This page is about Dasi of Taoyuan County. For the borough of the same name in Yilan County, see Dasi Station

Dasi Station

The Daxi Station is a railway station of Taiwan Railway Administration located at Daxi Borough, Toucheng Town, Yilan County, Taiwan.- Structure :...

Dasi , is an urban township

Township (Taiwan)

The townships are the administrative subdivisions of Republic of China counties, along with County-controlled city. Most of the present townships originates from Towns and Villages in the Japanese era. After the World War II, the ROC government reformed them as urban townships and rural townships...

 in eastern Taoyuan County of Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

.

History

During the early years of Han Chinese

Han Chinese

Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...

 settlement in Taipei Basin

Taipei Basin

Taipei Basin is a geographic region in northern Taiwan. It is the second largest basin in Taiwan. The basin is bounded by Yangmingshan to the north, Linkou mesa to the west, and the Ridge of Xueshan Range to the southeast. The shape of the basin is close to a triangle...

, the Atayal people that originally inhabited the basin gradually moved upstream along Dahan River (大漢溪), which they called Takoham in their native language. Han people began to populate the Takoham region in the 18th century, and the region saw the Han and Atayal people intermingled. The settlement later became an important trading post in 19th century due to infightings of Han people in Taipei region.

In 1803, open fighting broke out between two rival factions of Han people in Taipei, and many refugees fled south for safety. Among the refugees was the Lin clan, which was one of the wealthiest clans in Taiwan. The clan settled in Takoham and invested its fortunes in the settlement, which brought prosperity to the whole region. Due to its strategic location and the investments from the Lin clan, Takoham became the center of trading and transportation between Taipei

Taipei

Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...

 and the south. Goods would arrive here to be transported to Taipei via Dahan river, and many traders opened their shops in the area; some of the shops still exist today in the old town section.

When the North-South Railway

Rail transport in Taiwan

Taiwan has an extensive network of railways . Though no longer as dominant as it once was, Taiwan's high population density continues to make rail transport an extremely important form of transportation, especially along the densely populated western corridor...

, which bypasses the Takoham settlement, was completed in 1909, the importance of river trade decreased. Takoham lost its significance in North-South transportation, and is no longer a trading port. On the other hand, it became famous for the production of wooden furniture. In 1920, the Japanese government renamed this area Daikei (大溪, meaning "big creek"). After World War II

Taiwan after World War II

Taiwan after World War II is the history of Taiwan which is ruled by the government of the Republic of China, since 25 October 1945 for present.-Early postwar society:...

, the ROC government has promoted the Mandarin romanizations Ta-hsi, and more recently Dasi, as its official name.

Dasi is known for its dried tofu

Tofu

is a food made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. It is part of East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Vietnamese, and others. There are many different varieties of tofu, including fresh tofu and tofu...

, (大溪豆干), which is a popular dish in Taiwanese cuisine

Taiwanese cuisine

Taiwanese cuisine has several variations. In addition to the following representative dishes from the people of Hoklo ethnicity , there are also Aboriginal, Hakka, and local derivatives of Chinese cuisines .Taiwanese cuisine itself is often associated with influences from mid to southern...

. Dasi is also home to the mausoleums of two late presidents of Republic of China

Republic of China

The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...

. The late president Chiang Kai-shek

Chiang Kai-shek

Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....

 is temporarily entombed in nearby Cihu. His son Chiang Ching-kuo

Chiang Ching-kuo

Chiang Ching-kuo , Kuomintang politician and leader, was the son of President Chiang Kai-shek and held numerous posts in the government of the Republic of China...

 is entombed at Touliao, a mile down the road.

Transportation

Dasi is served by National Highway No. 3

National Highway No. 3 (Taiwan)

National Highway No. 3 is the second North-South freeway in Taiwan. It begins in Keelung City at Jijin Interchange on the Provincial Highway No. 2 and ends in Linbian, Pingtung on the Provincial Highway No. 17....

 and Provincial Highway No. 66

Provincial Highway No. 66 (Taiwan)

Provincial Highway No. 66 is an expressway, which begins in Guanyin, Taoyuan on the Provincial Highway No. 15 and ends in Daxi, Taoyuan on the County Highway No. 112A.-Major Cities Along the Route:*Yangmei, Taoyuan*Pingzhen City*Zhongli City*Daxi, Taoyuan...

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External links

• Dasi Old Streets