Taipei Briefing

TaipeChapter 1 i Taipei Briefing Taipei was originally the home of the Ketagalan tribe, but it was later taken over by the Chinese Han. Generation after generation, Taipei, with its unique geography and varied history, has amassed abundant treasures and a rich cultural heritage over the centuries. Historic traditions, earpolitical reforms, agricultural and business development y have all fostered the growth of the city of Taipei. Its readily accessible inheritance clearly shows the evolution of Taipei City and reveals its possibilities for progress in politics, bookprosperity and its profuse humanity. 臺北市年鑑 Ta i p e i Ye a r b o o k 2 0 0 5 Taipei Briefing Taipei 臺北概況 River) and the Beitou River flow through the city, and merge with the Danshui River at Guandu and aipei City is located in the northern part of Taiwan Island; it includes the northeastern part of the meander into the Taiwan Strait at Danshui. The TTaipei Basin and the neighboring hill area. It is completely surrounded by Taipei County. On its riverbanks served as trading areas in the early northern and eastern flanks, together with the hill area and Keelung Valley, it borders with Danshui, days, such as Mengjia and Dadaocheng; they were Sanzhi, Jinshan, Wanli, Xizhi, Shiding, and Shenkeng; its western and southern borders include the once vital business towns, and the cradle for future Danshui River and its tributaries, the Xindian River & the Jingmei River, and the communities of Xindian, cultural developments. Zhonghe, Yonghe, Banqiao, Sanchong, Luzhou and Wugu. 2. Topography Segments Ⅰ Geographic Overview In terms of the terrain and geological structure of Taipei City, there are three basic topographical features: volcanoes, hills and a basin. Mountains The northern boundary of Taipei reaches up occupy 8.49% of the total area, while the basin to Little Peak, south of Zhuzishan Mountain, Zhishan Cliff in the1930’s. occupies 86.33%, with rivers occupying the which marks the borders between Beitou District, remaining 5.08%. Details are as below: Sanzhi and Jinshan Township; the eastern edge extends to Nangang District and defines the (1) Volcanic Areas border between Xizhi and Shiding; the southern The volcanic region of the city is part of the Datun Volcanoes. It consists of several cone- and bell- rim marks the border between Wenshan District shaped andesite volcanoes. The most prominent ones are: Qixing, Shamao, Xiaoguanyin, Datun, and and Xindian City; Guandu Notch divides Beitou Miantian. They are all extinct volcanoes, but they continue to have some post-volcanic activities up to the District and Wugu and also marks the western present. limit. The length of the city from north to south is (2) Hill District approximately 7 km, while the width from east Most of the sedimentary-rock-formed hill district is located on the southeast end of the city. Such hills to west is around 18 km; the city’s circumference belong to the Taiwan western dash fault upland; due to their western location on the northern end of the measures 16 km and its total area is 71.7997 island, their low altitude and insignificant undulation, they are categorized as hills instead of mountains. km²; it is the most spacious city on the island. The hill district was mainly formed by new tertiary strata, the orogeny having occurred during the initial quaternary strata period. The Keelung River Valley divides the Taipei hill district into south and north; the 1. Topographic Overview northern part is Neihu Hill, and the southern part is Nangang Hill. The terrain in Taipei is at a higher elevation in A. Neihu Hill its northeastern and southeastern parts; it mainly Neihu Hill refers to the area south of the Shuangxi River Valley to the Keelung River Valley, which forms the western gate of the Great Wulun Mountain. It has a cuesta structure of east-north-east Front of Taipei Railway Station during the Japanese occupation. consists of volcanoes and hills, which take up more than half of the city’s area. The terrain is towards west-south-west. The major mountains are Wuzhi Mountain (699m), Lingtou Mountain high and expansive, especially in the northern (451m), Zhongyong Mountain (332m), Yuanjue Peak (70m), Jinmian Mountain (46m), Jinan Datun Volcano region. The area between the north Mountain (15m), and Jiantan Mountain (15m). The ridge descends from north to south and from east and south hill district, by contrast, is made up of to west, and eventually amalgamates into the Taipei Basin. low-lying and flat terrain characteristic of basin/ B. Nangang Hill river valley topography, which slants slightly Nangang Hill refers to the hill district extending from south of the Keelung River Valley to north of the towards the northwest. Qingtan River Valley, and includes Nangang and the area west of Fushi Mountain. The southeastern The