Taishan

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Location of Taishan within Guangdong province.

Taishan (Taishanese: Hoisan [hɔi˨san˧]; Chinese: 台山; Cantonese: Toisan; Mandarin: Taishan; Other: Toishan, Toisaan) is a coastal county-level city in Guangdong Province, China. The city is located in the Pearl River Delta, southwest of Jiangmen (to which it administratively belongs) and 140 kilometers west of Hong Kong, with a population of approximately 1 million. It contains 95 islands and islets, including the largest island in Guangdong, Shangchuan Island. It is one of four county-level cities in an area known as Sze Yup (四邑, four counties).

Because it is estimated that over 75% of all overseas Chinese in North America until the mid- to late-20th century claimed origin in Taishan, the city is also known as the "Home of Overseas Chinese."^[1][2] As late as 1988, those with ancestry from Taishan accounted for 70% of Chinese Americans.

Taishanese speak the Taishan dialect of Chinese, which is derived from and somewhat similar to Cantonese. Before the 1980s, Taishanese was the predominant Chinese language spoken throughout North America's Chinatowns.^[2] It is the de facto language of Taishan.

History

On February 12, 1499 in the 12th year of the reign of the emperor Hongzhi during the Ming Dynasty, Taishan was founded as Xinning County (新宁县) from land in the southwest of Xinhui County. Xinning has also been romanized as Sunning, Sinning, Hsinning, Hsînnîng, and Llin-nen.

From 1854 to 1867 a genocidal war broke out mainly in Taishan County between the Punti and Hakka people with disastrous results for both sides.

In 1914, Xinning was renamed Taishan to avoid confusion with the Xinnings of Hunan and Sichuan.^{[citation needed]} Unfortunately it is now confused in English with Taishan Mountain in Shandong Province.

On April 17, 1992, Taishan's status was upgraded from county (县) to county-level city (县级市).^{[citation needed]}

Education

Education in the city of Taishan enjoys significant support from overseas Chinese professionals and businessmen^[2]. Many secondary schools were built and financed by Chinese living in the SAR (Hong Kong and Macau) and various foreign countries, such as the US, Canada and Brazil. To their credit, almost no strings are attached to their beneficence.^{[citation needed]}

To honor their benefactors, these schools often bear their names or the names of their parents. An outstanding example is the Pengquan Middle School (鹏权中学), which was constructed during 1999–2001, and is now integrated into the city's public school system. It is situated on the west side of the city, and was built by a Hong Kong businessman.^{[citation needed]}

Primary and secondary education is generally excellent for the region.^{[citation needed]}

The only university is the Deng Xiaoping-era Television University (电视大学), which mostly services high school dropouts and adults seeking additional education credentials for jobs they already have.^{[citation needed]}

Local high school students usually try to attend universities outside the city, in Guangzhou and Jiangmen. Admissions to prestigious universities are rare, but a few students succeed each year, with most attending Tsinghua and Beijing University.^{[citation needed]}

Administration

Taishan is under the jurisdiction of Jiangmen. In a jurisdiction of 3,286 km², Taishan contains 20 townships (镇), which are subdivided into 503 village residential committees (村居委会) and 3,655 natural villages (自然村).

These townships (镇) are:

• Baisha (白沙镇)
• Beidou (北陡镇): separated from the other townships by Zhenhai Bay (镇海湾) inlet
• Chixi (赤溪镇)
• Dajiang (大江镇)
• Doushan (斗山镇)
• Duhu (都斛镇)
• Guanghai (广海镇)
• Haiyan (海宴镇): contains an overseas Chinese farm (华侨农场)
• Nafu (那扶镇)
• Duanfen (端芬镇)
• Sanba (三八镇)
• Sanhe (三合镇)
• Shangchuan (上川镇): islands; Tourism Open Integrated Experimental Zone (旅游开发综合试验区)
• Shenjing (深井镇)
• Shuibu (水步镇)
• Sijiu (四九镇)
• Taicheng (台城镇): contains downtown and the city seat
• Wencun (汶村镇)
• Xiachuan (下川镇): islands; Tourism Open Integrated Experimental Zone (旅游开发综合试验区)
• Chonglou (冲蒌镇)
• Paobu (泡步镇)

