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, nickname = The City of
Azaleas Azaleas ( ) are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections '' Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and '' Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, and Oc ...
, image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Taiwan , established_title = Settled , established_date = 1709 , established_title1 = Renamed Taihoku , established_date1 = 17 April 1895 , established_title2 = Provincial city status , established_date2 = 25 October 1945 , established_title3 = Provisional national capital , established_date3 = 7 December 1949 , established_title4 = Reconstituted as a Yuan-controlled municipality , established_date4 = 1 July 1967 , capital_type = City seat , capital = Xinyi District , largest_settlement = Daan District , largest_settlement_type = district , admin_center_type =
Districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
, admin_center = 12 , legislature =
Taipei City Council Taipei City Council () is the city council of Taipei, Taiwan. One of the largest Administrative divisions of Taiwan, local councils in Taiwan, the city council is currently composed of 61 councillors, all elected most recently in the 2022 Taiw ...
, leader_party = , leader_title1 =
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
, leader_name1 =
Chiang Wan-an Chiang Wan-an ( Chinese: 蔣萬安; born Chang Wan-an; 26 December 1978), also known by his English name Wayne Chiang, is a Taiwanese politician and lawyer who has served as the mayor of Taipei since December 2022. A member of the Kuomintang (KM ...
( KMT) , iso_code = TW-TPE , total_type = Special municipality , area_footnotes = , national_representation = National representation , national_representation_type1 =
Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...
, national_representation1 = 8 of 113 constituencies , area_km2 = 271.80 , area_water_km2 = 2.7 , area_water_percent = 1.0 , area_urban_km2 = 1059 , area_rank = 16th , area_rank_link = List of administrative divisions of Taiwan , population_estimate = 2,494,813 (
4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...
)
9,078,000 (urban) , population_rank_link = List of administrative divisions of Taiwan , population_estimate_year = March 2023 , population_density_km2 = , population_total = , population_density_urban_km2 = , GDP_PPP = $65,539 , GDP_PPP_year = 2016 , GDP_PPP_rank = 1st , GDP_PPP_per_capita = , GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = , GDP_nominal = NT$990,292 , GDP_nominal_year = 2016 , GDP_nominal_rank = 1st , GDP_nominal_per_capita = , GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = , GDP_nominal_rank_link = Economy of Taiwan#Economy by region , population_estimate_rank = 4th , timezone =
National Standard Time National Standard Time is the official time zone in Taiwan defined by an UTC offset of +08:00. This standard is also known as Taipei Time (), Taiwan Time () or Taiwan Standard Time (TST). History The first time zone standard in Taiwan was en ...
, utc_offset = +8 , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 100–116 , calling_code = (0)2 , website = Taipei (; ), officially Taipei City, is the
capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...
and a special municipality of
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 ...
. Located in
Northern Taiwan The regions of Taiwan are based on historical administrative divisions. However, most of the definitions are not precise. Division into two regions * Eastern and Western Taiwan: the Central Mountain Range separates Taiwan into east and west. :* ' ...
, Taipei City is an
enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...
of the municipality of
New Taipei City New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...
that sits about southwest of the northern port city of
Keelung Keelung ( ; zh, p=Jīlóng, c=基隆, poj=Ke-lâng), Chilung or Jilong ( ; ), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city in northeastern Taiwan. The city is part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area with neighboring New Ta ...
. Most of the city rests on the
Taipei Basin The Taipei Basin () is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by the Yangmingshan to the north, the Linkou Plateau to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape ...
, an ancient lakebed. The basin is bounded by the relatively narrow valleys of the
Keelung Keelung ( ; zh, p=Jīlóng, c=基隆, poj=Ke-lâng), Chilung or Jilong ( ; ), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city in northeastern Taiwan. The city is part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area with neighboring New Ta ...
and Xindian rivers, which join to form the
Tamsui River The Tamsui River (alternatively Danshui River, ) is the third longest river in Taiwan after Zhuoshui River and Gaoping River, with a total length of , flowing through Hsinchu County, Taoyuan, Taipei and New Taipei City. It is located in the ...
along the city's western border. The municipality of Taipei is home to an estimated population of 2,494,813 (March 2023), forming the core part of the
Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area The Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area () also commonly known as Greater Taipei Area () is the largest metropolitan area in Taiwan. It is composed of 3 administrative divisions: Taipei, New Taipei City and Keelung. The region encompasses an ar ...
, also known as "Greater Taipei", which includes the nearby cities of New Taipei and Keelung with a population of 7,047,559, the 40th most-populous urban area in the world—roughly one-third of Taiwanese citizens live in the metro areas. The name "Taipei" can refer either to the whole metropolitan area or just the municipality alone. Taipei has been the political center of the island since 1887, when it first became the seat of
Taiwan Province Taiwan Province ( zh, t=臺灣省 , p=Táiwān Shěng , poj=Tâi-oân-séng; PFS: ''Thòi-vàn-sén'' or ''Thòi-vân-sén'') is a ''de jure'' administrative division of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Provinces remain a titular division as ...
by the Qing dynasty until 1895 and again from 1945 to 1956 by the Republic of China (ROC) government, with an
interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of revolutionary breach of legal continuity, discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one m ...
from 1895 to 1945 as the seat of the
Government-General of Taiwan The Government-General of Taiwan (Government of Taiwan, Taiwan Government, Government of Formosa, Japanese: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ''Taiwan Sōtokufu''; ; Tâi-lô: Tâi-uân Tsóng-tok-hú; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ=Thòi-vân Chúng-tuk-fú) was the ...
during the Japanese rule. The city has been the national seat of the ROC central government since 1949, and it became the nation's first special municipality (then known as Yuan-controlled municipality) on 1 July 1967, upgrading from provincial city status. Taipei is the
economic An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...
,
political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...
,
educational Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education also fol ...
and
cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
center of Taiwan. It has been rated an "Alpha − City" by
GaWC The Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) is a British think tank that studies the relationships between world cities in the context of globalization. It is based in the geography department of Loughborough University in Leice ...
. Taipei also forms a major part of a high-tech industrial area.
Railways Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to roa ...
,
highways A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...
, airports and bus lines connect Taipei with all parts of the island. The city is served by two airports – Songshan and Taoyuan. The municipality is home to architectural and cultural landmarks, including
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
(which was formerly the tallest building in the world),
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall ( zh, t=中正紀念堂, p=zhōngzhèng jìniàntáng, poj=Tiong-chèng-kí-liām-tn̂g) is a national monument and tourist attraction erected in memory of Chiang Kai-shek, former President of the Republic of C ...
,
Dalongdong Baoan Temple Dalongdong Baoan Temple () also known as the Taipei Baoan Temple () is a Taiwanese temple built in the Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. The present temple was originally built by clan members in Tong'an, Xiamen, Fujian, who immigrated to Taipei ...
,
Hsing Tian Kong Hsing-tian Temple (; also Xingtian Temple, Xingtian Gong or Hsing Tian Kong) is a popular temple in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. This temple is devoted to Lord Guan, the Patron Deity of businessmen, military personnel and policeman. Thi ...
,
Lungshan Temple of Manka Bangka Lungshan Temple (also Lungshan Temple of Manka, Mengjia Longshan Temple) is a Taiwanese folk temple in Wanhua District (alternately known as Bangka/Mengjia), Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from Fujian ...
,
National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum, also known as Taipei Palace Museum, is a national museum headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in Beijing in 1925, the museum was re-established in Shilin District, Shilin, Taipei, in 1965, later expanded with a S ...
, Presidential Office Building, Taipei Guest House and
Zhinan Temple Zhinan Temple (; also called , Xiāngōng Miào; also anglicized as "Chihnan" or "Jhihnan") is a Taoist temple on the slopes of Houshan (猴山, "Monkey Mountain") in Wenshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. It was founded in 1882. The temple's mai ...
. Shopping districts including
Ximending Ximending is a neighborhood and shopping district in the Wanhua District of Taipei, Taiwan. The Ximending Pedestrian Area was the first pedestrian zone constructed in Taipei and remains the largest in Taiwan. History Name The area is named aft ...
as well as several
night markets Night markets or night bazaars ( zh, 夜市) are street markets which operate at night and are generally dedicated to more leisurely strolling, shopping, and eating than more businesslike day markets. The culture of night markets originates from C ...
dispersed throughout the city. Natural features include
Maokong Maokong () is an area located in Wenshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. The area used to be the biggest tea growing area of Taipei. There are many intertwining footpaths which have been used to transport tea. Now, it is a popular place for tea cultur ...
,
Yangmingshan Yangmingshan National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan, located in both Taipei and New Taipei City. The districts that are partially in the park include Taipei's Beitou and Shilin Districts; and New Taipei's Wanli, Jinsh ...
and
hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...
. In English-language news reports, the name ''Taipei'' often serves as a
synecdoche Synecdoche ( ) is a type of metonymy; it is a figure of speech that uses a term for a part of something to refer to the whole (''pars pro toto''), or vice versa (''totum pro parte''). The term is derived . Common English synecdoches include '' ...
referring to the central government that controls the
Taiwan Area The Taiwan Area, also called the Taiwan Area of the Republic of China, the free area of the Republic of China, and the "Tai-Min Area (Taiwan and Fuchien)" , is a term used to refer to the territories under the effective control of the Rep ...
. Due to the ambiguous
political status of Taiwan The island of Taiwan is the subject of a geopolitical dispute between the Republic of China (ROC), which controls it, and the People's Republic of China (PRC), which claims it as part of its territory. The Republic of China (ROC) was establ ...
internationally, the term ''
Chinese Taipei "Chinese Taipei" is the term used in various international organizations and tournaments for groups or delegations representing the Republic of China (ROC), a country commonly known as Taiwan. Due to the One China principle stipulated by the ...
'' is also frequently used as a
synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...
for the entire country, as when Taiwan's governmental representatives participate in
international organizations An international organization, also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is an organization that is established by a treaty or other type of instrument governed by international law and possesses its own leg ...
or when Taiwan's athletes compete in international sporting events, including the
Olympics The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competit ...
.


