Shizi Township is a mountain indigenous township in

Pingtung County Pingtung () is a County (Taiwan), county located in southern Taiwan. It has a warm tropical monsoon climate and is known for its agriculture and tourism. Kenting National Park, Taiwan's oldest national park, is located in the county. The county ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

. It is the largest township of the county. The main population is the

Paiwan people The Paiwan () are an indigenous people of Taiwan. They speak the Paiwan language. In 2014, the Paiwan numbered 96,334. This was approximately 17.8% of Taiwan's total indigenous population, making them the second-largest indigenous group. The ma ...

of the

Taiwanese aborigines Taiwanese may refer to: * of or related to Taiwan **Culture of Taiwan **Geography of Taiwan ** Taiwanese cuisine *Languages of Taiwan ** Formosan languages ** Taiwanese Hokkien, also known as the Taiwanese language * Taiwanese people, residents of ...

Names

The original Paiwan name for the area was Tjakuvukuvulj (Tjakuvukuvuɬ; historically rendered as ''Chaobo Obol'' or in ). Han Chinese settlers noted a rock outcropping in the shape of a lion's head () and called the village ''Sai-a-thau-sia'' (). Under

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

rule, the name was changed to the current ''Shizi'', though in Taiwanese Hokkien the name ''Sai-a-thau'' is still normally used in spoken contexts.

Geography

The terrain of Shizi is mountainous, as the district is located near Taiwan's

Central Mountain Range The Central Mountain Range is the principal mountain range on the island of Taiwan. It runs from the north of the island to the south. It acts as a barrier between the east and west coasts, hindering travel. The tallest peak of the range is ...

Administrative divisions

The township comprises eight villages: * Caopu () (Paiwan: ''Supaw'') * Danlu () (Paiwan: ''Tjakuljakuljai'') * Fenglin ()(Paiwan: ''Kaidi/Naimalipa'') * Nanshi () (Paiwan: ''Nansiku/Tjuladu'') * Neishi () (Paiwan: ''Kacedas'') * Neiwen () (Paiwan: ''Naibun/Tjakuvukuvulj'') * Shizi () (Paiwan: ''Tjaqaciljai'') * Zhukeng () (Paiwan: ''Tjuruguai'')

Economy

Agriculture

Agriculture produced in the township includes

mangoes A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast Asi ...

, bird's-nest ferns and

watermelons The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is widely cultivated worldwide, with more than 1,000 ...

Tourist attractions

Places of interest in or around Shizi are Shuangliu Forest Recreation Area, the Cultural Objects Museum, Lilongshan and Neiwen Village.

Transportation

Shizi is connected via railway through the

TRA Tra or TRA may refer to: Biology * TRA (gene), in humans encodes the protein T-cell receptor alpha locus * Tra (gene), in ''Drosophila melanogaster'' encodes the protein female-specific protein transformer * Tra gene, a transfer gene * Triple rel ...

South-Link Line. A key station is Fangshan Station. Two highways run through the township: Provincial Highway No.1 and Provincial Highway No.9 (

South-Link Highway The South Link Highway is a section of Provincial Highway No. 9 (Taiwan), Provincial Highway No. 9 from Taitung City to Fenggang, Taiwan, Fenggang, Pingtung County, in Taiwan. The section of the highway from Taitung City, Taitung to Ansuo is coas ...

References

External links

Shizi Township Office website
{{Coord, 22.2018, N, 120.7054, E, source:wikidata, display=title Townships in Pingtung County