Yilan County 宜蘭縣[I] Giran, I-lan, Ilan | |
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 Top row: Confluence of theDongshan River andLanyang River withGuishan Island in view; second (from left to right):Yilan railway station, Su'ao Port; third:Su'ao Cold Spring,Luodong Night Market, bottom:Institute of Yilan County History | |
 Flag  Logo | |
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| Coordinates:24°45′2″N121°45′33″E / 24.75056°N 121.75917°E /24.75056; 121.75917 | |
| Country |  Taiwan |
| Province |  Taiwan Province(streamlined) |
| Seat | Yilan City |
| Townships/cities | |
| Government | |
| • Body | |
| • Magistrate | Lin Mao-sheng (acting) |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,143.6251 km2 (827.6583 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 6 of 22 |
| Population (September 2023) | |
• Total | 450,031 |
| • Rank | 17 of 22 |
| • Density | 209.939/km2 (543.740/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (National Standard Time) |
| ISO 3166 code | TW-ILA |
| Website | enwww |
| Symbols | |
| Flower | Cymbidium |
| Tree | Chinese flame tree (Koelreuteria formosana) |
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| Traditional Chinese | 宜蘭縣 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Yilan,[I][1] alternately spelledI-lan,[2] is acounty in northeasternTaiwan. Yilan is the northernmost county on the island of Taiwan, with a population of 450,031. Its seat is located inYilan City.
Before the Han ChineseWu Sha led his company into large-scale reclamation in today’s Yilan in 1787, the area was mainly inhabited by the indigenousKavalan people. During theJapanese rule, much of the present day Yilan County was part ofJapan within itsTaihoku Prefecture. When theRepublic of China took over Taiwan in 1945, it became part ofTaipei County until 10 October 1950 when 12 southeastern townships of Taipei County split off to form the present day Yilan County.
The nameYilan derives from theindigenousKavalan people. Other former names in reference to this area in theYilan Plain includeKabalan,[3]Kavalan,Kavaland,kap-a-lan,Yiland andGilan. Before 2009, the county's official name was transliterated asIlan.
Since early ages, many people have traveled from far places to Yilan.Indigenous tribes that have settled in Yilan areKavalan people andAtayal people.
The Kavalan people came by the sea and lived by the river atYilan Plain since around 1,000 years ago. They mostly speak theAustronesian languages. Their settlements consisted of small villages along rivers with around 40–50 communities scattered around the area with a total population of approximately 10,000 people. The Atayal people came by crossing the Xiyuan Pass and settled in the mountain areas.
The Atayal people arrived in Yilan around 250 years ago and settled along the upper Dazhuoshui River. Later, the tribes crossed theSiyuan Pass to reach the valley upstream of theZhuoshui River. These people are the current residents ofDatong Township. Other parts of the Atayal people headed east to enter and settle along the Nan'ao North River and Heping North River. These groups are now settled inNan-ao Township.
Around 200 years ago, at the end of the 18th century, theHan Chinese traversed the mountain range and settled in Yilan. Large populations began taming the wilderness, cultivating the fields and building irrigation channels. They used various means to seize lands from the Kavalans. Some Kavalans left their homes while some others migrated southwards toHualien andTaitung coastlines and established settlements.[4]
TheSpaniards began arriving inTaiwan in the 17th century. In 1626, the Spaniards led an invasion under the pretext of ship crews having been slain by Taiwanese barbarians. They then torched harbors and surrounding villages, and even went as far as taking overSu'ao Town and established a city called Saint Lorenzo.
The Spaniards were subsequently ousted by theDutch who had taken over the southern part of Taiwan and establishedDutch Formosa. In 1640, the Dutch began contacting Han Chinese merchants for trade and levying taxes on various commercial goods. The merchants had to pay all company taxes but also enjoyed the right to monopolize trade.
During theKingdom of Tungning era, the previous economy monopoly system developed during theDutch Formosa continued to be practiced.
When the Qing dynasty annexed Taiwan, they established theKavalan sub-prefecture in Yilan. In 1806, armed conflicts broke out among various ethnic immigrants, followed by pillaging by pirates. TheQing dynasty government subsequently realized that if they continued to disregard the Kavalan people and did not establish rule of law and a system of defense, Yilan would become a haven for criminals and outlaws, a thorn in the side for Taiwan. In 1809,Jiaqing Emperor incorporated Kavalan into the domain of theempire. Troops were dispatched to quell pirate attacks and chart local territory.
Local government systems in Taiwan underwent many changes during the Qing dynasty period. But with regards to administrative levels lower than the county, including local villages, there were no major changes. The earliest organization and planning of Yilan consisted of seven citadels. In 1835, the seven citadels were further divided into 12 citadels based on the needs of the changing population and environment. This arrangement remained unchanged until the end of Qing dynasty rule.[5]
After theMudan Incident in 1874, Qing rulers changed their passive attitude and took a more ambitious approach in ruling Taiwan. The original aboriginal termKavalan district was renamed with a more Han-centricYilan name and the administrative system was also changed accordingly from the original temporary "district" to a formally governed "county".[6] In 1875, the newly createdTaipeh Prefecture included modern-day Yilan County.
After theFirst Sino-Japanese War in 1894, the Qing government handed over Taiwan toJapan in accordance with theTreaty of Shimonoseki. Modern-day Yilan County covers Giran District (宜蘭郡), Ratō District (羅東郡), Suō District (蘇澳郡) and Giran City (宜蘭市) as they existed from 1920 to 1945, all underTaihoku Prefecture, duringJapanese rule.