Jingmei, Xindian and Danshui rivers flow peak of Cige Mountain is the tallest with an altitude of 678 meters; none of the other mountains reach along the southern and western rim of Taipei 00 meters. The more prominent mountains include Muzhi Mountain (75m), Dailaokeng Mountain City; the Keelung River and its tributaries, the (70m), Jingmei Mountain (15m) and Toad Mountain (15m); the terrain descends in a direction Shuangxi River, the Ziming River (the Sulphur from east to west. The area was mainly formed during the Miocene epoch; Ruifang and the Yeliu Rock 臺北市年鑑 Ta i p e i Ye a r b o o k 2 0 0 5 Taipei Briefing Taipei 臺北概況 Cluster are located in the middle and lower ends of the district, respectively, and feature rich formations of sandstone shale alternation, which is a rather remarkable topology. Ⅱ History Development and Origins (3) Basin District Taipei City is nestled in the center of the Taipei Basin in northern Taiwan. Based on geological Taipei is a formative basin; a fault surrounds the bottom of the basin and makes the border quite evidence, the Taipei Basin used to be a large swamp in prehistoric times, but through countless years of significant; the shape is a slight isosceles triangle. The tip of the triangle is located in the northwest, with sedimentation, it developed into a basin. In Yu Yonghe’s “Great Sea Journal”, one reads: “after entering the Danshui River flowing out of the basin at that point. The bottom of the triangle slants in a direction Guanda Notch (i.e., Guandu Notch), it suddenly widened up into a boundlessly large lake; it stretched for from east-north-east towards west-south-west; the eastern tip is adjacent to the Keelung River Valley, more than ten kilometres (Chinese km=1/ of western km) and was surrounded by mountains; the whole while the western tip overlaps the Dahan River Valley, and the Xindian River Valley is located in the lower area covered more than a hundred square kilometres, with a plain located in the center.” It is the Taipei half of the triangle. In the basin, the Keelung River streams forward freely in a curve, while the Dahan Basin that Yu was referring to. River and the Xindian River flow in a distinct reticular pattern. The above three rivers merge in the middle of the basin, then flow down to Guandu Notch and finally stream down into Taiwan Strait. The base of 1. The Arrival of the Ketagalan Tribe the basin is quite flat, and slants to the northwest from the southeast. The basin plain, in which Taipei City The Chinese Han people arrived and developed the Taipei Basin. It served as the habitat of the nestles, starts from the eastern banks of the Xindian River and the Danshui River; it extends to the above- aboriginal Ketagalan Tribe; they made a living by picking, fishing, hunting and foraging. mentioned volcanoes and the foot of the hill district. The whole area extends south from Jingmei, north to Guandu and east to Nangang. The line marking the foothills around the edge of the basin plain is quite 2. A Dutch/Spanish Colony and Return to China by Zheng Cheng-gong of sinuous; in places it reveals the shape of a protruding peninsula or a concave inner harbor. Little island- shaped hills are not unusual, such as Qilian Hill and Jiantan Hill, which integrate into the plain; Yuanshan, the Ming Dynasty In the16th century, Chinese junks would Zhishan Cliff, and Gongguan Mountain on the other hand are all isolated hills. The river terrace formed by sail along the coastlines of the Taiwan Strait; the ancient Taipei Lake still exists; in general, the terrace faintly tilts toward the center of the basin, which trading and fishing developed in the Keelung reveals the water level during the oceanic denudate. and Danshui regions. In 16, the Dutch invaded Dayuan (now Anping, Tainan); and in 166, the 3. Climate Overview Spanish occupied Keelung and Danshui, where From the topographic section, we learned that Taipei City consists of both hills and a plain. Due to the they built fortresses and commenced missionary influence of geography, the climate also shows obvious spatial variations. Temperatures decrease as the and business activities. In 1661, Koxinga, Zheng altitude increases; variations in winter are greater than those in summer. With data provided by the Central Chenggong, landed at the Luer Gateway, set siege Weather Bureau from the Taipei Observation Station in 005, the following information pertains to the to the Relanzhe Fortress, expelled the Dutch and Taipei Plain: reclaimed Taiwan. The Chengtian Government Annual accumulated rainfall: 07.8 millimeters was established, Qing Dynasty, Taiwan Yamen-government office. Most rainfall in a single day: 16 millimeters (05.05.005) and the counties of Annual number of rainy days: 17 days Wannian and Tianxing counties were formed.

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