') is a seaside

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, subdivision ...

New Taipei 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, b ...

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 named after the

Tamsui River The Tamsui River (alternatively Danshui River, ) is third longest river in Taiwan after Zhuoshui River and Gaoping River, with a total length of , flowing through Hsinchu County, Taoyuan, Taipei and New Taipei City. It is located in northern p ...

; the name means "fresh water". The town is popular as a site for viewing the sun setting into 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 ...

. Though modest in size (population 184,192), it has a large role in

Taiwanese culture The culture of Taiwan is a blend of Confucian Chinese and indigenous Taiwanese cultures. Despite the overwhelming traditional Chinese influence, Japanese culture has influenced Taiwanese culture as well. The common socio-political experience i ...

Name

Historical

Originally settled by the

Ketagalan Ketagalan or Ketangalan () are a Taiwanese aboriginal people originating in what is now the Taipei Basin. Their language has now become extinct. On 21 March 1996, the road in front of the Presidential Office Building was renamed from "Long Liv ...

aborigines, the location was called ''Hoba'', meaning "stream's mouth". ''Hoba'' was loaned into

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 ...

as ''Hobe''. Historical works in English have referred to the place as "Hobe", "Hobé", or "Hobe Village". The Spanish arrived in the 17th century and called this place ''Casidor'' and the Tamsui River ''Kimalon''. Dutch records have used the placenames ''Tamsuy'' and ''Tampsui'' to refer to this area but have also referred to another " Lower Tamsuy" in the south of the island. In his 1903 book ''The Island of Formosa'', former US diplomat

James W. Davidson James Wheeler Davidson (14 June 1872 – 18 July 1933) was an American-born Canadian businessman, diplomat, explorer, journalist, and philanthropist. He is remembered for writing ''The Island of Formosa, Past and Present'' (1903), a book on th ...

related that the spelling and pronunciation of the placename () has been given in many variants by "as many so-called authorities. Tamsui, Tamshuy, Tamshui, Tamsoui, Tan-sui, ...". The first variant "Tamsui" is consistent with

literary readings, and (possibly by chance) is equal to the Church Romanization of an older pronunciation (''Tām-súi'') minus tone markings and hyphen. The variant "Tan-sui", with exception of the hyphen, is consistent with the

romanization of Japanese The romanization of Japanese is the use of Latin script to write the Japanese language. This method of writing is sometimes referred to in Japanese as . Japanese is normally written in a combination of logographic characters borrowed from Ch ...

. However, the first variant was apparently already well-known circa 1900, and features prominently in two English-language maps of the same era. Furthermore, at that time, the term "Tamsui" was used "in a most liberal way; it may mean the harbor, the river, the village of Hobe,

Twatutia Dadaocheng is an area in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. It was also known as Twatutia (a transliteration of the Taiwanese Hokkien ''Tōa-tiū-tiâⁿ''), Daitōtei during Japanese rule, and Tataocheng ( Mandarin) during the Kuomintang era. ...

, or Banka, and it may mean the whole district."

Modern

From 1950 until the 2010 creation of New Taipei City, Tamsui was officially "Tamsui

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, ...

" (;

POJ: ''Tām-chúi-tìn''; Hokkien Tâi-lô: ''Tām-tsuí-tìn'') in the former

Taipei County 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, b ...

. The spelling "Danshui" (from

Hànyǔ Pīnyīn 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 ...

), formerly used officially by the Taiwan government,

Taipei Metro Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), branded as Metro Taipei, is a rapid transit system serving the areas of Taipei and New Taipei in Taiwan, operated by the government-owned Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation, which also operates the Maokong Gondo ...

, and other sources, is based on the Mandarin pronunciation. Meanwhile, the name "Tamsui" is based on the

pronunciation. Having long used "Tamsui" as the official English name, the local government of the district informed the national government in 2011 that "Tamsui" rather than "Danshui" should be used in English.

History

Spanish colony

The

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

arrived in the area of Tamsui in the 17th century. In the fall of 1629, the Spanish established the first major non-aboriginal settlement comprising the town and mission of

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional) , webs ...

