Wanli District (), known in Basay as Masu, 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 ...

on the rocky seacoast in northeastern

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 ...

. Wanli is a popular tourist destination and the site of the Cape Yeliu

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 ...

Formation which features distinctive hoodoo outcrops. The "Queen's Head" outcrop is a Taiwanese icon and serves as an informal trademark for the township. Kataw in the adjacent

Jinshan District Jinshan District, is a suburban district of southwestern Shanghai, neighboring Zhejiang province and Hangzhou Bay. It has a land area of and a population of 732,500 as of the 2010 Chinese census. Jinshan District, located in the southwest of ...

features the Wanli

Taiwanese hot springs Taiwan is part of the collision zone between the Yangtze Plate and Philippine Sea Plate. Eastern and southern Taiwan are the northern end of the Philippine Mobile Belt. Located next to an oceanic trench and volcanic system in a tectonic collisi ...

area, which is connected with the Jinshan Hot Springs (金山溫泉).

History

The village of Masu (瑪鋉) was inhabited by

Taiwanese aborigines Taiwanese may refer to: * Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien * Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa) * Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan * Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan * Taiwanese people, ...

before the era of European colonization. The area first came under the control of 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, Cana ...

, who were then ousted by 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 ...

. The area began to develop when

Hoklo people The Hoklo people or Hokkien people () are a Han Chinese (also Han Taiwanese) subgroup who speak Hokkien, a Southern Min language, or trace their ancestry to Southeastern Fujian, China and known by various endonyms or other related terms such a ...

came to set up fishing operations. The

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

loyalist

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 ...

landed his troops at Wanli in 1661 to expel the Dutch from their northern strongholds while their principal fortress in

Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" ...

was under siege. In 1683, following 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 ...

conquest of Taiwan, the area was incorporated into

Zhuluo County Zhuluo County () was a political division in Taiwan from 1684 to 1787, during Qing Dynasty rule of the island. Initially encompassing the underdeveloped northern two-thirds of Taiwan, the county shrank in size as the population and economy of the ...

. In 1875, it was a member of Kimpauli (金包里堡), Kelung Sub-Subprefecture (基隆支廳). In 1891, during Qing dynasty rule, the village was destroyed by military force as punishment for engaging in raids against Chinese camphor men and soldiers near Tokoham (modern-day Daxi). When the Japanese took control of the island in 1895, Wanli (called ''Banri'' by the Japanese) became part of ''Kīrun'' Subprefecture, ''Taihoku Ken''. In 1901, a reorganisation split ''Taihoku Ken'' up into smaller prefectures, with Banri becoming part of Kinpori (Kimpauli) Subprefecture, . In 1909, Kīrun Prefecture was amalgamated into the larger . This situation remained in place until the

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

took over administration of Taiwan at 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

: Taihoku Prefecture became

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, be ...

, and Banri Village became Wanli Township.

Geography

Wanli is bordered to the northwest by

, to the northeast by the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, to the east by the Anle and

Qidu District Qidu District or Cidu District () is a district of the city of Keelung, Taiwan. It borders New Taipei to the west. History During the period of Japanese rule, included modern day Qidu and Nuannuan districts and was governed under of Taih ...

s of

Keelung Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipe ...

. To the south is a short border with

Xizhi District Xizhi () is an inner city district in eastern New Taipei City in northern Taiwan, and is located between Taipei City and Keelung City. Compared to most districts in eastern New Taipei, which are very sparsely populated, Xizhi is one of the mo ...

, and to the southwest is

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 ...

Shilin District Shilin District (also spelled Shihlin District, zh, t=士林區, p=Shìlínqū, poj=Sū-lîm-khu) is a district of Taipei. The central command center of the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) is located in Shilin. History The name ''Shilin'' w ...

. The topography of the area is marked by the rocky Pacific coastline and the forested, mountainous interior.

Administration

Since 25 December 2010 Wanli has been administered as the Wanli District of

. Prior to this date it had been the Wanli Township of Taipei County. Wanli is further subdivided into ten villages; Wanli (), Beiji (), Guihou (),

Yehliu Yehliu () is a cape in Wanli District, New Taipei, Taiwan. The cape, known by geologists as the Yehliu Promontory, forms part of the Daliao Miocene Formation. It stretches approximately into the ocean and was formed as geological forces p ...

(), Dapeng (), Huangtan (), Shuangxing (), Xidi (), Kanjiao (), and Zhongfu (). Prior to the 2010 reorganisation Wanli elected its own mayor, but now as a district of New Taipei City the District Chief is appointed by the mayor of New Taipei City.

Economy

The crabbing industry is important, and in 2012 the government established the Wanli Crab brand name to boost sales.

Infrastructure

* Kuosheng Nuclear Power Plant

Tourist attractions

Yehliu Ocean World The Yehliu Ocean World () is an oceanarium in Yehliu Village, Wanli District, New Taipei, Taiwan. History The oceanarium was opened in 1980. On 13 July 2013, the building was hit by surge of waves caused by Typhoon Soulik causing NT$5 millio ...

* Feicui Bay (翡翠灣) * Wanli UFO village, a large collection of prefabricated

Futuro A Futuro house, or Futuro Pod, is a round, prefabricated house designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen, of which fewer than 100 were built during the late 1960s and early 1970s. The shape, reminiscent of a flying saucer, and the structure' ...

and

Venturo Venturo or Venturo House is a prefabricated house designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen in 1971. It is composed of fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic, polyester-polyurethane, and acrylic glass. In the late 1960s Suuronen became known ...

homes

Notable natives

Huang Yee-ling Huang Yee-ling (born Huang Ming-chu on 20 September 1969) is a Taiwanese Hokkien pop singer. She has released 32 Hokkien pop albums since 1987, and 3 Japanese albums between 1988 and 1990. She won Golden Melody Award for Best Female Hokkien sin ...

, singer *

William Lai William Lai Ching-te (; born 6 October 1959) is a Taiwanese politician who has been the Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2020. He served as a legislator in the Legislative Yuan from 1999 to 2010, and as Mayor of Tainan from ...

Premier of the Republic of China The Premier of the Republic of China, officially the President of the Executive Yuan (Chinese language, Chinese: 行政院院長), is the head of the government of the Republic of China of Taiwan and leader of the Executive Yuan. The premier ...

References

{{Authority control Districts of New Taipei