Changhua (Hokkien POJ: Chiong-hòa or Chiang-hòa), officially known as Changhua City, is a county-administered city and the county seat of Changhua County in Taiwan. For many centuries the site was home to a settlement of Babuza people, a coastal tribe of Taiwanese aborigines. Changhua city is ranked first by population among county-administered cities. It is part of the Taichung–Changhua metropolitan area, which is the second largest in Taiwan.

Changhua
彰化市
Shōka
View of the Great Buddha on Baguashan at Changhua City
View of the Great Buddha on Baguashan at Changhua City
Official seal of Changhua
Nickname: 
Bamboo Town (半線城)
Location of Changhua
Coordinates: 24°04′N 120°32′E / 24.067°N 120.533°E / 24.067; 120.533
Country Taiwan
ProvinceTaiwan Province
CountyChanghua County
Government
 • TypeCounty-controlled city
 • MayorLin Shih-shen
Area
 • Total65.68 km2 (25.36 sq mi)
Population
 (March 2023)
 • Total226,564
 • Density3,400/km2 (8,900/sq mi)
ISO 3166 codeTW-CHA
Websitewww.changhua.gov.tw/english/ Edit this at Wikidata
Changhua City
Chinese彰化
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinZhānghuà Shì
Bopomofoㄓㄤ   ㄏㄨㄚˋ   ㄕˋ
Gwoyeu RomatzyhJanghuah Shyh
Wade–GilesChang¹-hua⁴ Shih⁴
Tongyong PinyinJhanghuà Shìh
Yale RomanizationJānghwà Shr̀
MPS2Jānghuà Shr̀
IPA[ʈʂáŋ.xwâ ʂɻ̩̂]
Hakka
Pha̍k-fa-sṳChông-fa-sṳ
Southern Min
Hokkien POJChiong-hòa-chhī or
Chiang-hòa-chhī
Tâi-lôTsiong-huà-tshī or
Tsiang-huà-tshī

Historically, Changhua city was a base for the Han Chinese when they invaded Taiwan against the Taiwanese aborigines, constructing a fortress built out of bamboo. Changhua has a nickname of "Bamboo Town".

Changhua is best known for its landmark Great Buddha Statue of Baguashan. At 26 metres tall, the statue sits atop Bagua Mountain overlooking the city. The main walkway up to the giant is lined with statues of figures from Buddhist lore. Another site of interest is Taiwan's oldest temple honoring Confucius.

History

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Poasoa (transliterated into Chinese: 半線; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Pòaⁿ-sòaⁿ) was once a center of settlement for the Babuza people (a plains aboriginal tribe). During the Dutch period, the area was under the administration of Favorlang (modern-day Huwei, Yunlin) and was controlled by the Dutch East India Company. During the Siege of Fort Zeelandia, the area was also one of Koxinga's central defense and attack bases. During the Chinese immigration of the 17th century, Changhua city was one of the four cities that had major immigration; it was one of the oldest Han Chinese settlements.

By 1694, Poasoa Village (半線庄) had been established. During the late 17th to late 19th century the area continued to be one of the major urban settlements in central Taiwan. In 1723, Changhua County was established, following the Zhu Yigui rebellion. Despite that, rebellions and civil wars continued.

Empire of Japan

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The origin of the modern Changhua City is attributed to the Japanese administration, as they made the city into the official county seat in 1897 under Taichū Ken (Japanese: 臺中縣). During this era, the Japanese pronunciation Shōka came into use, alongside the "Chinese spellings" of "Changwha, Changhwa, Changhoa, Chanhue, Chan-hua, Tchanghoua".[1]

In 1901, the local administrative unit Shōka Chō (彰化廳) was established,[2] but this merged with Taichū Chō (臺中廳) in 1909. In 1920, Shoka was governed under the new Taichū Prefecture. In 1933, Ōtake Village (大竹庄) and Nankaku Village (南郭庄) were merged with Shōka Town and upgraded to Shōka City.

Republic of China

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After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the Republic of China on 25 October 1945, Changhua City was established as provincial city of Taiwan Province on 25 December the same year. On 30 November 1951, the Changhua City Office was established and subsequently on 1 December 1951, it was downgraded to county-administered city and became the county seat of Changhua County.[3]

Geography

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Changhua city has plenty of flat lands, however, the flat lands are divided in two portions by the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan. One on the South Eastern area and the other on the North Western area. The North Eastern area, although being flat, is often affected by soil erosion caused by typhoons during the summer, thus is not suitable for living.

The temperature of Changhua city on average is 22.4 °C (72.3 °F), annually, with July being the hottest and January being the coolest. Annual rainfall is 1,723.4 mm (67.85 in), June being the wettest and November being the driest. Rainfall decreases westward closer to the coastline.