. The Spanish occupied northern

for the purpose of securing Spanish interests in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

against the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

(who were already established in the South of Taiwan by then), the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

, and the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

, as well as for facilitating trade with China and Japan. In 1642, the Spanish were expelled from Taiwan by the Dutch. The Spanish had already abandoned their settlement in Tamsui in 1638 and the Dutch built a new fort which they named Fort Anthonio (after the Governor-General of the Dutch East India Company Anthonio van Diemen). It is today known as '' Angmo Siaa'' () and is the main building of the

Fort San Domingo Fort Santo Domingo is a historical fortress in Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It was originally a wooden fort built in 1628 by the Spanish Empire, who named it "Fort Santo Domingo". However, the fort was then destroyed by the Spani ...

museum complex. In addition to "pacifying" the aboriginal tribes in the area, the Dutch also encouraged the immigration and settlement of the area by

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 ...

, as well as expanding the production and trade of

sulfur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formul ...

, animal skins, and other indigenous resources. The Dutch left Fort Zeelandia in Taiwan in 1662 following their defeat by

Koxinga Zheng Chenggong, Prince of Yanping (; 27 August 1624 – 23 June 1662), better known internationally as Koxinga (), was a Ming loyalist general who resisted the Qing conquest of China in the 17th century, fighting them on China's southeastern ...

at the

Siege of Fort Zeelandia The siege of Fort Zeelandia () of 1661–1662 ended the Dutch East India Company's rule over Taiwan and began the Kingdom of Tungning's rule over the island. Prelude From 1623 to 1624 the Dutch had been at war with Ming China over the Pescador ...

, who continued the policy of increasing

immigration until the surrender of his grandson

Zheng Keshuang Zheng Keshuang, Prince of Yanping (; 13 August 1670 – 22 September 1707), courtesy name Shihong, art name Huitang, was the third and last ruler of the Kingdom of Tungning in Taiwan in the 17th century. He was the second son of Zheng Jing and ...

to 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. In 1668, the Dutch left

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 ...

after getting harassed by aboriginals from Tamsui.

Qing dynasty

Because of its proximity to

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 ...

, as well as its location in a natural harbor, Tamsui quickly became a major fishing and trade port. The Qing naval patrol also established an outpost in Tamsui in 1808. In 1862, the

Qing 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 ...

government opened Tamsui to foreign trade under the terms of the

Treaty of Tientsin The Treaty of Tientsin, also known as the Treaty of Tianjin, is a collective name for several documents signed at Tianjin (then romanized as Tientsin) in June 1858. The Qing dynasty, Russian Empire, Second French Empire, United Kingdom, and t ...

, exporting

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

camphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel (''Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the k ...

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy '' Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which ...

, and dyes. By the mid-19th century Tamsui had become the largest port in

, boasting a sizable foreign population as well as a

consulate at Fort Santo Domingo. 1895Tamsui

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

medical doctor and missionary George Leslie Mackay arrived in Tamsui on 9 March 1872, proceeding to establish Taiwan's first hospitals in Western medicine and formal educational facilities, including Oxford College (now part of

Aletheia University Aletheia University (after Greek ἀλήθεια, 'truth') () is a private university in Tamsui, New Taipei City and Madou, Tainan in Taiwan. It was founded by George Leslie Mackay as Oxford College. It has close links to the Presbyteria ...

), the oldest European-style higher-education institution in Taiwan by some measure. During 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 ...

the French attempted an invasion of Taiwan during the Keelung Campaign.

Liu Mingchuan Liu Ming-chuan (1836–1896), courtesy name Xingsan, lived in the late Qing dynasty. He was born in Hefei, Anhui. Liu became involved in the suppression of the Taiping Rebellion at an early age, and worked closely with Zeng Guofan and Li Ho ...

, who was leading the defence of Taiwan, recruited Aboriginals to serve alongside the Chinese soldiers in fighting against the French. The French were defeated at the

Battle of Tamsui The Battle of Tamsui, Danshui, or Hobe (2–8 October 1884) was a significant French defeat by the Qing dynasty at Tamsui on Taiwan during the Keelung Campaign of the Sino-French War. Background The battle of Tamsui was part of the Keelu ...

