Hualien County

Last updated
Hualien County

花蓮縣
County
Hualien County Montage.png
Top:Liyu Lake, Second left:A cigarette product house in Fenglin, Second right:Taroco Gorge in Cross Island Highway, Third left:Qixingtan Beach in Xincheng, Third right:Hualien Railroad Station, Bottom left:Cingshui Cliffs near Suhua Highway, Bottom right:A paddy field in Shoufeng, backyard in Central Mountain Range
Flag of Hualien County.svg
Flag
Emblem of Hualien County 2010.svg
Logo
Taiwan ROC political division map Hualien County.svg
Coordinates: 23°58′34″N121°36′17″E / 23.97611°N 121.60472°E / 23.97611; 121.60472 Coordinates: 23°58′34″N121°36′17″E / 23.97611°N 121.60472°E / 23.97611; 121.60472
Country Taiwan
RegionEastern Taiwan
Seat Hualien City
Largest cityHualien City
Boroughs1 cities, 12 (2 urban, 10 rural) townships
Government
 • County Magistrate Hsu Chen-wei (KMT)
Area
 • Total4,628.5714 km2 (1,787.1014 sq mi)
Area rank 1 of 22
Population
 (December 2014)
 • Total333,392 [1]
 • Rank 20 of 22
Time zone UTC+8 (National Standard Time)
ISO 3166 code TW-HUA
Website www.hl.gov.tw
Symbols
BirdMaroon Oriole (Oriolus traillii)
Flower Lotus (Nymphaeaceae)
TreePeepul (Ficus religiosa)
Hualien County
Traditional Chinese 花蓮 縣

Hualien County (Mandarin Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien² Hsien⁴; Pīnyīn: Huālián Xiàn; Hokkien POJ: Hoa-lian-koān or Hoa-liân-koān; Hakka PFS: Fâ-lièn-yen; Amis: Kalingko) is a county on the east coast of Taiwan. It is the largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous terrain, has one of the lowest populations in the country. The county seat and largest city is Hualien City.

Contents

Most of the population resides in the Huadong Valley, which runs north to south, sandwiched between the Central and Hai'an mountain ranges. Due to the rural nature of the county, Hualien attracts many visitors for its natural environment, which includes Taroko Gorge, Qingshui Cliff and Qixingtan Beach.

History

Early history

Modern-day Hualien City was originally called Kiray (Chinese :奇萊; Pe̍h-ōe-jī :Kî-lâi), after the Sakiraya Taiwanese aborigines and their settlement. [2]

Spanish settlers arrived in 1622 to pan for gold. Picking up the sounds of native words, these settlers called the area Turumoan (多羅滿; To-lô-boán). Han Chinese settlers arrived in 1851. Qing Dynasty records give the name of the region as Huilan (洄瀾; Hoê-liân; 'eddies') due to the whirling of waters in the delta.

Empire of Japan

During Taiwan's Japanese colonial period (1895-1945) the island's Japanese governors opted not to transliterate the name "Kiray" because the Japanese pronunciation of the word resembled the Japanese word for "dislike, disgusting" (嫌い, kirai). The official name became Karenkō (花蓮港, Karenkō). Karenkō Prefecture consisted of modern-day Hualien County. Toward the end of World War II the Governor-General of Taiwan moved many Japanese residents of Taiwan to the area to develop agriculture.

Republic of China

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the Republic of China in October 1945, Hualien was established as a county named Hualien County of Taiwan Province on 9 January 1946. In 1951 Hualien was the first county in Taiwan to be governed according to the ROC local autonomy law. Today the Hualien area serves as the key population centre on the east coast as well as the one of five main life circle regions in Taiwan, together with Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung.

2021 train derailment

On 2 April 2021, a Taroko Express derailed at the north entrance of Qingshui Tunnel after striking an unattended flatbed truck that had fallen onto the tracks. The accident is the deadliest train accident in Taiwan since 1948, with at least 50 passengers reported dead and more than 150 injured.

