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The Matsu Islands (馬祖列島 or less frequently, 馬祖群島
Pinyin: Mǎzǔ) are a minor archipelago of 19 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait administered as Lienchiang County
(連江 Pinyin: Liánjiāng), Fujian Province of the Republic of China
(ROC, based on Taiwan). Not all of what is historically part of Lienchiang county is
under the control of the ROC. The People's
Republic of China controls the part of the county adjoining the mainland and has a separate administration for that jurisdiction, Lianjiang County, which claims the entire archipelago to be its Mazu Township
(妈祖乡).
They are named after the goddess Matsu. Quemoy is the other island on the Fujian coast controlled by the ROC.
History
Fujianese Mainlanders started
migrating to the islands in the Yuan Dynasty. Most people on Matsu came
from Houguan (侯官) (today Changle County (長樂縣), Fujian).
Some crewmen of Zheng He temporarily stayed on the islands. In early Qing Dynasty, pirates gather here and
residents temporarily left.
After the Nationalists retreated to Taiwan in 1949, the ROC retained the part of Lienchiang County offshore (and the entire Kinmen County as well). The common romanization used in the ROC is Wade-Giles (Lienchiang) while the PRC uses pinyin (Lianjiang).
However, the name is the same in Chinese.
In April 2003, the county government started considering changing the name to Matsu
County to avoid confusion with the county of the same name on the mainland. This is the first example of a local government
officially wishing to change its name.
Townships
Lienchiang County (of the ROC) is currently divided into four townships:
- Nangan Township (南竿鄉 Nángān) "Southern Fishing Pole"
- Beigan Township (北竿鄉
Běigān) "Northern Fishing Pole"
- Jyuguang Township (莒光鄉 Jǔguāng) "Brilliance of
the Ju Kingdom"
- Dongyin Township
(東引鄉 Dōngyǐn) "Welcoming the East"
Altogether, there are 22 Lienchiang villages, which are further divided into 137 neighborhoods (鄰 lín).
All townships, except Jyuguang, are named after the largest island in its
jurisdictional area, but most townships also include other islets.
Geography
The Matsu Islands include five major islands: Nangan, Dongjyu and Sijyu (both in
Jyuguang Township), Beigan, and Dongyin. Minor islands include Liang
(亮島), Gaodeng (高登), Daciou (大坵), and Siaociou (小坵) -- all belong to the
Peikan Township.
- North: 26º18' N
- South: 25º56' N
- East: 120º1'20 E
- West: 119º51' E
Another set of coordinates: 119°51'-120°31' E, 25°55'-26°44' N
Dongyin is the northernmost and Dongjyu is the southernmost.
Areas:
- Nangan: 10.43 km²
- Beigan: 8.86 km²
- Dongyin: 4.35 km²
- Jyuguang islands: see Jyuguang
Average annual temperature is 8.9°, with the lowest point being 1.3°.
Demographics
The language spoken by Matsu residents is the Ping language (平話), a dialect of Northern Fujianese.
Chen (陳) is the most common surname, then Lin (林),
Wang (王), Cao (曹), and Liu
(劉).
Several islands are not inhabited permanently, some of which are stationed by ROC soldiers.
Economy
Farm products include rice, sugar
cane, tea plant, orange. Sea animals, such as fish,
clams, and jellyfish, are also popular
exports.
Natural reserves
Since 1990, the county controls the Matsu Islands Bird Sanctuary
(馬祖列島燕鷗保護區), which spreads across eight islands and islets in
Nangan, Beigan and Tongyin Townships. It contains 30 species
in 15 orders, mostly gulls
and terns. In 2000, four pairs of the critically endangered Chinese Crested
Tern, previously thought to be extinct, were discovered nesting
on the Matsu Islands, giving them global conservation importance.
There are also mosses and ferns rare or absent on
Mainland China and Taiwan
Connection to the goddess
Matsu, though named after the goddess Matsu, is written with a
different character that has a different tone. But the Matsu Islands are not the birthplace of the goddess as the human Lin
Muoniang -- Meizhou Island is -- but her death place (on a seaport
named after her on Nangan Island).
The Matsu Nangan Heavenly Empress Palace (馬祖南竿天后宮), a temple dedicated to the
goddess, contains the sarcophagus of Lin Muoniang. It is, however, not as popular as the Meizhou temple.
Most Taiwanese pilgrims to Meizhou start off their journey in Matsu Islands because they are the closest ROC-controlled base
to Meizhou, which is controlled by the PRC
See also: Political divisions of the Republic of China
External links
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