These "natural villages" (自然村) include:

• An Nan Jiang Chao (安南江潮)
• Bei Hou (庇厚)
• Tang Mien Pao
• Jilong
• guanbuli (官步里)

Transportation

Taishan is currently accessible by bus and hydrofoil ferry. There is a bus station in Taicheng and a port at GongYi on the Tan River which flows into the Pearl River Delta.

Up until the Japanese War, there was a limited railway system constructed by Chen Yixi linking various parts of Taishan with Jiangmen, then known as Kong Moon. It was one of only three built, owned and run by Chinese during the years prior to the Communist Revolution of 1949.^[3]

Demographics

Today, some 1.3 million people living overseas can trace their ancestry to Taishan, outnumbering those who now live in Taishan.^[4] According to American historian Him Mark Lai, approximately 430,000 or 70% of Chinese Americans in the 1980s were Taishanese according to 1988 data.^[5] Currently some 500,000 Chinese Americans claim Taishanese origins.^[5]

An office of the local Taishan Bureau of Overseas Chinese can help to arrange visits of overseas Chinese people.^[6]

Some notable people that are from Taishan include:

• Anna May Wong - The first Chinese American movie star.
• Julius Chan - Former Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea of An Nan Jiang Chao village in Doushan.
• Flora Chan - Hong Kong actress and singer.
• Chin Siu Dek (aka Jimmy H. Woo) - Martial Artist of Sanba and a Grandmaster of Kung Fu San Soo.
• Alan Chin - Notable San Francisco Bay Area contemporary artist
• Raymond Kwok Chow (aka Shrimp Boy) -- San Francisco Chinatown mobster, Dragon Head of the San Francisco Chapter Chinese Freemasons
• Adrienne Clarkson - Former Governor General of Canada of Sijiu.
• Hiram Fong (aka Hiram Kwong) - Former US Senator from Hawaii.
• Matt Fong (aka Matt Kwong) - Former Treasurer of the State of California.
• James Hong - Actor in United States famous for roles in Big Trouble in Little China, Balls of Fury and others.
• James Wong Howe - Master cinematographer of Hollywood.
• Eric Kwong - Noted investor.
• Norman Kwong - Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta & professional football player, president & manager of the Calgary Stampeders.
• Justin Lee - Cardiovascular specialist of Seattle WA.
• Tony Leung - Actor.
• Gary Locke - Commerce Secretary of the US and Former Governor of Washington of Shuibu.
• Andrea Louie - Scholar, actress, model, singer and fashion designer.
• John Tsang - Financial Secretary of Hong Kong.
• William Poi Lee - San Francisco author who wrote The Eighth Promise.
• Wong Ka Keung - Member of Hong Kong band Beyond.
• Wong Ka Kui - Lead singer of Hong Kong band Beyond.
• Wong Kim Ark - Defendant in United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898).
• Wong Koon Chung - Member of Hong Kong band Beyond.
• Myolie Wu - Hong Kong actress and singer.
• Jack Yan - Magazine publisher of New Zealand.
• Yip Sai Wing - Member of Hong Kong band Beyond.
• Patrick Yu - Hong Kong lawyer and Crown Counsel, and founder of its first law school.
• Donnie Yen - Hong Kong Chinese martial artist and actor, film director, fight choreographer, and producer
• Eddie Liu - Minor Brisbane celebrity.

References

External links

• China Taishan Web
• Taishan City Government
• Chinese Genealogy
• Taishan Genealogy
• Map of Taishan
• Taishan Merchant Web
• Hoisanese to English Dictionary

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Taishan

Coordinates: 22°14′55″N 112°47′06″E / 22.24861°N 112.785°E / 22.24861; 112.785