Keelung 基隆市 Jilong, Ke-lung, Chilung, San Salvador de Pacán | |
|---|---|
| Keelung City | |
 Skyline of Keelung  Keelung Outer Harbor andKeelung Islet | |
 Flag  Logo | |
| Nickname: The Rainy Port (雨港) | |
 Location in Taiwan | |
| Coordinates:25°08′N121°44′E / 25.133°N 121.733°E /25.133; 121.733 | |
| Country |  Republic of China (Taiwan) |
| Province |  Taiwan Province(streamlined) |
| Region | Northern Taiwan |
| Districts | 7[1] |
| Founded asLa Santisima Trinidad | 1626 |
| Part ofTaihoku Prefecture | 17 April 1895 |
| Provincial city status | 11 November 1945 |
| City seat | Zhongzheng District |
| Government | |
| • Body | |
| • Mayor | George Hsieh (KMT) |
| Area | |
• Total | 132.7589 km2 (51.2585 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 18 of 22 |
| Population (October 2023)[2] | |
• Total | 362,487 |
| • Rank | 16 of 22 |
| • Density | 2,730.42/km2 (7,071.74/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (National Standard Time) |
| Postal code | 200–206 |
| Area code | (0)32 |
| ISO 3166 code | TW-KEE |
| – Bird | Eagle |
| – Flower | Common crepemyrtle |
| – Tree | FormosanSweet-gum |
| English | Keelung/KLC |
| Chinese | 基隆/基市 |
| Website | www |
| Keelung City | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 基隆市 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Taiwanese Hokkien Name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 雞籠市 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 鸡笼市 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Japanese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kanji | 基隆市 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kana | キールンし | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hiragana | きーるんし | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Katakana | キールンシ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Keelung (/kiːˈlʊŋ/kee-LUUNG;[3]Chinese:基隆;pinyin:Jīlóng;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Ke-lâng),Chilung orJilong (/dʒiːˈlʊŋ/jee-LUUNG), officially known asKeelung City, is a major portcity in northeasternTaiwan. The city is part of theTaipei–Keelung metropolitan area with neighboringNew Taipei City andTaipei. Nicknamed theRainy Port for its frequent rain and maritime role, the city is Taiwan's second largestseaport (afterKaohsiung), and was the world's 7th largest port in 1984.
In 1626, the Spanish established Fort San Salvador at present-day Keelung, an area inhabited byTaiwanese indigenous peoples. Control of the area eventually passed to theQing dynasty. Fighting between China and Europeans around Keelung occurred in the 19th century during theFirst Opium War and theSino-French War. The island of Taiwan was ceded to theEmpire of Japan in 1895 after theFirst Sino-Japanese War; underJapanese rule the city was calledKirun. Keelung became part ofTaiwan Province under theRepublic of China after 1945. Administratively, the city became a first-level subdivision in 2018 after the provincial government was abolished.
According to early Chinese accounts, this northern coastal area was originally calledPak-kang (Chinese:北港;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Pak-káng).[4] By the early 20th century, the city was known to the Western world asKelung,[5] as well as the variantsKiloung,Kilang andKeelung.[6] In his 1903 general history of Taiwan, US Consul to Formosa (1898–1904)James W. Davidson related that "Kelung" was among the few well-known names, thus warranting no alternateJapanese romanization.[7]
However, the Taiwanese people have long called the cityKelang (Chinese:雞籠;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Ke-lâng/Koe-lâng;lit. 'rooster cage', 'hencoop" or "chicken coop'[8]). While it has been proposed that this name was derived from the local mountain that took the shape of a rooster cage, it is more likely that the name was derived from the first inhabitants of the region, as are the names of many other Taiwanese cities. In this case, theKetagalan people were the first inhabitants, and earlyHan settlers probably approximated "Ketagalan" withKe-lâng (Ketagalan:ke- -an, "domain marker circumfix" +TaiwaneseHokkien儂／人;lâng; 'person'), with the noun root and thesuffix part of the circumfix replaced together with the commonTaiwanese Hokkien term for people, shortening the circumfix to just itsprefix part.