Geography

Central Mountain Range Taiwan 2009 HuaLien City Roadside Cemetery FRD 8181.jpg
Central Mountain Range
Hualien (1951) Txu-oclc-6557994-index-453.jpg
Hualien (1951)

Hualien County is situated in eastern Taiwan Island. It faces the Pacific Ocean towards Japan (Okinawa Prefecture) to the east, Central Mountain Range to the west bordering Taichung City, Nantou County and Kaohsiung City, Yilan County to the north and Taitung County to the south. It stretches around 137.5 km (85.4 mi) from north to south with its width ranging from 27 to 43 km (17 to 27 mi) long from east to west. Its area is about 4,628.57 km2 (1,787.10 sq mi) and occupies one eighth of Taiwan's total area.

Despite its vast area, only 7% of the county area is populated. The remaining area is occupied by rivers (7%) and mountains (87%). Mountains are composed of Central Mountain Range in the west and Hai'an Range in the east. The main rivers in the county are the Hualian River, Xiuguluan River and their branches. The plains stretch along the valleys between both mountain ranges with a width around 3–6 km (1.9–3.7 mi). Due to the restriction of its landscape, Hualien people reside mostly on the alluvial fans of the Huatung Valley plains. [3]

Government

Hualien County Council Hua Lian Xian Yi Hui .jpg
Hualien County Council
Hualien City, the county seat of Hualien County. Hua Lian Che Zhan Yuan Tiao .jpg
Hualien City, the county seat of Hualien County.

Administrative divisions

Hualien County is divided into 1 city, 2 urban townships, 7 rural townships and 3 mountain indigenous townships. Some towns have Japanese names because these towns were named by Japanese during the Japanese ruling period from 1895 to 1945. Hualien City is the county seat and houses the Hualien County Government and Hualien County Council. [4]

TypeNameChinese [5] Taiwanese POJ Hakka Formosan Japanese Origin
City Hualien City 花蓮 市 Hoa-lian or
Hoa-liân 		Fâ-liènKalinko Amis , Nabakuwan Sakizaya Karenkō (花蓮港)
Urban
townships 		Fenglin 鳳林 鎮 Hōng-lîm Fung-lìmMarlimu Amis
Yuli 玉里 鎮 Gio̍k-lí Ngiu̍k-lîPosko Amis Tamasato (玉里)
Rural
townships 		Fengbin 豐濱 鄉 Hong-pin Fûng-pînFakon Amis , Bakung Kavalan Toyohama (豊浜)
Fuli 富里 鄉 Hù-lí Fu-lîKongpo Amis Tomisato (富里)
Guangfu 光復 鄉 Kong-ho̍k Kông-fu̍kFata'an Amis
Ji'an 吉安 鄉 Kiat-an Kit-ônCikasuan Amis Yoshino (吉野)
Ruisui 瑞穗 鄉 Sūi-sūi or
Sūi-hūi 		Lui-suiKohkoh Amis Mizuho (瑞穂)
Shoufeng 壽豐 鄉 Siū-hong Su-fûngCiamengan Amis Kotobuki (寿)
Xincheng 新城 鄉 Sin-siâⁿ Sîn-sàngSinjiyu Truku , Takidis Amis
Mountain
indigenous
townships 		Wanrong 萬榮 鄉 Bān-êng Van-yùngMalibasi Truku
Xiulin (Sioulin) 秀林 鄉 Siù-lîm Siu-lìmBsuring Truku
Zhuoxi 卓溪 鄉 Toh-khe Cho̍k-hâiTakkei Bunun

Colors indicate the common language status of Hakka and Formosan languages within each division.

Politics

Hsu Chen-wei, the incumbent Magistrate of Hualien County. Xu Wei Yuan Zhen Wei (Di Jiu Jie ).jpg
Hsu Chen-wei, the incumbent Magistrate of Hualien County.

Hualien County voted one Democratic Progressive Party legislator to be in the Legislative Yuan during the 2016 Republic of China legislative election. [6] The incumbent Magistrate of the county is Hsu Chen-wei of the Kuomintang.

Climate

Climate data for Hualien City (1991-2020 average)
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Average high °C (°F)21.4
(70.5)		21.9
(71.4)		23.6
(74.5)		26.2
(79.2)		28.7
(83.7)		30.9
(87.6)		32.4
(90.3)		32.2
(90.0)		30.7
(87.3)		28.3
(82.9)		25.8
(78.4)		22.8
(73.0)		27.1
(80.8)
Daily mean °C (°F)18.3
(64.9)		18.6
(65.5)		20.3
(68.5)		22.8
(73.0)		25.3
(77.5)		27.3
(81.1)		28.7
(83.7)		28.4
(83.1)		27.0
(80.6)		24.9
(76.8)		22.5
(72.5)		19.7
(67.5)		23.7
(74.7)
Average low °C (°F)15.8
(60.4)		16.2
(61.2)		17.6
(63.7)		20.1
(68.2)		22.5
(72.5)		24.7
(76.5)		25.6
(78.1)		25.4
(77.7)		24.2
(75.6)		22.2
(72.0)		19.9
(67.8)		17.2
(63.0)		21.0
(69.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)43.4
(1.71)		49.7
(1.96)		76.4
(3.01)		78.9
(3.11)		218.9
(8.62)		149.6
(5.89)		152.8
(6.02)		243.3
(9.58)		269.4
(10.61)		290.4
(11.43)		184.0
(7.24)		86.9
(3.42)		1,843.8
(72.59)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 63.662.480.998.4124.0192.6270.8226.8191.1132.490.059.31,592.1
Source: Central Meteorological Bureau [7]

Demographics and culture

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1985 361,549—    
1990 352,233−2.6%
1995 358,981+1.9%
2000 353,630−1.5%
2005 345,303−2.4%
2010 338,805−1.9%
2015 331,945−2.0%
Source: "Populations by city and country in Taiwan". Ministry of the Interior Population Census.
Population density around the county (December 2009). Population density map of Hualien (Dec 2009).svg
Population density around the county (December 2009).

Population

Hualien County has 333,392 inhabitants as of December 2014 and is divided into 1 city and 12 townships. Its late development means that many aboriginal cultures such as Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Truku, Sakizaya and Kavalan are well-preserved. As of 2014, aborigines make up 27.5% of the population of Hualien County (about 91,675). [8] The Hakka people comprise about 30% of inhabitants. [1]

The county has seen negative population growth since the early 2000s due to emigration to other places outside Hualien County, with an average reduction of 1,393 people per year over the past 18 years.

According to a 2015 survey on national happiness index, Hualien County was rated as the happiest place to live in Taiwan among other 20 counties and cities due to the residents happiness driven by strong levels of satisfaction with work-life balance, living condition, education, environmental quality and the performance of the local government. [9]

Belief

The internationally famous Buddhist Tzu Chi foundation is headquartered in Hualien City. There are also many temples around the county. Buddhism and Folk religions are popular in Hualien County. [10] Hualien County also has the highest concentration of Roman Catholics in Taiwan at 9.46% of the population. [11]

Sports

Hualien County is home to the Hualien Stadium and Hualien Baseball Stadium.

Because of its awesome scenic view, fresh air, fine weather, and plenty of well-maintained bike trails, Hualien County is a popular destination for cyclist enthusiasts and marathon runners. Many cycling tournaments and marathon events are held each year in Hualien County. For example, Taiwan KOM Challenge [12] and Taroko Gorge Marathon. [13]

Economy

Cement plant in Xincheng Township. Xincheng Hualien Taiwan Asia Cement Corporation-03.jpg
Cement plant in Xincheng Township.

There is cement mining activity in the county. The Asia Cement Corporation plant in Xincheng Township contributes nearly 29% of Taiwan's annual cement production. [14]

Education

National Dong Hwa University Library Guo Li Dong Hua Da Xue Tu Shu Guan National Dong Hwa University Library.jpg
National Dong Hwa University Library

The Hualien County Department of Education lists in all 6 institutions of higher learning within the county's borders as well as 15 high schools, 35 junior high schools and 151 elementary schools, though some of the listed elementary campuses have been closed for years due to their remote location or to low enrollments. Hualien County is home to National Dong Hwa University, Tzu Chi University, Taiwan Hospitality and Tourism University, Tzu Chi University of Science and Technology and Dahan Institute of Technology.

Energy

Hoping Power Plant He Ping Fa Dian Chang .png
Hoping Power Plant

Hualien County houses the hydroelectric Bihai Power Plant with an installed capacity of 61.2 MW and coal-fired Hoping Power Plant with a capacity of 1,320 MW, the fourth largest coal-fired power plant in Taiwan. Both power plants are located in Xiulin Township.

Due to the power plant, Hoping is also the location of a deep water bulk cargo port. Hoping port is located in Hoping Village, Xiulin Township. [15]

Tourist attractions

Taroko National Park Taiwan 2009 HuaLien Taroko Gorge Temple FRD 6719.jpg
Taroko National Park

Nature

National parks in the county are Matai'an Wetland Ecological Park, Taroko National Park and Yushan National Park. The county is also home to several mountains and cliffs, such as Hehuan Mountain, Pingfeng Mountain, Qilai Mountain and Qingshui Cliff. Other natural areas include the Liyu Lake, Shihtiping, Mugua River Gorge, Walami Trail, Niushan Huting, East Rift Valley, Rareseed Ranch, Lintianshan Forestry Culture Park and Qixingtan Beach.

Museums

Museums and historical buildings in Hualien County include Dongli Story House, Hualien Sugar Factory, Pine Garden, Saoba Stone Pillars, Hualien Cultural and Creative Industries Park, Lintian Police Substation and Old Lintian Police Station, Chihsing Tan Katsuo Museum and Hualien County Stone Sculptural Museum.

Theme parks

Farglory Ocean Park is in Hualien County.

Places of worships

Hualien Martyrs' Shrine, Eternal Spring Shrine, Xiangde Temple and Hualien Al-Falah Mosque are located in the county.

Markets

Night markets in the county are Dongdamen Night Market.

Transportation

Hualien Airport HuaLien Airport.jpg
Hualien Airport

Relative location

See also

Related Research Articles

Nantou County County in Taiwan, Republic of China

Nantou County is the second largest county of Taiwan, located in the central part of the country. It is also the only landlocked county in Taiwan. Its name derives from the Hoanya Taiwanese aboriginal word Ramtau.

Taroko National Park

Taroko National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and was named after the Taroko Gorge, the landmark gorge of the park carved by the Liwu River. The park spans Taichung Municipality, Nantou County, and Hualien County and is located at Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan.

Pingtung County County of Taiwan

Pingtung County is a county in Southern Taiwan. It has a warm tropical monsoon climate and is known for its agriculture and tourism. Kenting National Park, Taiwan's oldest and largest national park, is located in the county. The county seat is Pingtung City.

Taitung County County in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Taitung County is the third largest county in Taiwan, located primarily on the island's southeastern coast and also including Green Island, Orchid Island and Lesser Orchid Island.

Taitung line

The Taitung Line, also known as the Hua-Tung line, is the southern section of the Eastern Line of the Taiwan Railways Administration. The line starts at the Hualien station and ends at the Taitung station. It is 161.5 km long, including the main segment of 155.7 km between Hualien and Taitung.

Huadong Valley

The Huadong Valley or Hualien–Taitung Valley, also known as East Rift Valley or the Longitudinal Valley, is a long and narrow valley located between the Central Mountain Range and the Coastal Mountain Range. It is also recognized as a plain area which stretches for about 180 kilometers near the eastern coast of Taiwan, passes from Hualien City at the north to Taitung City at the south. It was called Nakasendō Plain or simply Nakasendō during the era of Japanese rule.

Fenglin, Hualien Place in Taiwan Province, Taiwan

Fenglin Township, is an urban township in central Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located in Huatung Valley bordering Shoufeng Township on the north and Guangfu Township on the south. It has a population of around 11,237 inhabitants in 12 villages.

Shoufeng Rural township

Shoufeng Township is a rural township in Hualien County, Taiwan. The township sits in the north segment of Huadong Valley between Taiwan's Central Range and Hai'an Range near the Pacific Ocean. The township is best known as the location of National Dong Hwa University (NDHU), a national research university and famous tourist attraction in East Taiwan.

Jian, Hualien Place in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Ji'an Township, is a rural township in Hualien County, Taiwan. It has 18 villages and a population of 83,750 inhabitants.

Hualien railway station

Hualien is a railway station in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan served by Taiwan Railways Administration. It is the terminal station of North-link line and the starting station of Taitung line.

Xincheng, Hualien Place in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Xincheng Township or Sincheng Township is a rural township located in north of Hualien County, Taiwan, and has a population of 20,286 inhabitants and 8 villages. It is also the smallest township in Hualien County.

Xiulin, Hualien Place in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Xiulin Township / Sioulin Township is a mountain indigenous township of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located northwest of Hualien City, and is the largest township in Taiwan by area (1,641.86 km²) with 9 villages. It has a population of 15,494, most of which are the indigenous Taroko people.

Ruisui Place in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Ruisui Township is a rural township located in southern Hualien County, Taiwan, and has a population of 12,107 inhabitants in 11 villages.

Guangfu, Hualien Rural township in Hualien County, Taiwan

Guangfu Township is a rural township located in mid Huatung Valley between Central Mountain Range and coastal Range of Hualien County, Taiwan. The indigenous Amis people make up about half of the population. The main economical activity is agriculture.

Provincial Highway 9 (Taiwan)

Provincial Highway No. 9 is an important highway across eastern Taiwan from Taipei City to Fangshan, Pingtung, Pingtung County. This provincial highway, at 476.1 km long, is the longest provincial highway in Taiwan and passes the regions of Taipei City, New Taipei City, Yilan County, Hualien County, Taitung County and Pingtung County.

Provincial Highway 11 (Taiwan)

Provincial Highway 11, also known as Hualien-Taitung Coastal Highway for its connection between Hualien County and Taitung County is located on the east coast of Taiwan. This highway, which is 178.229 km, begins in Hualien City and ends in Taitung City. It also has 3 branch lines. The East Coast National Scenic Area and Farglory Ocean Park are also located on this highway. It was called Tōkaidō during Japanese rule period.

Hualien City County-administered city in Hualien County, Taiwan

Hualien City is a county-administered city and the county seat of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located on the east coast of Taiwan on the Pacific Ocean, and has a population of 106,368 inhabitants.

Wanrong, Hualien Place in Eastern Taiwan, Taiwan

Wanrong Township or Wanrung Township is a mountain indigenous township located in the west of Hualien County, Taiwan, and has a population of 6,530 inhabitants and 8 villages.

Dazhuang, Hualien County, Taiwan

Dazhuang is a community located in Tungli Village, Fuli Township in Hualien County, Taiwan. Dazhuang used to be an old community of Amis, until 1845 when some plain indigenous people started to migrate from Southern Taiwan to here. It was the most populous community in Fuli between Qin dynasty and Japanese occupation period, and so called the name Tuā-tsng, which means "a big village" in Taiwanese.

Liwu River River in Hualien County, Taiwan

The Liwu River is a river entirely located in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. The deep gorges of Taroko National Park are formed by this river.

References

  1. 1 2 "Aborigines now make up 28% of Hualien County". Archived from the original on 2015-02-16. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
  2. ↑ 撒奇萊雅族_認識本族. TAIWAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLES CULTURE PARK. Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  3. ↑ 縣府各樓層平面圖 - 花蓮縣政府全球資訊服務網-首頁. Archived from the original on 2018-07-23. Retrieved 2014-08-27.
  4. ↑ "INTERVIEW: Hualien commissioner Fu targets debt". Archived from the original on 2014-09-08. Retrieved 2014-09-01.
  5. ↑ 現在的花蓮 [Today's Hualien]. 花蓮縣政府全球資訊網. 17 October 2018. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019. 秀林鄉． 新城鄉． 花蓮市．吉安鄉． 壽豐鄉． 鳳林鎮．光復鄉． 萬榮鄉． 瑞穗鄉．豐濱鄉． 玉里鎮． 卓溪鄉．富里鄉
  6. ↑ "2016 The 14th Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and The 9th Legislator Election". Archived from the original on 2017-01-22. Retrieved 2016-01-17.
  7. ↑ "CWB Observation Data Inquire System". CWB Observation Data Inquire System . Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Amis remains Taiwan's biggest aboriginal tribe at 37.1% of total". Archived from the original on 2015-02-16. Retrieved 2015-02-16.
  9. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-10-04. Retrieved 2015-10-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ↑ 花蓮市公所-英文版-. Archived from the original on 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2014-08-27.
  11. ↑ Cheney, David M. "Mr". Catholic Hierarchy. Archived from the original on 14 March 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  12. ↑ "2015 Taiwan KOM Challenge". Archived from the original on 2015-06-28. Retrieved 2015-06-25.
  13. ↑ "Taroko Gorge Marathon 2016". Event Carnival. Archived from the original on 2015-05-11. Retrieved 2015-06-25.
  14. ↑ Kuo, Chia-erh (13 June 2017). "Asia Cement denies mine site in Hualien expanded". Taipei Times. Archived from the original on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  15. ↑ Guide to Port Entry (2016 ed.). London, UK: Fairplay publications. 1 January 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.