Guantian District Office, Tainan City-Villages

Guantian District Map
南廍里	Nanbu Village	往下營	To Siaying
隆本里	Longben Village	往麻豆	To Matou
隆田里	Longtian Village	西庄交流道	Sijhuang Interchange
西庄里	Sijhuang Village	葫蘆埤	Hulubei
二鎮里	Erjhen Village	加油站	Gas Station
東庄里	Dongjhuang Village	縱貫鐵路	Central Cross Railway
湖山里	Hushan Village	往新營	To Sinying
官田里	Guantian Village	省道台一線	Provincial Highway No. 1
拔林里	Balin Village	官田工業區	Guantian Industrial Park
渡頭里	Dutou Village	隆田酒廠	Longtian Distillery
社子里	Shezih Village	隆田火車站	Longtian Railway Station
大崎里	Daci Village	拔林派出所	Balin Police Substation
往台南	To Tainan	渡拔國小	Duba Elementary School
南二高	To National Highway No. 3	往善化	To Shanhua
官田系統交流道	Guantian System Interchange	渡子頭溪	Duzihtou River
東西向快速道路	To Expressway 84	陽明工商	Yang Ming Vocational High School
往大內	To Danei	曾文溪橋	Zengwun River Bridge
官田國小	To Guantian Elementary School	嘉南國小	Jianan Elementary School
往六甲	To Lioujia	湖山派出所	Hushan Police Station
烏山頭交流道	To Wushantou Interchange	烏山頭水庫	Wushantou Reservoir
六雙溪	To Lioushuang River	國立藝術大學	Tainan National University of the Arts

As of 2014

Legend
District Office	Health Center	Post Office
Longtian Elementary School	Sports Park	Swimming Pool
Guantian Junior High School	Library	Police Station
Farmers’ Association	Household Registration Office

District Evolution

After the Ching dynasty was defeated by the Japanese in the Sino-Japanese War I (1894-95),the Taiwan Island and Penghu Islands were ceded to Japan and they became its colony in 1895. The colonial government thus established the Taiwan Sotokufu with a special regulation to rule Taiwan. During that time, Guantian was part the following townships in Jiayi County: Shanhuali East, Chishan, Maogang, and Madou.

During the half-century colonization, the administrative organization and district of Guantian were changed eight times, with the change in 1901 being the most significant. After the colonial government implemented the town, village, and township system in 1901, Fanzihdoutou Village, Shezai Village, Sankuaicuo Village, and Shuangsizai Village in Shanhuali East Village; and Guantian Village, Jhongsie Village, Wushantou Village, Jiaosiou Village, Erjhen Village, Bentan Village, and Bazai Village in Chishan Village were combined into Guantian District. This is the origin of Guantian as an administrative district.

On April 2, 1897, the colonial government set six ken’s (prefectures) and three cho’s (towns), a sub-prefectural division in Lioujia to administer Guoyihou Township, Chishan Township, Maoganwei East Township, Maoganwei West Township, Tiesianciao Township, Madou Township, Shanhua East Township, and Shahua West Township. Under the sub-prefectural division, there were town and village chiefs. Guantian District was under the jurisdiction of Lioujia sub-prefectural division of Chiayi Ken of Taiwan Sotokufu and belonged to Zone 9 of Chishan Township (administering Guantian, Jhongsie, Erjhen, Jiaosiou, Bazai, Wushantou, Bentan, Fanzihutian, and Sanjieyi), Zone 10 of Shanhua East Township (administering Shezih, Liushuang, Shuangxizi, Fanzihdoutou, Xinzhong, Sankuaicuo, and Piliao), Zone 6 of Miaogangwei East Township (administering Nanbu and Beibu), and Liaozibu Zone of Madou Township (Si Village, East Village, and Wayao).

Guantian Village

Guantian Village was formerly called “Guantian”. A local saying goes, “If your last name is not Chen, you are not a Guantian native.” As the last name of almost all local citizens is Chen, those with other last names must have been hired by the Chen people and settled down there.

The ancestral home of the Chens in Guantian was “Houshesha Ward, Longping, Gulindou, Kunshan Township, Jishan Village, City 19, Tongan County, Fujian Province”. Chen Shih-hui Chen was the first of the clan to settle down in Guantian. The family of the second son proliferated into a village. Today, the ancestral tomb of the Chens of Guantian is located northeast of the front entrance of the Army’s 8th Training Center. The tablet “History of the Chens of Guantian” is erected next to the tomb.