Names

The spellings ''Taipei'' and ''Tʻai-pei'' derive from the
Wade–Giles Wade–Giles ( ) is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from the system produced by Thomas Francis Wade during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert Giles's '' A Chinese–English Dictionary'' ...
romanization ''Tʻai²-pei³'' which means ''the North of Taiwan'' in Chinese. The name could be also romanized as ''Táiběi'' according to
Hanyu Pinyin Hanyu Pinyin, or simply pinyin, officially the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet, is the most common romanization system for Standard Chinese. ''Hanyu'' () literally means ' Han language'—that is, the Chinese language—while ''pinyin'' literally ...
and
Tongyong Pinyin Tongyong Pinyin was the official romanization of Taiwanese Mandarin, Mandarin in Taiwan between 2002 and 2008. The system was unofficially used between 2000 and 2002, when a new romanization system for Taiwan was being evaluated for adoption. ...
. The city has also been known as ''Tai-pak'' (derived from
Taiwanese Hokkien Taiwanese Hokkien ( , ), or simply Taiwanese, also known as Taigi ( zh, c=臺語, tl=Tâi-gí), Taiwanese Southern Min ( zh, c=臺灣閩南語, tl=Tâi-uân Bân-lâm-gí), Hoklo and Holo, is a variety of the Hokkien language spoken natively ...
) among many possible nonstandardized variants. During the Japanese rule from 1895 to 1945, Taipei was known as ''Taihoku'', merely Japanese rendition of the (original) Chinese language name


History

Prior to the significant influx of Han Chinese, the region of
Taipei Basin The Taipei Basin () is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by the Yangmingshan to the north, the Linkou Plateau to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape ...
was mainly inhabited by the plains aborigines called Ketagalan. The number of Han colonists gradually increased in the early 18th century under Qing dynasty rule after the government began permitting development in the area. In 1875, the northern part of the island was incorporated into the new
Taipei Prefecture Taipeh Prefecture () was a Qing dynasty Prefecture (China), prefecture created from the northern part of Taiwan Prefecture, Taiwan under Qing rule, Qing-era Taiwan in 1875, while the island was still part of Fujian Province. It consisted of a regio ...
. It was formerly established as Taipei Prefecture and was the temporary capital of the island in 1887 when it was declared a province ( Fukien-Taiwan Province). Taipei was formally made the provincial capital in 1894; its romanization was changed to Taihoku in 1895 when the Empire of Japan annexed Taiwan, based on the Japanese reading of the two characters. The writing in Chinese characters remained unaltered. Under Japanese rule, the city was administered under
Taihoku Prefecture Taihoku Prefecture (臺北州; ''Taihoku-shū'') was an administrative division of Taiwan created in 1920, during Japanese rule. The prefecture consisted of modern-day Keelung, New Taipei City, Taipei and Yilan County. Its government office, ...
. Taiwan's Japanese rulers embarked on an extensive program of advanced
urban planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...
that featured extensive railroad links. A number of Taipei landmarks and cultural institutions date from this period. Following the
surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was Hirohito surrender broadcast, announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally Japanese Instrument of Surrender, signed on 2 September 1945, End of World War II in Asia, ending ...
to the
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...
during 1945, effective control of Taiwan was handed to the Republic of China (ROC). After facing defeat from Communist forces, the ruling
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 ...
relocated the
ROC government The Government of the Republic of China is the national authority whose actual-controlled territory consists of main island of Taiwan (Formosa), Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and other island groups, collectively known as ''Taiwan Area'' or ''Fr ...
to Taiwan and declared Taipei the
provisional capital A temporary capital or a provisional capital is a city or town chosen by a government as an interim base of operations due to some difficulty in retaining or establishing control of a different metropolitan area. The most common circumstances leadi ...
of the ROC in December 1949. Taiwan's Kuomintang rulers regarded the city as the capital of
Taiwan Province Taiwan Province ( zh, t=臺灣省 , p=Táiwān Shěng , poj=Tâi-oân-séng; PFS: ''Thòi-vàn-sén'' or ''Thòi-vân-sén'') is a ''de jure'' administrative division of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Provinces remain a titular division as ...
and their control as mandated by
General Order No. 1 General Order No. 1 for the surrender of Japan was prepared by the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff and approved by President Harry Truman on August 17, 1945. It was issued by General Douglas MacArthur to the representative of the Empire of J ...
. In 1990, Taipei provided the backdrop for the Wild Lily student rallies that moved Taiwanese society from one-party rule to multi-party
democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
by
1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
. The city has served as the seat of Taiwan's democratically elected national government ever since.


Early settlers–Qing dynasty

Prior to the 18th century, the region known as the
Taipei Basin The Taipei Basin () is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by the Yangmingshan to the north, the Linkou Plateau to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape ...
was home to Ketagalan tribes.
Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...
colonists from
Dabu County Dabu County () is a Counties of the People's Republic of China, county in Meizhou City, in the east of Guangdong Province, China. A center of Hakka people, Hakka culture, it has a population of 375,000. Dabu County has a long history of human s ...
,
Yongding County Yongding () is a district under the jurisdiction of Longyan prefecture-level city in the southwest of Fujian Province, People's Republic of China. The district is a center for Hakka culture, including the traditional Hakka '' tulou'', and a local ...
, Anxi and
Tong'an Tong'an District () is a northern mainland district of Xiamen which faces Quemoy County, Republic of China. To the north is Anxi and Nan'an, and to the south is Jimei. Tong'an is also east of Lianxiang and Changqin to the West. It covers
of
Southern Fujian Minnan, Banlam or Minnan Golden Triangle (), refers to the coastal region in South Fujian Province, China, which includes the prefecture-level cities of Xiamen, Quanzhou and Zhangzhou. The region accounts for 40 percent of the GDP of Fujian Pr ...
began to settle in the Taipei Basin in 1709. In the late 19th century, the Taipei area, where the major Han Chinese settlements in northern Taiwan and one of the designated overseas trade ports,
Tamsui Tamsui District () is a seaside district in New Taipei City, Taiwan adjacent to the Tamsui River and overlooking the Taiwan Strait. The name of the district means "fresh water" in Chinese. Although modest in size (population 189,271), Tamsui ...
, were located, gained economic importance due to the booming overseas trade, especially that of
tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
export. In 1875, the northern part of Taiwan was separated from
Taiwan Prefecture Taiwan Prefecture or Taiwanfu was a prefecture of Taiwan during the Qing dynasty. The prefecture was established by the Qing government in 1684, after the island came under Qing dynasty rule in 1683 following its conquest of the Kingdom of Tun ...
and incorporated into the new
Taipei Prefecture Taipeh Prefecture () was a Qing dynasty Prefecture (China), prefecture created from the northern part of Taiwan Prefecture, Taiwan under Qing rule, Qing-era Taiwan in 1875, while the island was still part of Fujian Province. It consisted of a regio ...
as a new administrative entity of the Qing dynasty. Having been established adjoining the flourishing townships of Bangka,
Dalongdong Dalongdong (), or Toalongpong (; and variants 大浪泵/大隆同), is an old town in historical Taipei located near the narrows of the confluence of the Keelung and Tamsui Rivers. The settlement, covereing the area extending from the Chen Teach ...
, and
Twatutia Dadaocheng is an area in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. It was also known as Twatutia (a transliteration of the Taiwanese Hokkien ''Tuā-tiū-tiânn''), Daitōtei during Japanese rule, and Tataocheng (Mandarin) during the Kuomintang era. ...
, the new prefectural capital was known as ''Chengnei'' ( zh, t=城內, p=chéngnèi, poj=siâⁿ-lāi), "the inner city", and government buildings were erected there. From 1875 until the beginning of Japanese rule in 1895, Taipei was part of Tamsui County of Taipeh Prefecture and the prefectural capital. In 1886, as work commenced to govern the island as a province, Taipei was designated as the provincial capital. When Japan acquired the island in 1895 as part of the peace agreement for the
First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 189417 April 1895), or the First China–Japan War, was a conflict between the Qing dynasty of China and the Empire of Japan primarily over influence in Joseon, Korea. In Chinese it is commonly known as th ...
, they retained Taipei as the capital. Nowadays, all that remains from the historical period is the north gate. The west gate and
city walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...
were demolished by the Japanese while the south gate, little south gate, and east gate were extensively modified by the
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 ...
and have lost much of their original character.


Empire of Japan

As settlement for losing the
First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 189417 April 1895), or the First China–Japan War, was a conflict between the Qing dynasty of China and the Empire of Japan primarily over influence in Joseon, Korea. In Chinese it is commonly known as th ...
, China ceded the
island of Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The island of Taiwan, formerly known to Westerners as Formosa, has an area of and makes up 99% of the land under ROC control. It lies about across the Taiwan Strait f ...
to the
Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...
in 1895 as part of the
Treaty of Shimonoseki The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China or the in Japan, was signed at the hotel in Shimonoseki, Japan, on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China. It was a treaty that ended the First Sino-Japanese War, ...
. After the Japanese takeover, Taipei, romanized into English as Taihoku following the Japanese language pronunciation, was retained as the capital. It subsequently emerged as the political center of the Japanese Colonial Government. During that time the city acquired the characteristics of an administrative center, including many new public buildings and housing for civil servants. Much of the architecture of Taipei dates from the period of Japanese rule, including the Presidential Office Building which was the Office of the
Governor-General of Taiwan The governor-general of Taiwan (, shinjitai: ) was the head of the Government-General of Taiwan in the Japanese era (including Formosa and the Pescadores) when they were part of the Empire of Japan, from 1895 to 1945. The Japanese governors- ...
. During Japanese rule, Taihoku was incorporated in 1920 as part of
Taihoku Prefecture Taihoku Prefecture (臺北州; ''Taihoku-shū'') was an administrative division of Taiwan created in 1920, during Japanese rule. The prefecture consisted of modern-day Keelung, New Taipei City, Taipei and Yilan County. Its government office, ...
. It included Bangka,
Twatutia Dadaocheng is an area in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. It was also known as Twatutia (a transliteration of the Taiwanese Hokkien ''Tuā-tiū-tiânn''), Daitōtei during Japanese rule, and Tataocheng (Mandarin) during the Kuomintang era. ...
, and among other small settlements. The eastern village of was annexed into Taihoku City in 1938. Taihoku and surrounding areas were bombed by Allied forces on several occasions. The largest of these Allied air raids, the Taihoku Air Raid, took place on 31 May 1945.