In 1875, during the lateQing era, a new official name was given (Chinese:基隆;pinyin:Jīlóng;lit. 'base prosperous').[9] InMandarin, probably the working language of Chinese government at the time, both the old and new names were likely pronouncedGīlóng (hence "Keelung").
UnderJapanese rule (1895–1945), the city was also known to the west by the Japanese romanizationKiirun.[10]
InTaiwanese Hokkien, the native language of the area, the city is calledKe-lâng. InHanyu Pinyin, the most common romanization system forMandarin Chinese, the name of Keelung is written asJīlóng (the shift fromg[k] toj[t͡ɕ] is a recent development in the Beijing dialect; seeOld Mandarin).[11][12]
.jpg)
Keelung was first inhabited by theKetagalan, a tribe ofTaiwanese aborigine. TheSpanish expedition to Formosa in the early 17th century was its first contact with the West; by 1624 the Spanish had builtSan Salvador de Quelung, a fort in Keelung serving as an outpost of theManila-basedSpanish East Indies.[13] TheSpanish ruled it as a part ofSpanish Formosa. Besides the native Taiwanese aborigines, the Spanish authorities from Spanish Manila settled North Taiwan (especially Keelung andTamsui) with a mixture ofSangleyChinese (primarilyFujianese traders),Christian Japanese,native Filipinos (e.g.Kapampangan,Tagalogs, etc.) as merchants and laborers,[14] and someMexican Mestizos,Mulattos,Blacks,Mexican Amerindians as soldiers and laborers and a fewSpanish Filipinos fromSpanish Philippines and rarelyMexicanCriollo Spaniards fromNew Spain (Mexico) asCatholicfriar missionaries and colonial leaders, with theLatin Americans fromNew Spain (Mexico) brought over to North Taiwan from Manila through theManila-Acapulco Galleons.[15] From 1642 to 1661 and 1663–1668, Keelung was underDutch control.[16][17] TheDutch East India Company took over the Spanish Fort San Salvador atSantissima Trinidad. They reduced its size and renamed it Fort Noort-Hollant.[17] The Dutch had three more minor fortifications in Keelung and also a little school and a preacher.
WhenMing dynasty loyalistKoxinga successfully attacked the Dutch in southern Taiwan (Siege of Fort Zeelandia), the crew of the Keelung forts fled to the Dutch trading post in Japan. The Dutch came back in 1663 and re-occupied and strengthened their earlier forts. However, trade with Qing China through Keelung was not what they hoped it would be and, in 1668, they left after getting harassed by aboriginals.[18]
During theFirst Opium War, the Britishmerchant shipNerbudda shipwrecked near theport of Keelung due to a typhoon in September 1841. Several months later, another British merchantman, thebrigAnn, also shipwrecked near Keelung on March 1842. Hundreds of survivors from both ships were captured by Chinese authorities and transferred toTaiwan. Two senior Chinese officials, Dahonga and Yao Ying, filed a false report to theDaoguang Emperor, claiming to have beaten off a British attack against Keelung. In October 1841, theRoyal Navy sloopHMSNimrod sailed to Keelung to search for survivors ofNerbudda, but after they found out the Chinese sent them south for imprisonment,Nimrod bombarded the city's port, destroying 27 cannon before returning toBritish Hong Kong. Most of the survivors—over 130 from theNerbudda and 54 from theAnn—weresummarily executed by the Chinese in August 1842.[19][20]
In 1863, the Qing Empire opened up Keelung as a trading port and the city enjoyed rapid development due to the abundant commodities such as placer gold and high quality coal found in the drainage area ofKeelung River. In 1875,Taipeh Prefecture was created and included Keelung. In 1878, Keelung was formed into ating or sub-prefecture.[21] Around the same time, the name was changed fromKe-lang (雞籠廳) toKilong (基隆廳), which means "rich and prosperous land".[9]
The city suffered serious damage and lost hundreds of inhabitants during anearthquake and tsunami in 1867. The earthquake had an estimated magnitude of 7.0 and was caused by movement on a nearbyfault.[22]