Guantian Village was the location of the office of Guantian Township. The colonial government established the “Guantian District” in 1901. After restoration, the township office was relocated to Longtian in 1953.

Erjhen Village

Erjhen Village was cultivated in the Kingdom of Tungning. When Koxinga (Zheng Cheng-gong) landed in Taiwan in 1661, there was a severe food shortage due to supply disruption. Therefore, he besieged the Dutch and sent troops to cultivate local areas at the same time. “Erjhen” and “Jiaosiou” in Erjhen Village were the cultivation areas at that time, where the former was the cultivation area Guard Force Two and the latter the cultivation area of Jiaosiou Force.

Apart from Zheng’s troops, five brothers surnamed Hu from the mainland settled down in Jiaoxiu in the late Ching dynasty and cultivated the area into a village. Therefore, Hu is the major family last name in Jiaosiou today.

Hushan Village

The Village was called “Wushantou.” According to Chronicles of Taiwan Cultivation, Hu Yun cultivated Wushantou during the reign of emperors Yungcheng and Chienlung of the Ching dynasty. Hu should have been one of the five Hu brothers bringing Samgharama The Venerable to Taiwan. According to local saying, Mt. Wushantou was called Wushantou (literally dark headed mountain) because the mountain was covered with thick trees and looked dark from afar. Hu and his followers settled down at the mountain foot of the mountain and formed a village there, adopting the name “Wushantou,”also suggesting that they were the first to occupy Mt. Wushantou. Later on Hu teamed up with Chen cultivators to cultivate Jioujhongciao (Wangye Village in Lioujia District today).

After restoration, Wushantou and Sanjiaobi were combined into one village -Hushan Village. In 1952, the latter was separated from the Village and became Jianan Village. Today, Hu and Lin are the major clans in Hushan Village.

Jianan Village

Jianan Village was called “Sanjiaobi”, a community formed after the construction of the Wushantou Reservoir. When the colonial government built the reservoir during 1920-1930, many workers were recruited there. After the reservoir was completed, some settled down and formed a new settlement there.

After restoration, as there were less than 100 households in “Sanjiaobi”, it was combined with “Wushantou” to form Hushan Village. After local citizens strived for their own village regardless of the 100-household requirement, the government approved the establishment of their own village on January 15, 1952. The Village was named Jianan as it the reservoir has its origin from the Jianan irrigation/channel.

Daci Village

“Shuangsizai”, “Bentan”, “Sizaidi”, “Zungouzai”, and “Jhonglun” located in the flooded area of Wushantou Reservoir were the native communities of Daci Village, with “Bentan” being the largest. When the colonial government built the reservoir during 1920-1930, citizens of these native settlements were forced to move away. Some of them migrated to what are today’s Daci, Cihzaipu, and Dajingju in Daci Village, while others disseminated to other places.

Most citizens who migrated to Daci settled down south of the suspension bridge over Wushantou Reservoir and formed Benjhuangtou in Daci Village. As the gradient of the area is high, they called it “Daqi” (literally very winding). After restoration, Daqi and Siaojhuang in the nearby mountain area were combined，forming Daci Village.

Longtian Village

Longtian and Longben Villages were called “Fanzihtian.” The Mattau sect of the Siraya tribe of plains aborigines cultivated it in the mid-18th century. In the past, locals of Fantzihtian settled along what is today’s Longben area under Longtian Bridge and the area behind the gas station by Provincial Highway No. 1. The shopping area around Longtian Railway Station was then fields.

After restoration, Fanzihian and what is today’s Nanbu Village were combined into “Longtian Village.” In local dialect, “longtian” means “fertile farmland of the indigenous peoples” and “thriving fields of indigenous peoples”. After the township office was relocated here from Guantian Village in 1953, the village became the location of the village office and also a political, economic, and transportation center of Guantian District. As population grew rapidly, the Village was divided into three Villages: Longtian, Longben, and Nanbu on May 1, 1969.

Longben Village

Longtian and Longben Villages were called “Fanzihtian” ,where the four major sects of the Siraya tribe of plains aborigines settled down after their eastward movement. Longben Village was the master tribe of Fantzihtian, and those four sects included Singang, Backoloan, Mattau, and Soulang.