Post-WW2 under ROC

Upon the Japanese defeat following the nuclear bomb destruction of
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
and
Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...
, and its consequent surrender in August 1945, the
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 ...
(Chinese Nationalist Party) assumed control of Taiwan. Subsequently, Taipei was established as a provincial city and a temporary Office of the
Taiwan Province Taiwan Province ( zh, t=臺灣省 , p=Táiwān Shěng , poj=Tâi-oân-séng; PFS: ''Thòi-vàn-sén'' or ''Thòi-vân-sén'') is a ''de jure'' administrative division of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Provinces remain a titular division as ...
Administrative Governor was established in it. In 1947 the
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 ...
(KMT) government under Chiang Kai-shek declared island-wide
martial law in Taiwan Martial law in Taiwan () refers to the periods in the history of Taiwan after World War II, during control by the Republic of China Armed Forces of the Kuomintang-led regime. The term is specifically used to refer to the over 38-year-long c ...
as a result of the
28 February Incident The February 28 incident (also called the February 28 massacre, the 228 incident, or the 228 massacre) was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan in 1947 that was violently suppressed by the Kuomintang–led nationalist government of the R ...
, which began with incidents in Taipei but led to an island-wide crackdown on the local population by forces loyal to Chiang. Two years later, on 7 December 1949, Chiang and the Kuomintang forces were forced to flee mainland China after the defeat by Communist revolutionaries. The KMT-led national government that fled to Taiwan declared Taipei to be the provisional capital of a continuing Republic of China. Taipei has never been declared the official capital but Kuomintang loyalists today generally regard it as such. In 2004 elementary textbook references stating "Nanjing is the capital of the Republic of China" were replaced with "Taipei is the location of the central government of the Republic of China." Taipei expanded greatly in the decades after 1949, and as approved on 30 December 1966, by the
Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive (government), executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Under the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China, amended constitution, the head of the Execut ...
, Taipei was declared a special municipality on 1 July 1967. In the following year, Taipei City expanded again by annexing Shilin,
Beitou Beitou District is the northernmost of the twelve districts of Taipei City, Taiwan. The historical spelling of the district is Peitou. The name originates from the Ketagalan word ''Kipatauw'', meaning witch. Beitou is the most mountainous and ...
,
Neihu Neihu District is a district of Taipei City, Taiwan. Neihu means "inner lake." The older name originates from the Ketagalan word ''Tayour'' (transliterated by the Dutch as ''Cattajo''), meaning woman's head ornament. Many mountainous roads a ...
, Nangang,
Jingmei Jingmei () is a neighborhood in Taipei City. Formerly an administrative district, in 1990 it merged with Muzha District, becoming the western part of the newly created Wenshan District. Jingmei is located south of downtown Taipei with adjacenc ...
, and Muzha. At that time, the city's total area increased fourfold by absorbing several outlying towns and villages and the population increased to 1.56 million people. The city's population, which had reached one million in the early 1960s, also expanded rapidly after 1967, exceeding two million by the mid-1970s. Although growth within the city itself gradually slowed thereafter — its population had become relatively stable by the mid-1990s – Taipei remained one of the world's most densely populated urban areas, and the population continued to increase in the region surrounding the city, notably along the corridor between Taipei and
Keelung Keelung ( ; zh, p=Jīlóng, c=基隆, poj=Ke-lâng), Chilung or Jilong ( ; ), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city in northeastern Taiwan. The city is part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area with neighboring New Ta ...
. In 1990, Taipei's 16 districts were consolidated into the current 12 districts. Mass democracy rallies that year in the
plaza A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Rela ...
around Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall led to an island-wide transition to multi-party
democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
, where legislators are chosen via regularly scheduled popular elections, during the presidency of
Lee Teng-Hui Lee Teng-hui (; pinyin: ''Lǐ Dēnghuī''; 15 January 192330 July 2020) was a Taiwanese politician and agricultural scientist who served as the fourth president of the Republic of China, president of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan) unde ...
.


Geography

Taipei City is located in the
Taipei Basin The Taipei Basin () is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by the Yangmingshan to the north, the Linkou Plateau to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape ...
in northern
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 bordered by the
Xindian River The Xindian River (or Xindian Creek) () is a river in northern Taiwan. It flows through New Taipei and the capital Taipei for . Overview The Xindian River is one of the three major Tributary, tributaries into the Tamsui River. Its main tributa ...
on the south and the
Tamsui River The Tamsui River (alternatively Danshui River, ) is the third longest river in Taiwan after Zhuoshui River and Gaoping River, with a total length of , flowing through Hsinchu County, Taoyuan, Taipei and New Taipei City. It is located in the ...
on the west. The generally low-lying terrain of the central areas on the western side of the municipality slopes upward to the south and east and especially to the north, where it reaches the -tall Qixing Mountain, the highest (dormant)
volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...
in Taiwan in
Yangmingshan National Park Yangmingshan National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan, located in both Taipei and New Taipei City. The districts that are partially in the park include Taipei's Beitou and Shilin Districts; and New Taipei's Wanli, Jinshan ...
. The northern districts of Shilin and
Beitou Beitou District is the northernmost of the twelve districts of Taipei City, Taiwan. The historical spelling of the district is Peitou. The name originates from the Ketagalan word ''Kipatauw'', meaning witch. Beitou is the most mountainous and ...
extend north of the
Keelung River The Keelung River ( zh, c=基隆河, p=Jīlóng Hé, w=Chi1-lung2 Ho2, poj=Ke-lâng-hô) is a river in northern Taiwan. The Keelung River originates in the mountains west-northwest of the town of Jingtong in Pingxi District, New Taipei City, flo ...
and are bordered by Yangmingshan National Park. The Taipei city limits cover an area of , ranking sixteenth of twenty-five among all counties and cities in Taiwan. Two peaks, Qixing Mountain and Mt. Datun, rise to the northeast of the city. Qixing Mountain is located on the
Tatun Volcanic Group The Tatun Volcanic Group () constitutes a group of volcanoes located in northern Taiwan. It is located 15 km north of Taipei, and lies to the west of Keelung. It just adjoins the northern coast of the Taiwan island. The volcanic group was a ...
; its -high main peak renders it the tallest mountain at the rim of the Taipei Basin; -high Mt. Datun is a close runner up. These former volcanoes make up the western section of Yangmingshan National Park, extending from Mt. Datun northward to Mt. Caigongkeng (). Located on a broad saddle between two mountains, the area also contains the marshy Datun Pond. To the southeast of the city lie the Songshan Hills and the Qingshui Ravine, which form a barrier of lush woods.


Climate

Taipei has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Cfa''). Summers are long-lasting, very hot and humid, and accompanied by occasional heavy rainstorms and typhoons; while winters are short, generally warm and generally very
fog Fog is a visible aerosol consisting of tiny water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Reprint from Fog can be considered a type of low-lying cloud usually resembling stratus and is heavily influenc ...
gy due to the northeasterly winds from the vast
Siberian High The Siberian High (also Siberian Anticyclone; (''Aziatsky antitsiklon''); zh, 西伯利亞高壓; Pinyin ''Xībólìyǎ gāoyā''; Kazakh Азия антициклоны (''Aziya antitsiklonı'')) is a massive collection of cold dry air that a ...
being intensified by the pooling of this cooler air in the Taipei Basin. As in the rest of Northern Taiwan, daytime temperatures of Taipei can often peak above during a warm winter day, while they can dip below that same level during afternoon showers and thunderstorms in the summer. Occasional cold fronts during the winter months can drop the daily temperature by , though temperatures rarely drop below . Extreme temperatures ranged from on 13 February 1901 to on 24 July 2020, while snow has never been recorded in the city besides on mountains located within the city limit such as
Yangmingshan Yangmingshan National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan, located in both Taipei and New Taipei City. The districts that are partially in the park include Taipei's Beitou and Shilin Districts; and New Taipei's Wanli, Jinsh ...
. Due to Taiwan's location in the Pacific Ocean, it is affected by the
Pacific typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...
season, which occurs between June and October.


Air quality

In comparison to other
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
n cities, Taipei has "excellent" capabilities for managing
air quality Air pollution is the presence of substances in the Atmosphere of Earth, air that are harmful to humans, other living beings or the environment. Pollutants can be Gas, gases like Ground-level ozone, ozone or nitrogen oxides or small particles li ...
in the city. Its rainy climate, location near the coast, and strong environmental regulations have prevented air pollution from becoming a substantial health issue, at least compared to cities in southeast Asia and industrial China. However, smog is extremely common and there is poor visibility throughout the city after rainless days. Motor vehicle engine exhaust, particularly from motor scooters, is a source of
air pollution Air pollution is the presence of substances in the Atmosphere of Earth, air that are harmful to humans, other living beings or the environment. Pollutants can be Gas, gases like Ground-level ozone, ozone or nitrogen oxides or small particles li ...
in Taipei. There are higher levels of fine
particulate Particulate matter (PM) or particulates are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. An ''aerosol'' is a mixture of particulates and air, as opposed to the particulate matter alone, though it is sometimes define ...
matter and
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon A Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) is any member of a class of organic compounds that is composed of multiple fused aromatic rings. Most are produced by the incomplete combustion of organic matter— by engine exhaust fumes, tobacco, incine ...
s in the mornings because of less air movement; sunlight reduces some pollution.