Climate

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Climate data for Changhua (Dacun) (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1995–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 30.3
(86.5)
33.6
(92.5)
33.8
(92.8)
34.1
(93.4)
36.0
(96.8)
36.7
(98.1)
39.2
(102.6)
36.9
(98.4)
37.1
(98.8)
36.1
(97.0)
33.6
(92.5)
31.9
(89.4)
39.2
(102.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 21.6
(70.9)
22.3
(72.1)
24.2
(75.6)
27.3
(81.1)
30.0
(86.0)
32.0
(89.6)
33.2
(91.8)
32.5
(90.5)
31.9
(89.4)
29.9
(85.8)
27.2
(81.0)
23.4
(74.1)
28.0
(82.3)
Daily mean °C (°F) 16.4
(61.5)
17.1
(62.8)
19.5
(67.1)
23.0
(73.4)
25.9
(78.6)
27.8
(82.0)
28.9
(84.0)
28.4
(83.1)
27.5
(81.5)
24.8
(76.6)
21.9
(71.4)
18.2
(64.8)
23.3
(73.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 12.8
(55.0)
13.5
(56.3)
16.0
(60.8)
19.5
(67.1)
22.6
(72.7)
24.7
(76.5)
25.5
(77.9)
25.4
(77.7)
24.3
(75.7)
21.4
(70.5)
18.3
(64.9)
14.5
(58.1)
19.9
(67.8)
Record low °C (°F) 3.8
(38.8)
5.2
(41.4)
4.0
(39.2)
10.0
(50.0)
15.5
(59.9)
17.8
(64.0)
22.5
(72.5)
22.7
(72.9)
17.2
(63.0)
14.7
(58.5)
8.2
(46.8)
5.1
(41.2)
3.8
(38.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 27.8
(1.09)
51.4
(2.02)
62.8
(2.47)
93.8
(3.69)
187.3
(7.37)
260.5
(10.26)
216.9
(8.54)
243.5
(9.59)
104.6
(4.12)
19.9
(0.78)
21.3
(0.84)
27.1
(1.07)
1,316.9
(51.84)
Average precipitation days 4.4 5.4 6.7 7.1 8.6 10.3 8.8 10.2 5.3 2.6 3.0 3.6 76
Average relative humidity (%) 79.0 79.8 80.1 81.5 82.6 82.0 79.8 82.8 80.5 77.8 78.6 77.1 80.1
Mean monthly sunshine hours 171.8 150.2 161.0 161.8 189.5 198.1 228.6 208.7 207.7 215.5 167.1 165.3 2,225.3
Source: Central Weather Administration (precipitation days 1995–2020, sun 1991–2015)[4]

Government

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Changhua City office

Changhua contains the Changhua County Government and Changhua County Council.

Administrative divisions

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Changhua City is divided into the following villages (in romanized alphabetical order):

Anxi, Ayi, Baobu, Chenggong, Citong, Datong, Dazhu, Fuan, Fugui, Fushan, Futian, Fuxing, Guangfu, Guanghua, Guangnan, Guashan, Guosheng, Guyi, Hediao, Huabei, Huayang, Jiadong, Jianan, Jianbao, Jieshou, Kuaiguan, Longshan, Lunping, Minquan, Minsheng, Nanan, Nanmei, Nanxing, Nanyao, Niupu, Pinghe, Sancun, Shipai, Taifeng, Taoyuan, Tianzhong, Tungfang, Tungxing, Wanan, Wanshou, Wenhua, Wuquan, Xiabu, Xian Xiangshan, Xiangyang, Xingbei, Xinhua, Xinxing, Xinyi, Xishi, Xixing, Yangming, Yanhe, Yanping, Yongfu, Yongsheng, Zhangan, Zhangle, Zhongquan, Zhongshan, Zhongxiao, Zhongyang, Zhongzheng, Zhongzhuang, Zhuanyao, Zhuxiang and Zhuzhong.

Economy

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Changhua City is one of the more developed areas of Changhua County, industrialization has been ongoing since the 1970s. This is reflected by an increase of factories in Changhua and decreasing amount of agricultural fields. From a poll in 1992, 43.2% of respondents worked in the service sector, 42.4% in the industrial sector and only 14.4% in either the agricultural or fishing sector.

Education

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National Changhua University of Education
 
Changhua City library

The earliest school in Changhua dated back to 1726 during the Qing dynasty. The Japanese administration also improved the education system in Changhua City. Changhua City has 15 elementary schools, 7 junior high schools, 7 senior high schools and 2 technical schools/universities.

Universities

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High schools

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Libraries

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Tourist attractions

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The Great Buddha statue in Changhua
 
Changhua Arts Hall
 
Changhua Roundhouse

Transportation

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Changhua Train Station
 
Changhua Bus Station

Changhua Station is the only Taiwan Railways Administration station in Changhua City.

Freeway 1 connects Changhua City to Taichung City and is one of the primary route for commuters between the two cities. Freeway 3 intersects with Freeway 1 at Changhua and connects to Provincial Highway 74.

Other events

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On 25 May 2002, China Airlines Flight 611 broke into pieces in mid-air. Parts of the plane landed in Changhua.[8][9]

Notable people

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  • Johanna Schipper (known as "Johanna"; born 1967), comics artist and short story writer

References

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  1. ^ Davidson, James Wheeler (1903). The Island of Formosa, Past and Present : history, people, resources, and commercial prospects : tea, camphor, sugar, gold, coal, sulphur, economical plants, and other productions. London and New York: Macmillan. p. 261. OL 6931635M.
  2. ^ Davidson (1903), p. 597.
  3. ^ "Get to Know Changhua City". Changhua City Office. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  4. ^ "農業氣象觀測網監測系統 : 臺中農改(72G600)". Central Weather Administration. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
  5. ^ "National Changhua University of Education - NCUE". educations.com.
  6. ^ "Chienkuo Technology University, Changhua 建國科技大學". tealit.com.
  7. ^ "1895 Baguashan Anti-Japanese Martyrs' Museum - - Attractions - Travel in Changhua County". chcg.gov.tw.
  8. ^ "Changhua," BBC
  9. ^ "225 die in China Airlines crash," The Independent
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