The migration of Mattaus to Fanzihtian was also recorded in relevant literature. According to Chronicles of Tainan County, “Fanzihtian is a settlement formed by the Mattau sect of the Siraya tribe.” Also in Revision of Taiwan Province, “Mattou Community (sect) was located about 60 miles southwest of the county near Fanzihtian. Then Mattous spread to Jhongsie Village, east of the community, about 12 miles away from the former community.” The location matches what is today’s Fanzihtian.

After restoration, Fanzihtian and Nanbu were combined into Longtian Village. As population increased rapidly, the government divided the Village into three Villages in 1969, and Longben was one of them. It was named Longben after the meaning “farmland of the indigenous peoples”.

Nanbu Village

During the Kingdom of Tungning, Koxinga (Jheng Cheng-gong) sent Su Wang to cultivate southern and northern region to raise troops by cultivation. Both regions were under the jurisdiction of Kaihua District, Tiansing County, Chengtian Province. After the Ching government took over Taiwan in 1685, they divided Kaihua Village into Chishan, Maogangwei, and Jiasing Villages, and both bu’s were under the jurisdiction of Maogangwei Village, Kaihua District. From then on, throughout the Ching dynasty and early colonial period, Nanbu Village today was under the jurisdiction of Maogangwei Village. It was not until 1909 that Nanbu was assigned to Liaozai District of Madou Sub-prefecture under Tainan Prefecture. In 1910, Nanbu became part of Guantian Village of Zhengwen District, Tainan Prefecture.

After Taiwan restoration, Guantian Village of the Zengun District, Tainan Prefecture was changed into Guantian District, Tainan County. Nanbu was still part of Longben Village then. In 1969 Nanbu, Bebuzai, and Sanjieyi villages in Nanbu Village today were officially separated from Longtian Village and combined into “Nanbu Village” until today.

Dongjhuang Village and Sijhuang Village

Territorially, it is hard to separate Dongjhuang (east village) and Sijhuang (west village), as they have been considered as one settlement since the Ching dynasty under the jurisdiction of Madou Township. In 1920, during the colonial period, both villages were officially combined to form Guantian Village.

After restoration, it was necessary to separate both villages into two separate Villages, as there were over 300 households in the area. Dongjhuang was combined with Wayao into Dongjhuang Village. To balance the number households in both Villages, settlements located in the outskirt of Sijhuang Village were assigned to Dongjhuang Village.

Balin Village

In the Ching dynasty, a pier was built in Bazailin. According to Chronicles of Jhuluo County, “The Wanli River originates from the inner mountain of Tapani and runs across Mt. Wubulian and Mt. Tevorang in the south and combines with the flow from Mt. Jhuohou at Shihzailai (with a pier) and the flow from Wushantou before crossing Mt.Chih (with a pier called Bazi Pier) to Wanli (toward Junda Road, with a pier) and flowing to the sea.”

“Balin” means the guava. It is said that as there were so many wild “guavas” in the past, people called it the “bazailin” (guava forest). Today, the place has been become farmlands and houses, and native guavas are rarely seen. Lai is the major clan in the village.

Dutou Village

It was called Fanzihdutou. In the ancient time, it was the junction of the river (commonly known as the Guantian River) from Kabuasua via Lioujia Wangye Temple and Wushantou in Guantian and the Zengwun River. To facilitate water transportation, Dutou Village was a pier linking Dongshihliao of Shanhua Town in the south of the river. As it was the waterway of plains aboriginals, it was called “Fanzihdoutou” (the pier of indigenous peoples).

As there was neither train nor other modes of transportation in the distant past, water transportation was the only transportation for external trade, so the pier became the most thriving place in Guantian District in the past.

After restoration, Fanzihdoutou was combined with Sinjhong, Sankuaicuo and Piliao villages to become Doutou Village.

Shezih Village

According to the literature, Shezih Village was first recorded in Chronicles of Jhuluo County as “SinShezih”. Shezih was a sub-sect of Backoloan. Not long after the sub-sect was formed,the Soulang sect invaded it during the early reign of Emperor Chienlung in the Ching dynasty. From then on, Shezih became part of the Soulang.

After Taiwan restoration, the government combined nearby villages to form Shezih Village. Basically, two major communities form the Village: Shezih and Lioushuang.

Source: Chronicles of Guantian Township