Cityscape


Demographics

While Taipei City is home to 2,524,393 people (2022), the greater
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...
has a population of 7,047,559 people. Even though the population of the city has been decreasing in recent years, the population of adjacent
New Taipei New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...
has been increasing. The population loss, while rapid in its early years, was slowed by lower density development and campaigns designed to increase the birthrate in the city in the 2010s. As a result, the population rose 2010–2015. Due to Taipei's geography and location in the
Taipei Basin The Taipei Basin () is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by the Yangmingshan to the north, the Linkou Plateau to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape ...
as well as differing times of settlement and differing degrees of economic development of its districts, Taipei's population is not evenly distributed. The districts of
Daan Daan or Da'an may refer to: People * Daan (given name), Dutch short form for Daniel * Saumya Daan (born 1982), Indian voice actor * Serge Daan (1940–2018), Dutch zoologist Places Mainland China * Da'an, Hengyang (), a township in Hengyang ...
, Songshan, and
Datong Datong is a prefecture-level city in northern Shanxi Province, China. It is located in the Datong Basin at an elevation of and borders Inner Mongolia to the north and west and Hebei to the east. As of the 2020 census, it had a population o ...
are the most densely populated. These districts, along with adjacent communities such as Yonghe and Zhonghe, contain some of the most densely populated neighborhoods in the world. In 2008, the
crude birth rate Birth rate, also known as natality, is the total number of live human births per 1,000 population for a given period divided by the length of the period in years. The number of live births is normally taken from a universal registration syste ...
stood at 7.88%, while the
mortality rate Mortality rate, or death rate, is a measure of the number of deaths (in general, or due to a specific cause) in a particular Statistical population, population, scaled to the size of that population, per unit of time. Mortality rate is typically ...
stood at 5.94%. A decreasing and rapidly aging population is an important issue for the city. By the end of 2009, one in ten people in Taipei was over 65 years of age. Residents who had obtained a college education or higher accounted for 43.48% of the population, and the literacy rate stood at 99.18%. Like the rest of Taiwan, Taipei is composed of four major ethnic subgroups:
Hoklos The Hoklo people () are a Han Chinese subgroup who speak Hokkien, a Southern Min language, or trace their ancestry to southeastern Fujian in China, and known by various related terms such as Banlam people (), Minnan people, Fujianese people or ...
,
Waishengren ''Waishengren'', sometimes called mainlanders, are a group of migrants who arrived in Taiwan from mainland China between the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II in 1945 and sometime following the Kuomintang retreat at the end of the ...
,
Hakkas The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...
, and aborigines. Although Hoklos and
Waishengren ''Waishengren'', sometimes called mainlanders, are a group of migrants who arrived in Taiwan from mainland China between the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II in 1945 and sometime following the Kuomintang retreat at the end of the ...
form the majority of the population of the city, in recent decades many Hakkas have moved into the city. The aboriginal population in the city stands at 16,713 at the end of 2018 (<1%), concentrated mostly in the suburban districts. Foreigners (mainly from
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
, the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, and
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
) numbered 71,858 at the end of 2022.


Economy

As Taiwan's business, financial, and technology hub, Taipei has been at the center of rapid economic development in the country and has now become one of the global cities in technology and electronics. This development is part of the so-called Taiwan Economic Miracle which has seen dramatic growth in the city following
foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an ownership stake in a company, made by a foreign investor, company, or government from another country. More specifically, it describes a controlling ownership an asset in one country by an entity based i ...
in the 1960s. Taiwan is now a
creditor A creditor or lender is a party (e.g., person, organization, company, or government) that has a claim on the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some propert ...
economy, holding one of the world's largest
foreign exchange reserves Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) are cash and other reserve assets such as gold and silver held by a central bank or other monetary authority that are primarily available to balance payments of the country, ...
of over US$403 billion as of December 2012. Despite the
Asian financial crisis The 1997 Asian financial crisis gripped much of East and Southeast Asia during the late 1990s. The crisis began in Thailand in July 1997 before spreading to several other countries with a ripple effect, raising fears of a worldwide economic meltd ...
, the economy continues to expand at about 5% per year, with virtually full employment and low inflation. The city's GDP stand at US$327 billion in 2014. , the nominal GDP per capita in Taipei city is 5th highest in East Asia, behind Tokyo, Singapore, Osaka, and Hong Kong, but ahead of Seoul, as well as London and Paris, according to ''The Economist''. GDP per capita based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) in Taipei in 2015 was US$44,173, behind that of Singapore (US$90,151 in 2016 from the IMF) and Hong Kong (US$58,322 in 2016 from the IMF; also based on PPP). The ''Financial Times'' ranked Taipei highly in economic potential (2nd, behind Tokyo) and business friendliness (4th) in 2015. The city is home to 30 billionaires, the 16th most in the world, ahead of many global cities such as Los Angeles and Sydney. Business Insider also ranks Taipei the 5th most high-tech city globally, the highest in Asia, in 2017. While the IESE Cities in Motion Index 2017 ranks Taipei as the smartest technology city globally. Taipei's main development fields include the
information and communications technology Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless signals) and computer ...
(hardware and software), biotechnology, general merchandizing (wholesale/retail), financial services, and
MICE A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...
industries. Most of the country's major firms are based there including
Acer Computers Acer Inc. (; ) is a Taiwanese multinational company that produces computer hardware and electronics, headquartered in Xizhi District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Its products include desktop PCs, laptop PCs ( clamshells, 2-in-1s, convertibles an ...
,
Asus ASUSTeK Computer Inc. (, , , ; stylized as ASUSTeK or ASUS) is a Taiwanese Multinational corporation, multinational computer, phone hardware and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. Its products include deskto ...
,
CTBC Bank CTBC Bank (previously and still known in Chinese as Chinatrust Bank) is a Taiwanese commercial bank. It is currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of CTBC Financial Holding. History It was established in 1966 under the name China Securities and Inv ...
, Fubon Financial Holding,
Tatung Company Tatung Company () is a multinational corporation established in 1918 and headquartered in Zhongshan, Taipei, Taiwan. Established in 1918 and headquartered in Taipei, Tatung Company holds 3 business groups, which includes 8 business units: Indus ...
,
D-Link D-Link Systems, Inc. (formerly Datex Systems, Inc.) is a Taiwanese multinational manufacturer of networking hardware and telecoms equipments. It was founded in 1986 and headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. History Datex Systems was founded i ...
, and others. 5 Global Fortune 500 companies are headquartered in Taipei. The city also attracts many multi-national corporations, international financial institutions, foreign consulates, and business organizations to set up base there. Thus, Taipei has nearly 3,500 registered foreign businesses and attracts over 50% of the total foreign investment in Taiwan. Foreign companies with offices or regional headquarters in Taipei include
Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...
,
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...
,
IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...
,
Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and Delaware General Corporation Law, incorporated in Delaware. Intel designs, manufactures, and sells computer compo ...
,
HSBC HSBC Holdings plc ( zh, t_hk=滙豐; initialism from its founding member The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation) is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England, with historical and business li ...
,
Citibank Citibank, N.A. ("N. A." stands for "National bank (United States), National Association"; stylized as citibank) is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of Citigroup, a financial services multinational corporation, multinational corporation. Ci ...
,
Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
,
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
,
Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...
,
JP Morgan JPMorgan Chase & Co. (stylized as JPMorganChase) is an American multinational finance corporation headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. It is the largest bank in the United States, and the world's largest bank by mar ...
,
PwC PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a Multinational corporation, multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Fo ...
, and many others. Most financial and foreign firms like to reside in the central business district of Taipei, the
Xinyi Special District Xinyi Planning District ( zh, 信義計畫區), also known as the Xinyi Planning Area, is located in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. The total area of the Xinyi Planning District is 153 hectares. It was designed in the 1970s and developed fro ...
: Citi, JP Morgan, DBS Bank, Cathay Life Insurance, Shin Kong Commercial Bank, and Hua Nan Bank have all established skyscrapers in the area. Meanwhile, technology and electronics companies are often co-located in the Neihu Technology Park or the Nankang Software Park. The startup and innovation scene in Taipei is also very vibrant. In 2018 alone, Microsoft announced plans to invest US$34 million to create an artificial intelligence R&D center in Taipei, while Google announced it will hire 300 people and train 5,000 more in artificial intelligence for machines. Taipei is Google's biggest engineering site in Asia. IBM also announced in 2018 that it will develop a cloud research lab and expand its R&D center in Taipei with eyes on artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and cloud computing. According to the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Development Index, Taipei's entrepreneurial spirit ranks 6th worldwide and 1st in Asia. Taipei has more than 400 startups and numerous incubation centers, accelerators, venture capitals, and angel investors. The city's startup ecosystem is valued at US$580 million by Startup Genome in 2018. Tourism is a small but significant component of the local economy with international visitors totaling almost 3 million in 2008. Taipei has many top tourist attractions and contributes a significant amount to the US$6.8 billion tourism industry in Taiwan.


Culture


Tourism

Tourism is a major part of Taipei's economy. In 2013, over 6.3 million overseas visitors visited Taipei, making the city the 15th most visited globally. The influx of visitors contributed US$10.8 billion to the city's economy in 2013, the 9th highest in the world and the most of any city in the Chinese-speaking world.


Commemorative sites and museums

The
National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall ( zh, t=中正紀念堂, p=zhōngzhèng jìniàntáng, poj=Tiong-chèng-kí-liām-tn̂g) is a national monument and tourist attraction erected in memory of Chiang Kai-shek, former President of the Republic of C ...
is a monument, landmark and tourist attraction that was erected in memory of General Chiang Kai-shek, former
President of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, also known as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. Republic of China (1912– ...
. The structure stands at the east end of Memorial Hall Square, site of the
National Concert Hall The National Concert Hall (NCH) (An Ceoláras Náisiúnta) is a national cultural institution, sometimes described as "the home of music in Ireland". It comprises the actual concert hall operation, which in various chambers hosts over 1,000 ...
and National Theater and their adjacent parks as well as the memorial. The landmarks of Liberty Square stand within sight of Taiwan's Presidential Office Building in Taipei's
Zhongzheng District Zhongzheng District (also Jhongjheng District) is a District (Taiwan), district in Taipei, Taiwan. Taipei Main Station is located in the district. It is home to most of the national government buildings of Taiwan. Overview The district is n ...
. The
National Taiwan Museum The National Taiwan Museum (NTM; ), established in 1908, is the oldest museum in Taiwan. It was founded by the colonial government during Taiwan's period of Japanese rule. The museum is located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei. History Establis ...
sits nearby in what is now
228 Peace Memorial Park The 228 Peace Memorial Park () is a historic site and municipal park located at 3 Ketagalan Boulevard, Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. The park contains memorials to victims of the February 28 Incident of 1947, including the 228 Memo ...
and has worn its present name since 1999. The museum is
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 ...
's oldest, founded on 24 October 1908 by Taiwan's Japanese colonial government (1895–1945) as the Taiwan Governor's Museum. It was launched with a collection of 10,000 items to celebrate the opening of the island's North–South Railway. In 1915 a new museum building opened its doors in what is now
228 Peace Memorial Park The 228 Peace Memorial Park () is a historic site and municipal park located at 3 Ketagalan Boulevard, Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. The park contains memorials to victims of the February 28 Incident of 1947, including the 228 Memo ...
. This structure and the adjacent governor's office (now Presidential Office Building), served as the two most recognizable public buildings in Taiwan during its period of Japanese rule. The
National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum, also known as Taipei Palace Museum, is a national museum headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in Beijing in 1925, the museum was re-established in Shilin District, Shilin, Taipei, in 1965, later expanded with a S ...
is a vast
art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The long ...
and
museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
built around a permanent collection centered on ancient Chinese artifacts. It should not be confused with the
Palace Museum The Palace Museum (), also known as the Beijing Palace Museum, is a large national museum complex housed in the Forbidden City at the core of Beijing, China. With , the museum inherited the imperial royal palaces from the Ming and Qing dynast ...
in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
(which it is named after); both institutions trace their origins to the same institution. The collections were divided in the 1940s as a result of the
Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...
. The National Palace Museum in Taipei now boasts a truly international collection while housing one of the world's largest collections of artifacts from ancient China. The
Shung Ye Museum of Formosan Aborigines The ''Shung Ye Museum of Formosan Aborigines'' (Traditional Chinese: 順益台灣原住民博物館; Simplified Chinese: 顺益台湾原住民博物馆; Pinyin: ''Shùnyì Táiwān Yuánzhùmín Bówùguǎn'') is the first private museum dedicated ...
stands just across the road from the National Palace Museum. The museum offers displays of art and historical items by
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 ...
along with a range of multimedia displays. The
Taipei Fine Arts Museum The Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM; ) is a museum in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is in the Taipei Expo Park. The museum first opened on August 8, 1983, at the former site of the United States Taiwan Defense Command. It was the first ...
was established in 1983 as the first museum in Taiwan dedicated to
modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradit ...
. The museum is housed in a building designed for the purpose that takes inspiration from Japanese designs. Most art in the collection is by Taiwanese artists since 1940. Over 3,000 art works are organized into 13 groups. The National Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall near
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
in Xinyi District is named in honor of a founding father of the
Republic of China 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 ...
,
Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...
. The hall, completed on 16 May 1972, originally featured exhibits that depicted revolutionary events in the Republican period of China. Today it functions as multi-purpose
social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...
,
educational Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education also fol ...
,
concert A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...
and
cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
center for Taiwan's citizens. In 2001 a new museum opened as
Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei The Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei (MoCA Taipei; ) is a museum of contemporary art, located in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. History The museum building was built during the Japanese rule in 1921 for what became . After the handover of ...
. The museum is housed in a building that formerly housed Taipei City government offices.


Taipei 101

Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
is a 101-floor
landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...
skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...
that claimed the title of world's tallest building when it opened in 2004, a title it held for six years before the
Burj Khalifa The Burj Khalifa (known as the Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration) is a megatall skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m (2,722 ft, or just over half a mile) and a roof height (excluding the antenna, but inc ...
in
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
was completed. Designed by C.Y. Lee & Partners and constructed by
KTRT Joint Venture The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was officially classified as ...
, Taipei 101 measures from ground to top, making it the first skyscraper in the world to break the half-kilometer mark in height. Built to withstand typhoon winds and earthquake tremors, its design incorporates many engineering innovations and has won numerous international awards. Today, the Taipei 101 remains one of the tallest skyscrapers in the world and holds
LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a Green building certification systems, green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating ...
's certification as the world's largest "green" building. Its shopping mall and its indoor and outdoor observatories draws visitors from all over the world. Taipei 101's
New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...
fireworks display is a regular feature of international broadcasts.


Performing arts

The
National Theater and Concert Hall The National Theater Hall ( zh, t=國家戲劇院 , poj=Kok-ka Hì-kio̍k-īⁿ , p=Guójiā Xìjù Yuàn) and National Concert Hall ( zh, t=國家音樂廳 , p=Guójiā Yīnyuè Tīng, poj=Kok-ka Im-ga̍k-thiaⁿ, labels=yes), or together t ...
stand at Taipei's Liberty Square and host events by foreign and domestic performers. Other leading concert venues include
Zhongshan Hall Zhongshan Hall () is a historic building which originally functioned as the Taipei (Taihoku) City Public Auditorium (public hall). It is located at 98 Yanping South Road in the Ximending neighborhood of Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. In 19 ...
at
Ximending Ximending is a neighborhood and shopping district in the Wanhua District of Taipei, Taiwan. The Ximending Pedestrian Area was the first pedestrian zone constructed in Taipei and remains the largest in Taiwan. History Name The area is named aft ...
and the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall near
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
. A new venue, the
Taipei Performing Arts Center The Taipei Performing Arts Center (TPAC; ) is a performance center in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan. History The construction of the center began on 28 February 2012. The center construction Topping out, topped out on 27 August 2014. On 31 Au ...
opened in 2022. The venue is near the
Shilin Night Market Shilin Night Market () is a night market in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan, often considered to be the largest and most famous night market in Taiwan. Overview The night market encompasses two distinct sections sharing a symbiotic relations ...
and houses three theaters for events with multi-week runs. The architectural design, by
Rem Koolhaas Remment Lucas Koolhaas (; born 17 November 1944) is a Dutch architect, architectural theory, architectural theorist, urbanist and Professor in Practice of Architecture and Urban Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Graduate School of ...
and OMA, was determined in 2009 in an international competition. The same design process is also in place for a new
Taipei Center for Popular Music The Taipei Music Center (TMC; ) is a performing arts and cultural venue in Nangang District, Taipei, Taiwan, including a 5,000-seat concert hall, cultural hall and creative production facilities. Overview City officials announced plans on July 2 ...
and Taipei City Museum.


Shopping and recreation

Taipei is known for its many
night market Night markets or night bazaars ( zh, 夜市) are street markets which operate at night and are generally dedicated to more leisurely strolling, shopping, and eating than more businesslike day markets. The culture of night markets originates from C ...
s, which include the
Shilin Night Market Shilin Night Market () is a night market in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan, often considered to be the largest and most famous night market in Taiwan. Overview The night market encompasses two distinct sections sharing a symbiotic relations ...
in the
Shilin District Shilin District (also spelled Shihlin District, zh, t=士林區, p=Shìlínqū, poj=Sū-lîm-khu) is a district of Taipei. The central command center of the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) is located in Shilin. History The name ''Shilin'' w ...
. The surrounding streets by Shilin Night Market are extremely crowded during the evening, usually opening late afternoon and operating well past midnight. Most night markets feature individual stalls selling a mixture of food, clothing, and consumer goods.
Ximending Ximending is a neighborhood and shopping district in the Wanhua District of Taipei, Taiwan. The Ximending Pedestrian Area was the first pedestrian zone constructed in Taipei and remains the largest in Taiwan. History Name The area is named aft ...
has been an area for shopping and entertainment since the 1930s. Historic structures include a concert hall, a historic cinema, and the Red House Theater. Modern structures house karaoke businesses, art film cinemas, wide-release movie cinemas, electronic stores, and a wide variety of restaurants and fashion clothing stores. The pedestrian area is especially popular with teens and has been called the "
Harajuku is a district in Shibuya, Tokyo. Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesandō, Tokyo, Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya, Tokyo, Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 Japanese a ...
" of Taipei. The newly developed Xinyi District is popular with tourists and locals alike for its many entertainment and shopping venues, as well as being the home of
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
, a prime tourist attraction. Malls in the area include the sprawling
Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Shin Kong Mitsukoshi (SKM, ) is a Taiwanese brand of high-end department stores operating throughout Taiwan, with concessions also located in mainland China. The brand is a joint venture of the Taiwanese Shin Kong Group and Japanese Mitsukoshi. ...
complex, Breeze Center, Bellavita, Taipei 101 mall,
Eslite Bookstore Eslite Bookstore () is one of the largest retail bookstore chains in Taiwan. It also offers one of the largest selections of English-language publications and translation materials in Taiwan. Headquartered in Xinyi District, Taipei, the c ...
's flagship store (which includes a boutique mall), The Living Mall, ATT shopping mall, and the Vieshow Cinemas (formerly known as Warner Village). The Xinyi district also serves as the center of Taipei's active nightlife, with several popular lounge bars and nightclubs concentrated in a relatively small area around the Neo19, ATT 4 FUN and Taipei 101 buildings. The thriving shopping area around
Taipei Main Station Taipei Main Station () is a major metro and railway station in the capital Taipei, Taiwan. It is served by Taipei Metro, the Taiwan High Speed Rail, and Taiwan Railway. It is also connected through underground passageways to Taipei main stati ...
includes the
Taipei Underground Market Taipei City Mall () is a shopping center located at the intersection of the Datong and Zhongzheng districts in Taipei, Taiwan. It is the first underground market in Taipei City. It is located under Civic Boulevard (市民大道 ''Shìmín Dàd ...
and the original Shin Kong
Mitsukoshi is an international Department stores in Japan, department store chain with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. Its holding company, Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings, is a member of the Mitsui, Mitsui Group. History It was founded in 1673 with the (sho ...
department store at
Shin Kong Life Tower Shin Kong Life Tower (), at 51 stories and a height of , is one of Taiwan's earliest skyscrapers. The rose-colored tower topped by a pyramid stands in Zhongzheng District, Taipei, and dates from 1993. Its first twelve floors and two underground ...
. Other popular shopping destinations include the
Zhongshan Metro Mall The Zhongshan Metro Shopping Mall () is an extensive underground shopping mall in Zhongshan District and Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is located at Changan West Rd., No. 52-1. The mall stretches from Taipei Main Station in the south to ...
,
Dihua Street Dihua Street () is a street located in Dadaocheng, Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan, winding from the south of the district to the north near Dalongdong. The street, then known as ''Centre Street'' (中街), was constructed during the 1850s, w ...
and the
Guang Hua Digital Plaza The Guang Hua Digital Plaza ( or ) is a six-story, indoor technological and electronics market located in Taipei, Taiwan. It is located at the intersection of the Zhongzheng and Da'an Districts. History Guang Hua Market was established by th ...
. The
Miramar Entertainment Park Miramar Entertainment Park () is a shopping mall located in the Dazhi area in Zhongshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. The shopping mall contains an IMAX theater. With 28m × 21m dimensions, its movie screen is the largest in Asia for screening ...
is known for its large Ferris wheel and
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...
theater. Taipei maintains an extensive system of parks, green spaces, and nature preserves. Parks and forestry areas of note in and around the city include
Yangmingshan National Park Yangmingshan National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan, located in both Taipei and New Taipei City. The districts that are partially in the park include Taipei's Beitou and Shilin Districts; and New Taipei's Wanli, Jinshan ...
,
Taipei Zoo The Taipei Zoo, sometimes referred to as the Muzha Zoo, is a public zoological garden in Wenshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is the most famous zoological garden in Taiwan and a leader in conservation, research and education, and recreation. ...
and Da-an Forest Park. Located north of the city center,
Yangmingshan National Park Yangmingshan National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan, located in both Taipei and New Taipei City. The districts that are partially in the park include Taipei's Beitou and Shilin Districts; and New Taipei's Wanli, Jinshan ...
is visited for its cherry blossoms,
hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...
, and sulfur deposits. It is the home of writer
Lin Yutang Lin Yutang (10 October 1895 – 26 March 1976) was a Chinese inventor, linguist, novelist, philosopher, and translator. One scholar commented that Lin's "particular blend of sophistication and casualness found a wide audience, and he became a ma ...
, the summer residence of Chiang Kai-shek, residences of foreign diplomats, the
Chinese Culture University The Chinese Culture University (CCU; ) is a private Taiwanese university located in Yangmingshan in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan. Established in 1962, CCU is one of the largest universities in Taiwan with an enrollment of about 32,000 student ...
, the meeting place of the now defunct
National Assembly of the Republic of China The National Assembly was the authoritative legislative body of the Republic of China, from 1947 to 2005. Along with the Control Yuan (upper house) and the Legislative Yuan (lower house), the National Assembly formed the tricameral parliament ...
, and the
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 ...
Party Archives. The
Taipei Zoo The Taipei Zoo, sometimes referred to as the Muzha Zoo, is a public zoological garden in Wenshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is the most famous zoological garden in Taiwan and a leader in conservation, research and education, and recreation. ...
was founded in 1914 and covers an area of 165 hectares for animal sanctuary.
Bitan Bitan (), historically called Shi-Bitan (), is a tourist spot in Xindian District, New Taipei, Taiwan. "Bitan" literally means "green lake", referring to where the Xindian River widens to form the lake. There is a well-known suspension bridge t ...
is known for boating and water sports.
Tamsui Tamsui District () is a seaside district in New Taipei City, Taiwan adjacent to the Tamsui River and overlooking the Taiwan Strait. The name of the district means "fresh water" in Chinese. Although modest in size (population 189,271), Tamsui ...
is a popular sea-side resort town. Ocean beaches are accessible in several directions from Taipei.