During the Sino-French War (1884–85), the French attempted an invasion of Taiwan during the Keelung Campaign.Liu Mingchuan, who led the defence of Taiwan, recruited Aboriginals to serve alongside the Chinese soldiers in fighting against the French ofColonelJacques Duchesne's Formosa Expeditionary Corps. The French were defeated at theBattle of Tamsui and the Qing forces pinned the French down at Keelung in an eight-month-long campaign before the French withdrew.[23][verification needed]
A systematic city development started during the Japanese Era, after the 1895Treaty of Shimonoseki, which handed all Taiwan over to Japan. A five-phase construction of Keelung Harbor was initiated, and in by 1916 trade volume had exceeded even those of Tamsui and Kaohsiung Harbors to become one of the major commercial harbors of Taiwan.[24]
Keelung was governed as Kīrun town (基隆街), Kīrun District,Taihoku Prefecture in 1920 and was upgraded to a city in 1924.[24] ThePacific War broke out in 1941, and Keelung became one of the first targets of Allied bombers and was nearly destroyed as a result.[24][25]
After thehandover of Taiwan from Japan to theRepublic of China in October 1945, Keelung was established as aprovincial city ofTaiwan Province. TheKeelung City Government worked with the Keelung Harbor Bureau[26] to rebuild the city and the harbor and by 1984, the harbor became the 7th largest container harbor in the world.[27] The city became directly governed by theExecutive Yuan after Taiwan Province was streamlined in 1998 and became ade facto first level division in 2018 following the dissolution of theTaiwan Provincial Government.
Keelung City is located in the northern part of Taiwan Island. It occupies an area of 132.76 km2 (51.26 sq mi) and is separated from its neighboring county by mountains in the east, west and south. The northern part of the city faces the ocean and is a great deep water harbor since early times.[28] Keelung also administers the nearbyKeelung Islet as well as the more distant and strategically importantPengjia Islet,Mianhua Islet andHuaping Islet.[29][30]
Keelung has ahumid subtropical climate (KöppenCfa) with a yearly rainfall average upwards of 3,700 millimetres (146 in). It has long been noted as one of the wettest and gloomiest cities in the world; the effect is related to theKuroshio Current.[31] Although it is one of the coolest cities of Taiwan, winters are still short and warm, whilst summers are long, relatively dry and hot, temperatures can peek above 26 °C during a warm winter day, while it can dip below 27 °C during a rainy summer day, much like the rest of northern Taiwan. However its location on northern mountain slopes means that due toorographic lift, rainfall is heavier during fall and winter, the latter during which a northeasterly flow prevails. During summer, southwesterly winds dominate and thus there is a slightrain shadow effect. Fog is most serious during winter and spring, when relative humidity levels are also highest.
| Climate data for Keelung (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1946–present） | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 32.1 (89.8) | 31.2 (88.2) | 33.0 (91.4) | 35.2 (95.4) | 37.3 (99.1) | 37.6 (99.7) | 38.8 (101.8) | 38.5 (101.3) | 37.0 (98.6) | 34.3 (93.7) | 32.4 (90.3) | 30.0 (86.0) | 38.8 (101.8) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 18.4 (65.1) | 19.1 (66.4) | 21.0 (69.8) | 24.7 (76.5) | 28.0 (82.4) | 31.2 (88.2) | 33.3 (91.9) | 32.5 (90.5) | 29.8 (85.6) | 26.1 (79.0) | 23.6 (74.5) | 20.1 (68.2) | 25.7 (78.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 16.1 (61.0) | 16.4 (61.5) | 18.1 (64.6) | 21.6 (70.9) | 24.8 (76.6) | 27.6 (81.7) | 29.5 (85.1) | 29.1 (84.4) | 27.2 (81.0) | 24.2 (75.6) | 21.5 (70.7) | 18.0 (64.4) | 22.8 (73.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 14.2 (57.6) | 14.3 (57.7) | 15.7 (60.3) | 19.0 (66.2) | 22.3 (72.1) | 25.0 (77.0) | 26.7 (80.1) | 26.5 (79.7) | 25.0 (77.0) | 22.4 (72.3) | 19.6 (67.3) | 16.1 (61.0) | 20.6 (69.