Tainan
(1999 pop. 760,000). Located on the coastal edge of the fertile Jianan Plateau, Tainan is the oldest Chinese settlement on Taiwan and the island's fourth largest city. Until the late nineteenth century, Tainan served as the political, cultural, and economic center of Taiwan. Tainan was a Dutch settlement and trading post from 1624 to 1662. In 1661 the Chinese rebel leader Zheng Chenggong (1624–1662), better known under the English name Koxinga, failed in an attempt to restore the Chinese Ming dynasty (1368–1644) and fled to Taiwan. His army quickly overcame the Dutch, and he established his government in Tainan. In 1684 the Manchurian Qing dynasty (1644–1912) conquered Taiwan and incorporated Taiwan as part of Fujian Province of China.
This history has left Tainan with a wealth of historic sites, including two forts built by the Dutch and a number of important temples. Tainan's more than two hundred temples, ranging from the Tainan Confucius Temple (1662) to the elaborate new Temple of Matzu (Goddess of the Sea) at Luermen, provide some of the best remaining examples of southern Chinese architecture in Taiwan.
Tainan is an important center of industry, education, culture, and tourism. Historically, the area has been important for sugar and rice cultivation, fisheries, oyster raising, and salt production. Tainan is now home to some of Taiwan's largest private industrial enterprises, including petrochemical and food processing plants. It is slated to become a high-tech center upon completion of the Tainan Science-Based Industrial Park in 2002.
Further Reading
Croizier, Ralph. (1977) Koxinga and Chinese Nationalism: History, Myth, and the Hero. Cambridge, MA: East Asian Research Center, Harvard University.
Rubenstein, Murray, ed. (1999) Taiwan: A New History. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.
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