Temples

Taipei has a variety of temples dedicating to Deities from
Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion comprises a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. This includes the veneration of ''Shen (Chinese folk religion), shen'' ('spirits') and Chinese ancestor worship, ances ...
,
Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...
and
Chinese Buddhism Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, first=t, poj=Hàn-thoân Hu̍t-kàu, j=Hon3 Cyun4 Fat6 Gaau3, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism. The Chinese Buddhist canonJiang Wu, "The Chin ...
. The
Bangka Lungshan Temple Bangka Lungshan Temple (also Lungshan Temple of Manka, Mengjia Longshan Temple) is a Taiwanese folk temple in Wanhua District (alternately known as Bangka/Mengjia), Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from Fujian d ...
(), built in 1738 and located in the
Wanhua District Wanhua District (), known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu () and historically as "Monga" or "Monka", is a district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is Taipei's oldest district. The district is home to historic buildings such as the Bangka Lungs ...
, demonstrates an example of architecture with southern Chinese influences commonly seen on older buildings in Taiwan. Qingshui Temple () built in 1787 and Qingshan Temple () together with Lungshan Temple are the three most prominent landmark temples in Bangka or Wanhua District. Other temples include Baoan Temple () located in historic
Dalongdong Dalongdong (), or Toalongpong (; and variants 大浪泵/大隆同), is an old town in historical Taipei located near the narrows of the confluence of the Keelung and Tamsui Rivers. The settlement, covereing the area extending from the Chen Teach ...
, a national historical site, and Xia Hai City God Temple (), located in the old
Dadaocheng Dadaocheng is an area in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. It was also known as Twatutia (a transliteration of the Taiwanese Hokkien ''Tuā-tiū-tiânn''), Daitōtei during Japanese rule, and Tataocheng (Mandarin) during the Kuomintang era. ...
community, constructed with architecture similar to temples in southern
Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...
. The
Taipei Confucius Temple The Taipei Confucius Temple () is a Confucian temple in Datong District, Taipei, Taiwan. History Qing Dynasty The Taipei Confucius Temple was built in 1879 during the Qing era, after Taipeh Prefecture was established in 1875. The original si ...
() traces its history back to 1879 during the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
and also incorporates southern Fujian-style architecture.
Ciyou Temple Ciyou Temple () is a prominent Chinese temple in Songshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. The temple is dedicated to the Goddess Matsu. Raohe Street Night Market was located next to this temple as the temple has been a prominent landmark in the are ...
() in Songshan District,
Guandu Temple The Guandu Temple () is a prominent Chinese temple in Beitou District of Taipei, Taiwan, dedicated the Goddess Mazu Mazu or Matsu is a sea goddess in Chinese folk religion, Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism. She is also know ...
() in Beitou District,
Hsing Tian Kong Hsing-tian Temple (; also Xingtian Temple, Xingtian Gong or Hsing Tian Kong) is a popular temple in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Taiwan. This temple is devoted to Lord Guan, the Patron Deity of businessmen, military personnel and policeman. Thi ...
() in Zhongshan District and
Zhinan Temple Zhinan Temple (; also called , Xiāngōng Miào; also anglicized as "Chihnan" or "Jhihnan") is a Taoist temple on the slopes of Houshan (猴山, "Monkey Mountain") in Wenshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. It was founded in 1882. The temple's mai ...
() in Wenshan District are also popular temples for locals and tourists. Xinsheng South Road is known as the "Road to Heaven" due to its high concentration of temples, churches, and other houses of worship. The
Shandao Temple The Shandao Temple () is a temple in Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is the largest Buddhist temple in Taipei. History Shandao Temple was built in Taiwan under Japanese rule, Japanese rule period. It was called Jōdo-shū Taihoku Betsu-i ...
() built in 1929 and located in Zhongzheng District, is the largest Buddhist temple in Taipei.
Fo Guang Shan Fo Guang Shan (FGS) () is an international Chinese Buddhism, Chinese Mahāyāna Buddhist organization and monastic order based in Taiwan that practices Humanistic Buddhism whose roots are traced to the Linji school of Chan Buddhism. The headqu ...
has a modern temple known as Fo Guang Shan Taipei Vihara () in Xinyi District, while
Dharma Drum Mountain Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM; ) is an international Buddhist spiritual, cultural, and educational foundation founded by late Chan master Sheng-yen (1931–2009). The center focuses on educating the public in Buddhism with the goal of improving th ...
owns the Degui Academy (), an education center in Zhongzheng District and the
Nung Chan Monastery The Nung Chan Monastery ( zh, c=農禪寺, p=Nóngchánsì meaning 'Farming Ch'an') is a monastery at Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. It was formally founded in 1975 by Dongchu, a scholar monk and disciple of renowned Chinese Buddhist master ...
() in Beitou District.
Linji Huguo Chan Temple Linji Huguo Chan Temple () is a Buddhist temple located in Zhongshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. History In 1900, then Japanese Governor of Taiwan Kodama Gentaro (兒玉源太郎), who himself was affiliated with the same sect, requested monks ...
() in Zhongshan District was commenced in 1900 and completed in 1911, it is one of the very few Japanese style Buddhist Temples that was well-preserved in Taiwan. Besides large temples, small outdoor shrines to local deities are very common and are commonly found next to roads as well as in parks and neighborhoods. Many homes and businesses may also set up small shrines of candles, figurines, and offerings. Some restaurants, for example, may set up a small shrine to the
Kitchen God Kitchen gods are mythical beings that represent abstract concepts such as luck or just propel the minor changes of everyday life. Little things that cannot be explained, such as losing small objects like socks in the laundry, are often attribut ...
for success in a restaurant business.