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 3.9 (39.0) | 5.6 (42.1) | 3.9 (39.0) | 9.2 (48.6) | 13.9 (57.0) | 16.7 (62.1) | 21.4 (70.5) | 20.1 (68.2) | 17.1 (62.8) | 12.2 (54.0) | 9.7 (49.5) | 4.6 (40.3) | 3.9 (39.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 327.8 (12.91) | 349.8 (13.77) | 274.4 (10.80) | 211.0 (8.31) | 284.1 (11.19) | 290.4 (11.43) | 119.5 (4.70) | 211.4 (8.32) | 390.1 (15.36) | 377.6 (14.87) | 396.9 (15.63) | 356.6 (14.04) | 3,589.6 (141.33) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.1 mm) | 19.6 | 17.9 | 18.7 | 16.0 | 16.1 | 14.8 | 8.5 | 11.6 | 15.2 | 17.1 | 18.6 | 19.5 | 193.6 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 78.5 | 79.5 | 79.0 | 77.4 | 77.4 | 76.9 | 71.9 | 73.6 | 75.3 | 75.6 | 77.1 | 76.6 | 76.6 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 52.6 | 57.9 | 80.6 | 91.2 | 111.9 | 138.4 | 229.2 | 208.2 | 147.4 | 85.7 | 65.3 | 48.5 | 1,316.9 |
| Source: Central Weather Bureau[32][33][34][35][36] | |||||||||||||
Zhongzheng District is the seat of Keelung City which houses theKeelung City Government andKeelung City Council. The currentMayor of Keelung isGeorge Hsieh of theKuomintang.
Keelung has seven (7)districts:[1]
| Map | Name | Chinese | Taiwanese | Hakka | Population (October 2023) | Area (km²) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Zhongzheng | 中正區 | Tiong-chèng | Tsûng-tsang | 50,693 | 10.2118 | |
| Zhongshan | 中山區 | Tiong-san | Tsûng-sân | 45,523 | 10.5238 | ||
| Ren-ai[1][37] | 仁愛區 | Jîn-ài | Yìn-oi | 41,159 | 4.2335 | ||
| Xinyi(Sinyi) | 信義區 | Sìn-gī | Sin-ngi | 53,399 | 10.6706 | ||
| Anle | 安樂區 | An-lo̍k | Ôn-lo̍k | 80,452 | 18.0250 | ||
| Nuannuan | 暖暖區 | Loán-loán | Nôn-nôn | 38,455 | 22.8283 | ||
| Qidu | 七堵區 | Chhit-tó͘ | Tshit-tù | 52,806 | 56.2659 | ||
Keelung City is represented in theLegislative Yuan by Lin Pei-hsiang, orJonathan Lin,[38] of the Kuomintang, who was elected in 2024.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 234,442 | — |
| 1970 | 324,040 | +38.2% |
| 1980 | 344,867 | +6.4% |
| 1990 | 348,586 | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 387,504 | +11.2% |
| 2010 | 381,809 | −1.5% |
| 2020 | 367,264 | −3.8% |
| Source:[39][40] | ||
In 2023, Keelung had a population of 362,255, a year-on-year increase of 2.02% but a decrease of 2.90% from 2014. About 70.11% were of working age (15-64 years), 9.65% were children (0-14 years), and 20.24% were above 65. The city'sdependency ratio grew slightly to 42.64% while its aged-child ratio rose 13 percentage points to 209.87%. Of the 327,310 Keelung residents aged 15 and above, 45.20% had a bachelor’s degree. Household income averaged NT$1,182,233.[41]
Keelung became the “loneliest” city in Taiwan in 2024, with more than 41 percent of its households comprising one person living alone.[42]Indigenous peoples made up 3,617 of its households.[41]
| Year | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1840 | 700households | |
1897 | 9,500 | |
1904 | 17,710 | Ranked 6th[43] |
1924 | 58,000 | |
1943 | 100,000 | |
1944 | 92,000 | Decrease due toAllied airbombings |
1948 | 130,000 | 28,000mainlander influx |
1970 | 324,040 | |
1990 | 352,919 | |
2010 | 384,134 | |
2020 | 367,577 |
One of the most popular festivals in Taiwan is the mid-summerGhost Festival. The Keelung Ghost Festival is among the oldest and largest in Taiwan, dating back to 1855 after bitter clashes between rival clans, which claimed many lives before mediators stepped in.[44] A truce was negotiated and the two sides agreed to bury their dead together and to maintain communal peace through competition in folk performances.[45] The Keelung Ghost Festival is the firstfolklore custom to be included in Taiwan's national cultural heritage list.[46] Today, the festivities are organized on a rotation basis by the city's 15 major clan associations, which are formed by people sharing the same surname.[44] The highlight of the festival comes on the evening of the 14th day of the Ghost Month. Clan associations display elaborate floats in a parade, which culminates in the release of lit water lanterns into the sea to honor the dead.[45] The event has become a major attraction drawing visitors from home and abroad.[44]
