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Kinmen County 金門縣 Abbreviation(s): Kinmen (金門; Pinyin: Jīnmén)
County seat	Jincheng
Region	Southern Fujian
County Magistrate	Lee Chu-feng (李炷烽)
Cities	0
Townships	6
Area
- Total	153.056 km² (20 of 25)
- % water	0 %
Population
- Total	84,570 (December 2008) (24 of 25)
- Density	552.54/km²
Symbols
- County flower	Four-season orchid
- County tree	Cotton tree
- County bird	none
Official websites	www.kinmen.gov.tw

Kinmen is a small archipelago of several islands administered by the Republic of China (ROC): Greater Kinmen (大金門), Lesser Kinmen, and some islets. Administratively, it is Kinmen County of Fujian Province, Republic of China. The county is claimed as part of Fujian's Quanzhou Prefecture by the People's Republic of China (PRC). Some islands of other counties, such as Wuchiu, were transferred to the jurisdiction of Kinmen County by the ROC government following its civil war defeat and retreat to Taiwan. Matsu is the other set of islands on the Fujian coast controlled by the ROC.

Many of the county's inhabitants speak the Southern Min language (Hokkien). Due to their previous political isolation, most residents will say they speak "Kinmenese", as opposed to "Taiwanese" as it is commonly called in Taiwan, though the two dialects are mutually intelligible. It is geographically very near Xiamen, no more than 2 kilometers. The residents of Wuchiu Township speak Puxian Min, as opposed to Min-nan for the rest of Kinmen.

History

Unlike the island of Taiwan and the Penghu islands, Kinmen was never ceded to Japan, because Kinmen was, and still is considered to be a part of Fujian province, both to the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China, though Kinmen was occupied by Japan from 1937 to 1945.

The island was the site of extensive shelling between PRC and ROC forces during the first and Second Taiwan Strait Crisis, being also a major issue in the 1960 United States Presidential Election between Kennedy and Nixon. In the 1950s, the United States threatened to use nuclear weapons against the PRC if it attacked the island.

Kinmen was originally a military reserve. However, the island was returned to the civilian government in the mid-1990s, and travel to and from Taiwan was allowed.

Direct travel between mainland China and Kinmen was opened in 2002, and there has been extensive tourism development on the island in anticipation of mainland tourists. Direct travel was suspended in 2003 as a result of the SARS outbreak, but has since resumed. Many Taiwanese businesspeople use this link to enter the Chinese Mainland as it is seen as cheaper and easier than entering through Hong Kong, however, this changed following the 2005 Pan-Blue visits to mainland China and the presidential and legislative victories of the KMT, that allowed easier Cross-Strait relations. The island has thus experienced an economic boom as businesspeople relocate to the island for easier access to the vast markets of the People's Republic of China.

Economy

Kinmen's economy is mainly based on tourism and services due to its proximity to mainland China.^[1][2]

Tourism

The slogan "Three Principles of the People unite China", located in Kinmen

Kinmen is recognized as a national park. Because of its military importance, development on the island was extremely limited. As a result, it is now a popular weekend tourist destination for Taiwanese and is known for its quiet villages, old-style architecture, and beaches. Due to extensive shelling campaigns between the PRC and ROC, Kinmen is famous for its Artillery Shell Knives. Local artisans would collect the vast amounts of exploded ordnance and make high-quality knives which are still sought after by chefs and connoisseurs. Kinmen is also home of the locally famous Kinmen Kaoliang liquor, a spirit ranging between 38 and 63 percent alcohol, which is highly appreciated by the Taiwanese. The Kinmen Airport is located on the bigger island.

Politics

The island consistently votes for the Kuomintang (KMT). Until the early 1990s, proponents of Taiwan independence argued that they would consider handing Kinmen over to the PRC in any negotiated settlement. Residents of the island have broadly opposed such measures, fearing the consequences of the PRC government's policies on their standard of living and political freedom.

Townships

Subdivision of Kinmen County into townships

Kinmen County is subdivided into six townships:

All those townships on Greater Kinmen Island start their names with Jin ("gold"). Lieyu Township encompasses the entire Lesser Kinmen Island, and is the closest to Xiamen. Wuqiu Township comprises Greater Qiu Islet (大坵) and Lesser Qiu Islet (小坵).

Jincheng and Jinsha are the largest of the six townships. Altogether, there are 37 Kinmen villages, three of which – all in Zhen (鎮) – are Li-villages (里); the rest are Cun-villages (村).

Education

The National Kinmen Institute of Technology (國立金門技術學院) is located in Jinning Township, Kinmen.

Gallery

Calligraphy by former President Chiang Kai-shek etched on a rock in Kinmen reads, "Forget not what happened in Jǔ" - an allusion to the Warring States Period when the State of Qi, cornered into the City of Ju by the State of Yan, successfully counterattacked and retook its territory. This is intended as an analogy to the situation between the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China. Other slogans alluding to "retaking the mainland" can still be found in Kinmen.

The Juguang ("Brightness of Ju") Tower, a famous landmark in Kinmen.

Jincheng, the county seat of Kinmen.

See also

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

• Matsu Islands
• Administrative divisions of the Republic of China
• Township (Taiwan)
• List of cities in the Republic of China (Taiwan)
• Republic of China
• Cross-Strait relations
• Fujian Province, Republic of China
• Fujian Province
• Boyu Road

References

External links

• Falling rain Genomics Inc.—Kinmen
• Kinmen travel guide from Wikitravel
• