Provincial cities sometimes translated provincial municipalities, are cities lesser in rank than special municipalities of the Republic of China (Taiwan)

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...

. They are governed by provinces directly and are one level above the most basic county-controlled cities (see Administrative divisions of the Republic of China).

In the early 20th century, the criteria of being a provincial municipality, as stated in Laws on the City Formation (市組織法), included being the provincial capital as well as having a population of over 200,000, or over 100,000 if the city had particular significance in politics, economics, and culture. After relocating the government to 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...

, where many cities considered to be insignificant had large populations, the Republic of China government raised the limit to 500,000 in 1981 in the Scheme on the Local Rules in Various Counties and Cities of Taiwan Province (臺灣省各縣市實施地方自治綱要). It was later raised again to 600,000.

Provincial cities in Taiwan

There are currently three provincial municipalities, all part of Taiwan Province

Taiwan Province

Taiwan Province is one of the two administrative divisions referred to as provinces and is controlled by the Republic of China . The province covers approximately 73% of the territory controlled by the Republic of China...

, administered by the Republic of China:

Romanization	Chinese Chinese character Chinese characters are logograms used in the writing of Chinese and Japanese , less frequently Korean , formerly Vietnamese , or other languages...	Tongyong Pinyin Tongyong Pinyin Tongyong Pinyin was the official Romanization of Mandarin Chinese in the Republic of China between 2002 and 2008. The system was unofficially used between 2000 and 2002, when a new romanization system for the Republic of China was being evaluated for adoption. The ROC's Ministry of Education...	Hanyu Pinyin	Wade-Giles Wade-Giles Wade–Giles , sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a romanization system for the Mandarin Chinese language. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Wade during the mid-19th century , and was given completed form with Herbert Giles' Chinese–English dictionary of 1892.Wade–Giles was the most...	Pe̍h-ōe-jī	Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Pha̍k-fa-sṳ is an orthography used to write Hakka language, a Chinese dialect. It is invented by Presbyterian church in 19th century. Hakka New Testament published in 1924 is written in this system.-Writing system:...	City Seat	City Seat in Chinese
Chiayi City Chiayi -Administration:-City attractions:*Chiayi Park*Sun Shooting Tower *Lantan *Historic Archives Building of Chiayi City*University of Chiayi*Chiayi Museum...	嘉義市	Jiayi	Jiāyì	Chia1-i4	Ka-gī	Kâ-ngi	East District	東區
Hsinchu City Hsinchu Hsinchu City is a city in northern Taiwan. Hsinchu is popularly nicknamed "The Windy City" for its windy climate.Hsinchu City is administered as a special municipality within Taiwan . The city is bordered by Hsinchu County to the north and east, Miaoli County to the south, and the Taiwan Strait...	新竹市	Sinjhu	Xīnzhú	Hsin1-chu2	Sin-tek	Sîn-tsuk	North District	北區
Keelung City Keelung Keelung City is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. It borders New Taipei and forms the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with the Taipei and New Taipei. Nicknamed the Rainy Port for its frequent rain and maritime role, the city is Taiwan's second largest seaport...	基隆市	Jilong	Jīlóng	Chi1-lung2	Ke-lâng	Kî-lùng	Zhongzheng District	中正區

Timeline

Date	| Addition	| Removal	| No.	|Description
1945	Changhua City Changhua City Changhua City is the county seat of Changhua County in Taiwan. For many centuries the site was home to a settlement of Babuza people, a coastal tribe of Taiwanese aborigines. The name of the city is derived from the aboriginal word Poasoa .Changhua is best known for its landmark statue of the Buddha... , Chiayi City, Hsinchu City, Kaohsiung City, Keelung City, Taichung City, Tainan City, Taipei City, Pingtung City Pingtung City Pingtung City is the capital of Pingtung County, Taiwan.-Geography:Pingtung is located in Pingtung County, the southernmost county in Taiwan. It is located east of Kaohsiung and Fengshan, and centered between the western coast and the eastern mountain range. The climate is humid and extremely hot...		9	Reform from the prefecture-controlled cities in the period under Japanese rule Taiwan under Japanese rule Between 1895 and 1945, Taiwan was a dependency of the Empire of Japan. The expansion into Taiwan was a part of Imperial Japan's general policy of southward expansion during the late 19th century.... .
August 16, 1950		Chiayi City	8	merged into Chiayi County Chiayi County Chiayi County is a county in southwestern Taiwan surrounding but not including Chiayi City. Its historical name in Taiwanese Hokkien derives from Tsirosen in the Formosan languages...  and became a county-controlled city County-controlled city A county-controlled city is a third level administrative division of the Republic of China .On the same level as a ROC township, it is the lowest-level city of ROC, below provincial city and special municipality. There are 17 County-controlled cities under Taiwan Province...
December 1, 1951		Changhua City Changhua City Changhua City is the county seat of Changhua County in Taiwan. For many centuries the site was home to a settlement of Babuza people, a coastal tribe of Taiwanese aborigines. The name of the city is derived from the aboriginal word Poasoa .Changhua is best known for its landmark statue of the Buddha... , Hsinchu City, Pingtung City Pingtung City Pingtung City is the capital of Pingtung County, Taiwan.-Geography:Pingtung is located in Pingtung County, the southernmost county in Taiwan. It is located east of Kaohsiung and Fengshan, and centered between the western coast and the eastern mountain range. The climate is humid and extremely hot...	5	downgraded to county-controlled cities
July 1, 1967		Taipei City	4	upgraded to a special municipality
July 1, 1979		Kaohsiung City	3	upgraded to a special municipality
July 1, 1982	Chiayi City, Hsinchu City		5	upgraded from county-controlled cities
December 25, 2010		Taichung City, Tainan City	3	merge with Taichung County Taichung County Taichung County was a county in central Taiwan, the Republic of China, that surrounded but did not include Taichung City. The name Taichung means "central Taiwan"...  and Tainan County Tainan County Tainan County was located in southern Taiwan. The name "Tainan" means "Southern Taiwan". Formerly a county of the Republic of China , Tainan County was merged with Tainan City at the end of 2010 to form a single special municipality.... , and upgraded to special municipalities
Provincial cities in existence:Chiayi City, Hsinchu City, Keelung City (3).

The provincial city hierarchy will be abolished in 2014 under President Ma Ying-jeou

Ma Ying-jeou

Ma Ying-jeou is the 12th term and current President of the Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, and the Chairman of the Kuomintang Party, also known as the Chinese Nationalist Party. He formerly served as Justice Minister from 1993 to 1996, Mayor of Taipei from 1998 to 2006, and Chairman...

's "Three municipalities and 15 counties" scheme if the plan goes through. Keelung

Keelung

Keelung City is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. It borders New Taipei and forms the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with the Taipei and New Taipei. Nicknamed the Rainy Port for its frequent rain and maritime role, the city is Taiwan's second largest seaport...

 is planned to be merged with 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...

, while Hsinchu and Chiayi will merge with their respective counties (Hsinchu County

Hsinchu County

Hsinchu County is a county in north-western Taiwan. The population of the county is mainly Hakka; there is a Taiwanese aboriginal minority in the southeastern part of the county. Zhubei is the capital of Hsinchu, where the government office and county office is located...

 and Chiayi County

Chiayi County

Chiayi County is a county in southwestern Taiwan surrounding but not including Chiayi City. Its historical name in Taiwanese Hokkien derives from Tsirosen in the Formosan languages...

) to become county-controlled cities.

See alsp

• the term "provincial cities" is used to refer to prefecture-level cities in the People's Republic of China
  People's Republic of China
  China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
  
  , see Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China#Prefecture level.