Wanhua District

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Wanhua 萬華區
District
Wanhua District
Ximending (Hsimenting) (西門町)
Wanhua District in Taipei City
Country	Republic of China (Taiwan)
Region	Western Taipei
Divisions	List 36 villages 720 neighborhoods
Area
• Total	8.8522 km2 (3.4179 sq mi)
• Rank	Ranked 10th of 12
Population  (January 2023)
• Total	173,209[1]
• Rank	Ranked 9th of 12
Postal code	108
Website	whdo.gov.taipei (in Chinese)

Wanhua District (Chinese: 萬華區; pinyin: Wànhuá Qū), known in Taiwanese Hokkien as Báng-kah khu (Chinese: 艋舺區) 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 Lungshan Temple and the Red House Theater.

Wanhua was the first district in Taipei to undergo economic development; many of the buildings and cultural sites in the region are older than those in surrounding districts. A large number of temples in Wanhua are attributed with originating from the Qing era.

Wanhua District is divided up into 36 villages (里) and 722 neighborhoods (鄰). In recent years, the population in the district has been in decline. It also has a higher concentration of mainlanders.^{[citation needed]} Nevertheless, this district continues to be treasured by many as it is representative of some of Taipei's richest historical cultures – for example, the annual temple rituals held at Qingshan Temple, also known as the Qing Shan King Sacrificial Ceremony. This is a grand religious fiesta and celebration that involves a procession within Wanhua District for three consecutive nights.^{[citation needed]}

Wanhua is the Mandarin Chinese pronunciation of Banka (Japanese: 萬華), a name coined by the Japanese because of its phonetic resemblance to the area's former name in Taiwanese Hokkien (Chinese: 艋舺; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Báng-kah).^[2] Spellings used in English works circa 1900 include Banka, Manka^[3] and Bang-kah.^[4] The old Taiwanese Hokkien name possibly derives from bangka (bangka), the Austronesian word from one of the northern Formosan languages for a kind of "outrigger canoe". This is also attributed to the location of Wanhua, which is beside the Tamsui River and was once a prosperous trading port.^{[citation needed]}

In the late Qing era, Hobe (modern-day Tamsui District) was the treaty port of northern Taiwan, whereas the trade was conducted at Bangka. Therefore, in 1862, the British Consulate succeeded in extending the limits of the port up the Tamsui River to include Banka, which was more than 10 miles (16 km) from the port.^[5] Bangka was the largest and most important city of northern Formosa, thoroughly Chinese, and, in the initial experience of missionary George Leslie Mackay, intensely anti-foreign.^[6]

In the early 20th century, with a population of about 27,000, Banka was Taiwan's third most populous city, following the nearby suburb of Daitōtei.^[7] Both cities were part of the Taihoku (Taipei) capital area but outside of the city proper, which was occupied mainly by the Japanese official class.^[8]

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the Republic of China in 1945, the area where Wanhua District covers now used to consist of Longshang District (龍山區) and Shuangyuan District (雙園區). In 1990, the two districts merged and formed Wanhua District.^{[citation needed]}

Wanhua District can be divided into three sections: northern, central, and southern.^[9] The northern area, including Ximending, is popular for its large number of shopping centers - which makes it popular among the younger generation. Many historical sites are located in Central Wanhua, including Lungshan Temple, Qingshui Temple, Qingshan Temple and Bopiliao Historic Block. Southern Wanhua is mainly a residential area with a wide city park, also known as the Youth Park.

Night markets, a staple of Taiwanese culture, are widespread in the district and include the Huaxi Street Night Market, Xichang Street Night Market, Guangzhou Street Night Market, Wuzhou Street Night Market, and Nanjichang Night Market.^[9]

Huaxi Street Night Market is a two-block long night market located near Lungshan Temple. The market contains stands that serve local snacks, and restaurants that serve traditional Taiwanese dishes and uncommon delicacies such as: snake blood and meat, turtle blood and meat and deer penis wine. The area is also the site of Taipei's former red-light district. Prostitution was outlawed in the 1990s although prostitutes can still be readily found.^{[citation needed]}

Huannan Market is also located in the district. The market is the biggest traditional market in Taipei. There, vendors sell produce, meats, seafood and cooked foods.^[9]

Other tourist attractions include the Heritage and Culture Education Center of Taipei City, Qingyunge Art, Wanhua Lin's Mansion and Ximending Mazu Temple.^{[citation needed]}

• National Taiwan University Hospital, Bei-Hu Branch^{[citation needed]}
• Taipei City Hospital, Chinese Medicine and Kunming Branches^{[citation needed]}
• Renji Hospital^{[citation needed]}
• Xiyuan Hospital^{[citation needed]}
• Wanhua Hospital^{[citation needed]}

• Huajiang Senior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Dali Senior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Liren Private High School^{[citation needed]}

• Wanhua Junior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Shuangyuan Junior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Longshan Junior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Dali Junior High School^{[citation needed]}
• Liren Private Junior High School^{[citation needed]}

• Xinhe Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Shuangyuan Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Dongyuan Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Dali Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Xiyuan Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Wanda Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Huajiang Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Ximen Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Laosong Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Longshan Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Fuxing Elementary School^{[citation needed]}
• Guangren Elementary School^{[citation needed]}

• Taipei Korean Elementary School (타이뻬이한국학교)^[10]
• Wanhua Community College^{[citation needed]}

Wanhua is served by Longshan Temple and Ximen metro stations of the Taipei Metro. The Taiwan Railways Administration's Western Line has one station in the district, Wanhua Station.^{[citation needed]}

Important roads, highways, and bridges include:

• Provincial Highway 1 (台一線): Zhongxiao Bridge, Zhongxiao Road West (忠孝橋、忠孝西路)^{[citation needed]}
• Provincial Highway 3 (台三線): Huajiang Bridge, Heping W. Rd, Zhonghua Road (華江橋、和平西路、中華路)^{[citation needed]}
• Zhongxing Bridge (中興橋)^{[citation needed]}
• Wanban Bridge (萬板橋)^{[citation needed]}
• Huacui Bridge (華翠大橋)^{[citation needed]}
• Guangfu Bridge (光復橋)^{[citation needed]}
• Huazhong Bridge (華中橋)^{[citation needed]}

• Hannah Quinlivan, actress and model^{[citation needed]}
• Kingone Wang, actor, singer and host^{[citation needed]}
• Lin Chia-lung, Mayor of Taichung (2014-2018)^{[citation needed]}
• Yang Kuei-mei, actress^{[citation needed]}

• District (Taiwan)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wanhua District, Taipei.

Look up Wanhua in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Official website (in Chinese)

25°02′00″N 121°28′59″E / 25.0333°N 121.483°E / 25.0333; 121.483