Festivals and events

Many yearly festivals are held in Taipei. In recent years some festivals, such as the Double Ten Day fireworks and concerts, are increasingly hosted on a rotating basis by a number of cities around Taiwan. When
New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...
arrives on the
solar calendar A solar calendar is a calendar whose dates indicates the season or almost equivalently the apparent position of the Sun relative to the stars. The Gregorian calendar, widely accepted as a standard in the world, is an example of a solar calendar ...
, thousands of people converge on Taipei's Xinyi District for
parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...
s, outdoor
concerts A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...
by popular artists, street shows, round-the clock
nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...
. The high point is the countdown to midnight, when
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
assumes the role of the world's largest
fireworks Fireworks are Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large numbe ...
platform. The Taipei
Lantern Festival The Lantern Festival ( zh, t=wikt:元宵節, 元宵節, s=wikt:元宵节, 元宵节, first=t, hp=Yuánxiāo jié), also called Shangyuan Festival ( zh, t=上元節, s=上元节, first=t, hp=Shàngyuán jié) and Cap Go Meh ( zh, t=十五暝, ...
concludes the
Lunar New Year Lunar New Year is the beginning of a new year based on lunar calendars or, informally, lunisolar calendars. Lunar calendar years begin with a new moon and have a fixed number of lunar months, usually twelve, in contrast to lunisolar calendar ye ...
holiday. The timing of the city's lantern exhibit coincides with the national festival in Pingxi, Taipei, Pingxi, when thousands of fire lanterns are released into the sky. The city's lantern exhibit rotates among different downtown locales from year to year, including Liberty Square,
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
, and
Zhongshan Hall Zhongshan Hall () is a historic building which originally functioned as the Taipei (Taihoku) City Public Auditorium (public hall). It is located at 98 Yanping South Road in the Ximending neighborhood of Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. In 19 ...
in
Ximending Ximending is a neighborhood and shopping district in the Wanhua District of Taipei, Taiwan. The Ximending Pedestrian Area was the first pedestrian zone constructed in Taipei and remains the largest in Taiwan. History Name The area is named aft ...
. On Double Ten Day, patriotic celebrations are held in front of the Presidential Office Building. Other annual festivals include Qingming Festival, Ancestors Day (Tomb-Sweeping Day), the Duanwu Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, the Zhong Yuan Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival (Mooncake Festival). Qing Shan King Sacrificial Ceremony () is a century-old grand festival that is held annually in
Wanhua District Wanhua District (), known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu () and historically as "Monga" or "Monka", is a district in Taipei, Taiwan. It is Taipei's oldest district. The district is home to historic buildings such as the Bangka Lungs ...
. Taipei regularly hosts its share of international events. The city recently hosted the 2009 Summer Deaflympics. This event was followed by the Taipei International Flora Exposition, a garden festival hosted from November 2010 to April 2011. The Floral Expo was the first of its kind to take place in Taiwan and only the seventh hosted in
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
; the expo admitted 110,000 visitors on 27 February 2011.


Government

Taipei City is a Special municipality of Taiwan, special municipality which is directly under the
Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive (government), executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Under the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China, amended constitution, the head of the Execut ...
(Central Government). The Mayor of Taipei, mayor of Taipei City was an appointed position since Taipei's conversion to a centrally administered municipality in 1967 until the first public election was held in 1994. The position has a four-year term and is elected by direct popular vote. The first elected mayor was Chen Shui-bian of the Democratic Progressive Party. Ma Ying-jeou took office in 1998 for two terms, before handing it over to Hau Lung-pin who won the 2006 mayoral election on 9 December 2006. Both Chen Shui-bian and Ma Ying-Jeou went on to become
President of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, also known as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. Republic of China (1912– ...
. The incumbent mayor,
Chiang Wan-an Chiang Wan-an ( Chinese: 蔣萬安; born Chang Wan-an; 26 December 1978), also known by his English name Wayne Chiang, is a Taiwanese politician and lawyer who has served as the mayor of Taipei since December 2022. A member of the Kuomintang (KM ...
of
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 ...
, took office on 25 December 2022. Based on the outcomes of previous elections in the past decade, the vote of the overall constituency of Taipei City shows a slight inclination towards the pro-KMT camp (the Pan-Blue Coalition); however, the pro-DPP camp (the Pan-Green Coalition) also has considerable support. Ketagalan Boulevard, where the Presidential Office Building and other government structures are situated, is often the site of mass gatherings such as inauguration and national holiday parades, receptions for visiting dignitaries, political demonstrations, and public festivals.


Garbage recycling

Taipei City strongly promotes garbage recycling, with such success that other countries have sent teams to study the recycling system. After the Environmental Protection Administration (Republic of China), Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) established a program in 1998 combining the efforts of communities, a financial resource named the Recycling Fund was made available to recycling companies and waste collectors. The EPA also introduced garbage recycling trucks, in effort to raise community recycling awareness, that broadcast classical music (specifically Beethoven's "Für Elise" and Tekla Bądarzewska-Baranowska's "A Maiden's Prayer") to announce its arrival to the community. Manufacturers, vendors and importers of recyclable waste pay fees to the Fund, which uses the money to set firm prices for recyclables and subsidize local recycling efforts. Between 1998 and 2008, the recycling rate increased from 6 percent to 32 percent. This improvement enabled the government of Taipei to demonstrate its recycling system to the world at the Expo 2010, Shanghai World Expo 2010.


Administrative divisions

Taipei City is divided up into 12 administrative District (ROC), districts ( zh, labels=no , t=區 , p=qū). Each district is further divided up into Village (Taiwan), urban villages (), which are further sub-divided up into neighborhoods (). Xinyi District is the seat of the municipality where the Taipei City Government headquarters is located.


City planning

The city is characterized by straight roads and public buildings of grand Western architectural styles. The city is built on a square grid configuration; however, these blocks are huge by international standards with sides. The area in between these blocks is infilled with lanes and alleys, which provide access to quieter residential or mixed-use development. Other than a citywide speed limit, there is little uniform planning within this "hidden" area; therefore, lanes (perpendicular to streets) and alleys (parallel with streets, or, conceptually, perpendicular to lanes) spill out from the main controlled-access highways. These minor roads are not always perpendicular and sometimes cut through the block diagonally. Although development began in the western districts of the city (still considered the cultural heart of Taipei) due to trade, the eastern districts have become the focus of recent development projects. Many of the western districts have become targets of urban renewal initiatives.


Transportation

Public transport accounts for a substantial portion of transportation trips in Taipei. According to a 2022 government survey, 34.9% of transportation trips were taken on public transit in Taipei, higher than any other locality in the country. Private transport consists of Scooter (motorcycle), motor scooters, private cars, taxi cabs and bicycles. Private transport trips represented 41.6% of trips taken in Taipei in 2022, the lowest in Taiwan.
Taipei Main Station Taipei Main Station () is a major metro and railway station in the capital Taipei, Taiwan. It is served by Taipei Metro, the Taiwan High Speed Rail, and Taiwan Railway. It is also connected through underground passageways to Taipei main stati ...
serves as the comprehensive hub for the subway, bus, conventional rail, and high-speed rail. A Contactless smart card, contactless smartcard, known as EasyCard, can be used for all modes of public transit as well as several retail outlets. It contains credits that are deducted each time a ride is taken. The EasyCard is read via MIFARE panels on buses and in MRT stations, and it does not need to be removed from one's wallet or purse.


Metro

Taipei's public transport system, the Taipei Metro (commonly referred to as the MRT), incorporates a rapid transit, metro and light rail system based on advanced Véhicule Automatique Léger, VAL and Bombardier Transportation, Bombardier technology. There are currently six metro lines that are organized and labeled in three ways: by color, line number and depot station name. In addition to the rapid transit system itself, the Taipei Metro also includes several public facilities such as the Maokong Gondola, underground shopping malls, parks, and public squares. Modifications to existing Taiwan Railways Administration, railway lines to integrate them into the metro system are underway. In 2017 Taoyuan Airport MRT, a rapid transit line was opened to connect Taipei with Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Zhongli District. The new line is part of the new Taoyuan Metro system. On 31 January 2020, Hitachi Rail Corporation officially commissioned Phase 1 of the Circular line (New Taipei Metro), Circular line which took place at Shisizhang station. The Circular line is a 15.4 km driverless rail system. The Circular line offered free rides beginning in February 2020 for passengers to test the route.


Rail

Beginning in 1983, surface rail lines in the city were moved underground as part of the Taipei Railway Underground Project. The Taiwan High Speed Rail system opened in 2007. The bullet trains connect Taipei with the west coast cities of
New Taipei New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...
, Taoyuan City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Taichung, Chiayi, and Tainan City, Tainan before terminating at Zuoying District, Zuoying (Kaohsiung) at speeds that cut travel times by 60% or more from what they normally are on a bus or conventional train. The Taiwan Railways Administration also runs passenger and freight services throughout the entire island.


Bus

An extensive Taipei bus, city bus system serves metropolitan areas not covered by the metro, with exclusive bus lanes to facilitate transportation. Riders of the city metro system are able to use the EasyCard for discounted fares on buses, and vice versa. A unique feature of the Taipei bus system is the joint venture of private transportation companies that operate the system's routes while sharing the fare system. This route is in sharp contrast to bus systems in the U.S. which are mostly public entities. Several major intercity bus terminals are located throughout the city, including the Taipei Bus Station and Taipei City Hall Bus Station.


Airports

Most scheduled international flights are served by Taoyuan International Airport in nearby Taoyuan, Taiwan, Taoyuan City. Songshan Airport, at the heart of the city in the Songshan District, Taipei, Songshan District, serves domestic flights and scheduled flights to Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Gimpo International Airport in Seoul, and about 15 destinations in the China, People's Republic of China. Songshan Airport is accessible by the Taipei Metro Neihu Line (TRTS), Neihu Line; Taoyuan International Airport is accessible by the Taoyuan Airport MRT.


Ticketing

In 1994, following the rapid development of Taipei, a white paper for transport policies expressed the strong objective of creating a transport system for the people of Taipei to accommodate the burgeoning city's needs. In 1999, they chose Mitac consortium, which Thales-Transportation Systems is part of. Thales Group, Thales was then selected again in 2005 to deploy an upgrade of Taipei's public transport network with an end-to-end and fully contactless automatic fare collection solution that integrates 116 metro stations, 5,000 buses and 92 car parks.


Education

Taipei is home to the campuses of 24 universities and Academia Sinica, Taiwan's national academy which supports the Taiwan International Graduate Program: National Taiwan University (NTU or ''Tai-Da'') was established in 1928 during the period of Japanese colonial rule. NTU has produced many political and social leaders in Taiwan. Both pan-blue coalition, pan-blue and pan-green coalition, pan-green movements in Taiwan are rooted on the NTU campus. The university has six campuses in the greater Taipei region (including
New Taipei New Taipei City is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality located in regions of Taiwan, northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 4,004,367 as of January 2023, making it the most populous city in Taiwan, a ...
) and two additional campuses in Nantou County. The university governs farms, forests, and hospitals for educational and research purposes. The main campus is in Taipei's Da-An district, where most department buildings and all the administrative buildings are located. The College of Law and the College of Medicine are located near the Presidential Office Building. The National Taiwan University Hospital is a leading international center of medical research. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU or ''Shi-Da'') likewise traces its origins to the Japanese colonial period. Founded as Taihoku College in 1922 and organized as a teacher training institution by the Kuomintang in 1946, NTNU has since developed into a comprehensive international university. The university boasts especially strong programs in the humanities and international education. Worldwide it is perhaps best known as home of the Mandarin Training Center, a program that offers Mandarin language training each year to over a thousand students from scores of countries throughout the world. The main campus, in Taipei's Daan district near MRT Guting Station, is known for its historic architecture. The Shida market area surrounding this campus takes its name from the school's acronym.