, and the Qing forces pinned the French down at Keelung in an eight-month-long campaign before the French withdrew. In 1884, the harbour of Tamsui was blockaded by the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

under the command of Admiral

Amédée Courbet Anatole-Amédée-Prosper Courbet (26 June 1827 – 11 June 1885) was a French admiral who won a series of important land and naval victories during the Tonkin Campaign (1883–86) and the Sino-French War (August 1884 – April 1885). Early year ...

, during the

. The French were defeated at the

by the Chinese and, according to traditional accounts, with the divine assistance of the Goddess

Mazu Mazu or Matsu is a Chinese sea goddess also known by several other names and titles. She is the deified form of the legendary figure Lin Mo or Lin Moniang, a Fujianese shamaness whose life span is traditionally dated from 960 to 987. ...

Japanese rule

By the time Taiwan was ceded to Japan following the end of the Sino-Japanese War in 1895, Tamsui's position as a seaport was beginning to wane due to the accumulation of sediments in the

. By the 20th century, most of Tamsui's port operations had moved to

, and the local economy had switched primarily to

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...

. However, public infrastructure construction projects by the Japanese led to Tamsui's rise as a local administrative and cultural center. In the early years of Japanese rule (1895–1945), the population of the city was nearly 6,000. From 1920, under the prefecture system, Tamsui was called , and was governed under Tamsui District of

Taihoku Prefecture Taihoku Prefecture (台北州; ''Taihoku-shū'') was an administrative division of Taiwan created in 1920, during Japanese rule. The prefecture consisted of modern-day Keelung, New Taipei City, Taipei and Yilan County. Its government office, ...

Post-war

Following the end of

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 ...

in 1945, Tamsui reverted to being a small fishing town as

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, ...

. With the expansion of nearby

Taipei City 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 ...

, Tamsui slowly became a center for tourism along Taiwan's northwest coast. In the last ten years, the city has become popular as a suburb of Taipei in the local real estate market. Following the completion of the

Tamsui Line The Tamsui line () was a Taiwanese railroad branch line, located in the cities of Taipei and New Taipei and operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA). It connected the city of Taipei with the town of Tamsui. The route is currently serve ...

in 1997, the town experienced a sharp increase in tourist traffic, reflected in the completion of several riverside parks, the growth of open-air markets specializing in traditional handicrafts and street-stall snacks, the construction of a fisherman's wharf, and the increase in passenger ferries traversing across and along the river.

Administrative divisions

Tamsui District administers forty-two urban villages ().

Climate

Education

* St. John's University *

Tamkang University Tamkang University (TKU; ) is a private university in Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It was founded in 1950 as a junior college of English literature. Today it is a comprehensive university with 11 colleges that serves nearly 25,000 ...

* Taipei College of Maritime Technology *

New Taipei Municipal Tam-Shui Vocational High School New Taipei Municipal Tam-Shui Vocational High School was founded in 1985. In 2013 it was converted to the local government, New Taipei City, and was named New Taipei Municipal Tam-Shui Vocational High School. The campus covers 12.48 hectares. ...

* New Taipei Municipal Zhuwei High School *

Tamshui Junior High School The New Taipei Tamshui Junior High School () is a junior high school in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas i ...

Tourist attractions

Drop of Water Memorial Hall The Tamsui Itteki Memorial House () is a memorial hall in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. History The memorial hall was opened on 5 April 2011 and inaugurated by New Taipei Mayor Eric Chu. Exhibitions The memorial hall houses Minakami ...

* Former British Merchant Warehouse *

* Hobe Fort * Museum of Tamsui Fishiegoodies *

Tamsui Art Gallery The Tamsui Art Gallery (TAG; ) is an arts center in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. History The site of the art gallery used to be four Japanese-style dormitories located side by side. The art gallery was opened in 2011. Architecture The ...

* Tamsui Church * Tamsui Customs Officers' Residence *

Tamsui Customs Wharf The Tamsui Customs Wharf () is a wharf in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. Until today, this is the only remaining pier in Taiwan built by the Qing Dynasty and being used as naval base today. History In 1861, Qing Dynasty established a cus ...

Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf The Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf (), officially the Tamsui Second Fishing Harbor (), is a major fishing harbor and a scenic spot on the right bank of the Tamsui River estuary, at the western tip of Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. The prede ...

* Tamsui Fuyou Temple *

Tamsui Historical Museum The Tamsui Historical Museum () is a museum in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. History The museum building used to be the British consulate. The museum was established in 2005 by the Taipei County Government. Transportation The museum ...

* Tamsui Lover's Bridge * Tamsui Lungshan Temple *

Tamsui Meteorological Observatory Tamsui District (Hokkien Pe̍h-ōe-jī, POJ: ''Tām-chúi''; Hokkien Taiwanese Romanization System, Tâi-lô: ''Tām-tsuí''; Standard Mandarin, Mandarin Pinyin: ''Dànshuǐ'') is a seaside District (Taiwan), district in New Taipei, Taiwan. It ...

Tamsui Old Street The Tamsui Old Street () is a street in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. Features The street is lined with shops selling traditional pastries, A-gei, Iron Eggs, fish balls, fried fish crackers. There are also prominent century-old Chines ...

* Tamsui Qingshui Temple * Tamsui Qingshui Deity's Grand Procession, on 6th day of 5th lunar month, an important fiesta for Tamsui District *

Tamsui Red Castle The Tamsui Red Castle () is a 19th-century mansion in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. History The building was originally called Daguanlo and was planned in 1895 and built in 1899 during the Taiwan under Japanese rule, Japanese rule of Tai ...

* Teng Feng Fish Ball Museum

Transportation

Taipei Metro

* Tamsui Station * Hongshulin Station * Zhuwei Station

Light rail

* Danhai light rail

Sister city

Chico, California Chico ( ; Spanish for "little") is the most populous city in Butte County, California. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 101,475 in the 2020 census, reflecting an increase from 86,18 ...

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

– 1985

Notable natives

* Joe Hung,

representative Representative may refer to: Politics * Representative democracy, type of democracy in which elected officials represent a group of people * House of Representatives, legislative body in various countries or sub-national entities * Legislator, som ...

to Italy (1993–2000) *

Tu Tsung-ming Tu Tsung-ming (, ja, Tō Sōmē), was the first Doctor of Medical Sciences (equivalent to Ph.D.) of Taiwan. He was born in Tamsui in 1893, trained as a physician at Taiwan Governor's Medical School, and received his doctorate degree from Kyoto Im ...

, former physician

Gallery

File:Tamsui 2.jpg, A French sketch of Tamsui in 1893 File:At the Tamsui Port ca. 1970.jpg, Tamsui Port, circa 1970 File:淡水鄞山寺.jpg, The Yinshan Temple in Tamsui, 2018 File:Tamsui Harbor, by Li Mei-shu.jpg, Tamsui Harbor (

Li Mei-shu Li Mei-shu () (13 March 1902 – 6 February 1983) was a Taiwanese painter, sculptor, and politician. Born to an upper-class family in Sankakuyū (), Japanese Taiwan (modern-day Sanxia District, New Taipei City). Education Li Meishu began to ...

, 1930) File:Tamsui by Chen Chengpuo.jpg, Tamsui (

Tan Ting-pho Tan Teng-pho (; 2 February 1895 – 25 March 1947), was a Taiwanese painter and politician. In 1926, his oil painting '' Street of Chiayi'' was featured in the seventh in Japan, which was the first time a Taiwanese artist's work could be ...

, 1935) – 91 × 116.5 cm – Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts File:Ni Jianghuai 1936.jpg, Tamsui Church (Ni Chiang-huai, 1936) – Paper, watercolor – 49.5 × 66 cm – Taipei Museum of Fine Arts File:Danshui waterfront.jpg, Tamsui waterfront at sunset File:Tamsui Long Pier-1.JPG, The sunset in front of the Long Pier of Tamsui

Sources

* History section retrieved and translated fro
Tamsui District office website

Notes

Bibliography

* *

External links

* *
Tamsui Historic MuseumWhy Tamsui people are called Tamsuian?Tamsui Travel Guide
{{Authority control History of New Taipei Districts of New Taipei