After thehandover of Taiwan from Japan to theRepublic of China in October 1945, the present-day area of Yilan County was incorporated underTaipei County. On 10 October 1950,Yilan County was established as acounty ofTaiwan Province withYilan City as thecounty seat.[7] In 1998, the government streamlined Taiwan Province and Yilan County became administered by the Executive Yuan while the remaining institutions of this province have been dissolved in 2018.
Yilan County sits on theYilan Plain, a combined alluvial plain created byLanyang River and other minor streams with a rough shape of triangle. On the threevertices of the triangle sit theToucheng,Sanxing andSu-ao Townships with a roughly equal distance of 30 km on the three sides. TheXueshan Range sits on the northwest of Yilan County from Toucheng to Sanxing. The county is geographically divided into the cliffs and the plains. TheCentral Mountain Range sits to the south from Sanxing to Su'ao.[8]
The Upper Lanyang River is steep and therapidcurrent is highly erosive. Large amount ofsilt carried by the river have little time to settle because of the high slope of the lands where it flows out of the mountains and valleys. Analluvial fan is formed as a result of scattered sand andgravel settling down. Large amount of gravel accumulate in the shallowstream bed, creating alluvial fans that often forms into web-like pattern. The river tends to change courses after floods caused by heavy rainfall or river overflow. The Lanyang River slows down as it reaches mid and downstream where silt begins to settle.
Yilan County is located in the northeastern Taiwan Island which covers an area of 2,143 km2. The longest distance from east to west is 63 km and from north to south is 74 km. From the mountain areas downwards, the land falls in altitude in the stages of mountains, alleys, alluvial plains, lowlands, swamps, sand hills and finally coastline.
Yilan'sToucheng Township includesGuishan Island andGuiluan Island. TheSenkaku Islands, known in Mandarin as theTiaoyutai Islands, are claimed as part of the township.[9]
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Yilan County is administered as acounty ofTaiwan Province.Yilan City is thecounty seat which houses theYilan County Government andYilan County Council. The county is headed by MagistrateLin Zi-miao of theKuomintang.
Yilan County is divided into 1city, 3urban townships, 6rural townships and 2mountain indigenous townships.[10]
| Type | Name | Chinese | Taiwanese | Hakka | Formosan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City | Yilan City | 宜蘭市 | Gî-lân | Ngì-làn | KebalanKavalan |
| Urban townships | Luodong | 羅東鎮 | Lô-tong | Lò-tûng | RutungKavalan |
| Su'ao(Suao) | 蘇澳鎮 | So-ò/So·-ò | Sû-o | ||
| Toucheng | 頭城鎮 | Thâu-siâⁿ | Thèu-sàng | ||
| Rural townships | Dongshan | 冬山鄉 | Tang-soaⁿ | Tûng-sân | |
| Jiaoxi | 礁溪鄉 | Taⁿ-khe/Taⁿ-kheⁿ | Tsiâu-hâi | ||
| Sanxing | 三星鄉 | Sam-sing | Sâm-sên | ||
| Wujie | 五結鄉 | Gō·-kiat | Ńg-kiet | ||
| Yuanshan | 員山鄉 | Îⁿ-soaⁿ | Yèn-sân | ||
| Zhuangwei (Jhuangwei) | 壯圍鄉 | Chòng-ûi | Tsong-vì | ||
| Mountain indigenous townships | Datong | 大同鄉 | Tāi-tông | Thai-thùng | TaytoAtayal |
| Nan'ao | 南澳鄉 | Lâm-ò | Nàm-o | Nan'aoAtayal |
Colors indicate the common language status ofFormosan languages within each division.
Yilan County voted oneDemocratic Progressive Party legislator out of one seat to be in theLegislative Yuan during the2016 Republic of China legislative election.[11]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 449,981 | — |
| 1990 | 450,943 | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 465,043 | +3.1% |
| 2000 | 465,186 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 460,426 | −1.0% |
| 2010 | 460,486 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 458,117 | −0.5% |
| Source:"Populations by city and country in Taiwan".Ministry of the Interior Population Census. Archived fromthe original on 2017-12-16. Retrieved2016-05-01. | ||
TodayHan Chinese comprises the majority of the population in Yilan County.[4]
Education related affairs in Yilan County is governed by the Education Department ofYilan County Government. The county houses several public and private universities and colleges such as theNational Ilan University,National Lan-Yang Girls' Senior High school,National Yilan Senior High School,Lan Yang Institute of Technology and St. Mary's Medicine Nursing and Management College.
Yilan County has 40 MW renewable energy capacity from anincinerator plant and twohydroelectric power plants.[12] It houses theQingshui Geothermal Power Plant.
Yilan County was the host for the 2009Asian Rowing Championships.[13]
TheYilan Line andNorth-Link Line ofTaiwan Railways Administration pass the county. Train stations within the two lines in the county areShicheng,Dali,Daxi,Guishan,Wai-ao,Toucheng,Dingpu,Jiaoxi,Sicheng,Yilan,Erjie,Zhongli,Luodong,Dongshan,Xinma,Su'aoxin,Su'ao,Yongle,Dong-ao,Wuta andHanben Station.
On 21 October 2018, it was the site of atrain derailment that killed 18 passengers and injured 178.[20]
Harbors in the county includeWushi Harbor.
字詞 【宜蘭縣】 注音 ㄧˊ ㄌㄢˊ ㄒㄧㄢˋ 漢語拼音 yí lán xiàn
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)另轄兩小島（龜山島及龜卵嶼）及一群島（釣魚臺列嶼）。
Cities and townships ofYilan County | ||
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| Cities | | |
| Urban townships | ||
| Rural townships | ||
| Mountain indigenous townships | ||
| Geographic | |
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| Other | |