Sports

Wei Chuan Dragons of Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League is a professional baseball team based in Taipei. The Taipei Highwealth team of the Popcorn League is also based in Taipei, co-sponsored by the Taipei City Government and Highwealth Construction. Taipei also has two professional basketball teams, the Taipei Taishin Mars of the T1 League and the Taipei Fubon Braves of the P. League+.


Major sporting events

Below is a selected list of recent sporting events hosted by the city: *2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship *2006 Women's Baseball World Cup *2007 Baseball World Cup *2009 Asian Judo Championships *2009 Summer Deaflympics *2013 Badminton Asia Championships *2015 WBSC Premier12 *2016 IIHF Women's Challenge Cup of Asia Division I *2017 Summer Universiade *2019 Asian Men's Club Volleyball Championship *2022 U-23 Baseball World Cup (co-hosted with Taichung and Yunlin County, Yunlin) *2023 Asian Men's Volleyball Challenge Cup *2023 IKF World Korfball Championship *2023 U-18 Baseball World Cup (Co-hosted with Taichung) *2024 World Junior Figure Skating Championships *2024 WBSC Premier12 *2025 Summer World Masters Games (co-hosted with New Taipei City) *Taipei Marathon (annual): The marathon is one of the two World Athletics Label Road Races in Taiwan, being categorized as an Elite Label Road Race. The other race is the New Taipei City Wan Jin Shi Marathon, categorized as a Gold Label Road Race. The Taipei Arena is located at the site of the former Taipei Municipal Baseball Stadium (demolished in 2000), with a capacity of over 15,000. It was opened on 1 December 2005 and has since held more art and cultural activities (such as live concerts) than sporting events, which it was originally designed for. The Chinese Taipei Ice Hockey League plays out of the auxiliary arena. Taipei Dome and Tianmu Baseball Stadium are the major baseball venues in Taipei. The Taipei Dome, which has the capacity to house 40,071 seats, is estimated to finish construction by the end of 2023. Taipei Municipal Stadium is a multipurpose stadium that hosts football and track and field events, as well as concerts, both live and prerecorded. Originally built in 1956, it was demolished and reconstructed in 2009.


Youth baseball

In 2010, a Taipei baseball team—Chung-Ching Junior Little League—won the Junior League World Series#List of champions, Junior League World Series. The achievement came after winning the Asia-Pacific Region, then defeating the Mexico Region and Latin America Region champions to become the International champion, and finally defeating the U.S. champion (Southwest Region), Rose Capital East LL (Tyler, Texas), 9–1. Taiwan's Little League World Series international team has won 17 championships, the most wins in the league.


Media

As the capital, Taipei City is the headquarters for many television and radio stations in Taiwan and the center of some of the country's largest newspapers.


Television

Television stations located in Taipei include the CTS Education and Culture, CTS Recreation, CTV MyLife, CTV News Channel (Taiwan), CTV News Channel, China Television, Chinese Television System, Chung T'ien Television, Dimo TV, Eastern Television, Era Television, FTV News, Follow Me TV (Taiwan), Follow Me TV, Formosa TV, Gala Television, Public Television Service, SET Metro, SET News, SET Taiwan, Sanlih E-Television, Shuang Xing, TTV Family, TTV Finance, TTV World, TVBS, TVBS-G, TVBS-NEWS, Taiwan Broadcasting System, Videoland Television Network and Taiwan Television.


Newspapers

Newspapers include ''Apple Daily (Taiwan), Apple Daily'', ''Central Daily News'', ''The China Post'', ''China Times'', ''DigiTimes'', ''Kinmen Daily News'', ''Liberty Times'', ''Mandarin Daily News'', ''Matsu Daily'', ''Min Sheng Bao'', ''Sharp Daily'', ''Taipei Times'', ''Taiwan Daily'', ''Taiwan News'', ''Taiwan Times'' and ''United Daily News''.


International relations

Taipei was a member of the Asian Network of Major Cities 21 before its dissolvement.


Twin towns and sister cities

Taipei is Twin towns and sister cities, twinned with:Taipei Sister city list
Taipei City Council


United States

* Houston, Texas, TX, United States (1961) * San Francisco, California, CA, United States (1970) * Guam, United States (1973) * Cleveland, Ohio, OH, United States (1975) * Indianapolis, Indiana, IN, United States (1978) * Marshall, Texas, Marshall, Texas, TX, United States (1978) * Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), GA, United States (1979) * Los Angeles, California, CA, United States (1979) * Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona, AZ, United States (1979) * Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, OK, United States (1981) * Boston, Massachusetts, MA, United States (1996) * Dallas, Texas, TX, United States (1996)


Outside United States

* Lomé, Togo (1966) * Manila, Philippines (1966) * Cotonou, Benin (1967) * Quezon City, Philippines (1968) * Seoul, South Korea (1968) * Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (1970) * Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (1978) * Gold Coast, Queensland, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia (1982) * Johannesburg, South Africa (1982) * Pretoria, South Africa (1983) * Lilongwe, Malawi (1984) * San José, Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica (1984) * Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, France (1986) * Asunción, Paraguay (1987) * Panama City, Panama (1989) * Managua, Nicaragua (1992) * San Salvador, El Salvador (1993) * Warsaw, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland (1995) * Ulan-Ude, Buryatia, Russia (1996) * Dakar, Senegal (1997) * Banjul, Gambia (1997) * Bissau, Guinea-Bissau (1997) * Busan, South Korea (1997) * Mbabane, Eswatini (1997) * Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (1997) * San Nicolás de los Garza, San Nicolás, Nuevo León, Mexico (1997) * La Paz, Bolivia (1997) * Guatemala City, Guatemala (1998) * Monrovia, Liberia (1998) * Vilnius, Lithuania (1998) * Majuro, Marshall Islands (1999) * Riga, Latvia (2001) * Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (2008) * Daegu, South Korea (2010) * Quito, Ecuador (2015/2016) * Castries, St. Lucia (2015/2016) * Belmopan, Belize (2019) * Prague, Czech Republic (2020) * Lima, Peru (2020) * Apia, Samoa


Partner cities

* Anchorage, Alaska, Anchorage, Alaska, AK, United States (1997) * Montreal, Quebec, Canada (2001) * Quebec City, Quebec, Canada (2001) * Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (2003) * Toronto, Ontario, Canada (2004) * Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa, Japan (2006) * Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (2008) * Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (2011) * Wellington, New Zealand (2015)


Friendship cities

* Perth, Western Australia, Australia (1999) * Gyeonggi Province, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea (2000) * Orange County, California, Orange County, California, CA, United States (2000) * George Town, Penang, George Town, Penang, Malaysia (2009) * Helsinki, Finland (2012)


In popular culture

*Taipei's name is used in a professional wrestling match named the "Taipei Deathmatch" in which the wrestlers' fists are taped and dipped into glue and in broken and crushed glass, allowing shards to stick to their fists. This match can be won by pinfall, submission or escape. *Writer Tao Lin's 2013 novel is titled Taipei (novel), ''Taipei'' and takes place in both New York City and Taipei, where the protagonist Paul's parents were born and live. In the novel, the character named Paul gets married and then visits Taipei with his new wife. They take MDMA and LSD and film a mock documentary on "Taiwan's first McDonald's." The novel was made into a movie titled ''High Resolution'', starring Justin Chon and Ellie Bamber.


Gallery

File:Minquan_Bridge2017_TAIWAN.jpg, Taipei panoramic view File:A03-28.jpg, Dadaocheng File:EntranceChiangKaiShek.JPG, the main entrance of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall File:Taipei_101_2008_NewYear_Firework.jpg, New year fireworks at
Taipei 101 The Taipei 101 (; stylized in all caps), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a 508 m (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. It is owned by Taipei Financial Center Corporation. It was Council on Tall Buildings ...
File:Taiwan 2009 Taipei Presidential Palace FRD 7172.jpg, Presidential Office Building from Ketagalan Boulevard File:西門紅樓01.jpg, Red House Theater File:北投文物館(原佳山旅館).jpg, Beitou Museum File:Grand Hotel Taipei View from Minsheng Community Center 20140930.jpg, Grand Hotel (Taipei City), Grand Hotel Taipei File:DaZhiBridge2_byJaojao.JPG, Dazhi Bridge File:dansui.jpg, Dadaocheng Wharf, Taipei File:Taipei_Baoan_Temple.jpg, Dalongdong Baoan Temple, Bao-an Temple File:指南宮凌霄寶殿.jpg,
Zhinan Temple Zhinan Temple (; also called , Xiāngōng Miào; also anglicized as "Chihnan" or "Jhihnan") is a Taoist temple on the slopes of Houshan (猴山, "Monkey Mountain") in Wenshan District of Taipei, Taiwan. It was founded in 1882. The temple's mai ...
File:101.typhoon.altonthompson.jpg, A typhoon makes landfall in Taipei City File:ZhiShanGardenTaipei.jpg, National Palace Museum, Zhishan Garden at the National Palace Museum File:Ximending Side Alley at Night.jpg, Ximending at night File:Taipei_Story_House_20100718a.jpg, Taipei Story House (Yuanshan Mansion) File:2010 07 21240 6773 Da'an District, Taipei, Daan Park, Washingtonia filifera, Taiwan.JPG, Daan Park File:2010 07 20770 6691 Da'an District, Taipei, Daan Park, Taiwan.jpg, Daan Park


See also

*Taipei-Keelung Metropolitan Area *List of districts of Taipei by area *List of districts of Taipei by population *List of districts of Taipei by population density *List of schools in Taipei *Taipei Community Services Center (offers support services to the international community)


Notes


Words in native languages


Other


References


Further reading

*


External links

*
Taipei City Council
(archived) * {{Authority control Taipei, Capitals in Asia Populated places established in 1884 Municipalities of Taiwan 1884 establishments in China