Hualien

About Hualien

Hualien (Wade–Giles: Hua¹-lien²) is a county on the east coast of Taiwan. It is Taiwan's largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous terrain, has one of the lowest populations in the country. The county seat and largest city is Hualien City. Hualien County is located in the eastern part of Taiwan—the Pacific Ocean lies to its east and the Central Mountain Range lies to its west. Narrow and long, Hualien is the largest county in Taiwan in terms of area.

Most of its population resides in the Huadong Valley, which runs north to south between the Central and Hai'an mountain ranges. Hualien's natural environment attracts many visitors and some of its natural attractions include Taroko Gorge, Qingshui Cliff, and Qixingtan Beach.

Much of modern-day Hualien County was populated by the Sakizaya people before the arrival of the Spanish, Dutch, and Han Chinese under Qing annexation. The region was renamed Karenkō Prefecture in 1895 during Japanese colonial rule. In 1945, after the end of World War II, the Republic of China took control of Taiwan and renamed the former Karenkō Prefecture as Hualien County of Taiwan Province. Taiwan Province would be reorganized once again in 1998 and Hualien County fell under the direct jurisdiction of the Executive Yuan.

As of February 2023, Hualien's organic cultivation area was 3,175 hectares (7,850 acres), the largest of any county in the country. Hualien is the largest organic agricultural production base in Taiwan.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA. Photography via Wikimedia Commons.