When Taiwan shifted from import substitution to an export-oriented economy after the Second World War, Keelung became increasingly important for foreign trade, serving as a major logistics hub in northern Taiwan and a crucial point for international shipping. As Taiwan’s trade volume rose steadily in the 1970s, transport, warehousing, customs brokerage, and other ports logistics services expanded in Keelung, as did the shipbuilding and ship maintenance industry.[47] The city developed quickly and by 1984, the Port of Keelung became the 7th largest container port in the world.[27]
However, in the 1990s, Keelung Port’s overall throughput began to decline as a result of intense domestic and international competition and geographical constraints limiting its expansion. The port gradually opened to tourism. It attracted major cruise operators such asStar Cruises,Princess Cruises,Royal Caribbean, andCosta Cruises, positioning itself as a home port for cruise liners.[48] In 2017, Keelung earned the title of Asia’s best cruise home port at the Asia Cruise Forum Jeju in South Korea. At the same event five years later, Keelung won a Special Achievement Award from Jeju-based Asia Cruise Leaders Network for its post-pandemic business recovery.[49] In 2024, Keelung Port recorded 331 cruise calls and served 787,000 passengers. Although the figures had yet to reach the 2019 level before the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a slight increase in the number of foreign visitors.[50]
Education in Keelung City is governed by the Department of Education ofKeelung City Government.
Keelung City houses three universities and colleges, namely theNational Taiwan Ocean University, Deh Yu College of Nursing and Health andChungyu University of Film and Arts.
About 45 percent of city residents aged 15 and above have a bachelor’s degree.[41]
Keelung has 12 senior high schools—eight public and four private, which are attended by about 7,000 students.[41]
Keelung City houses the only fully oil-fired power plant in Taiwan, theHsieh-ho Power Plant, which is located inZhongshan District. The installed capacity of the power plant is 2,000 MW.
Baimiweng Fort,Dawulun Fort,Gongzi Liao Fort,Keelung Fort Commander's Official Residence,Nuannuan Ande Temple,Pengjia Lighthouse,Uhrshawan Battery andXian Dong Yan.
Keelung is easily accessible by train, bus, and freeway. It is about a half-hour drive from Taipei viaNational Freeway 1 and3.Taiwan Railway commuter trains fromTaipei to the Keelung Main Station take about 40 minutes. Intercity buses serve multiple points within the city.
Taiwan's second largest port, thePort of Keelung, is located in the city. The port serves destinations toMatsu Islands,Xiamen andOkinawa.
Keelung istwinned with:
Bacolod andDavao City,Philippines
Bikini Atoll,Marshall Islands
Campbell, California, U.S.Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S.
East London, South Africa
Marrickville, New South Wales, Australia
Miyakojima,Okinawa, JapanRosemead, California, U.S.Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
Sangju,North Gyeongsang, South Korea
Thunder Bay, Ontario, CanadaYakima, Washington, U.S. | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(November 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Notable people from Keelung include:
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The normally obscure outcrop, which falls administratively under Keelung City, is one of three islets off of Taiwan's northern coast – the others are Mianhua Islet and Huaping Islet – considered to be of strategic importance to the country.
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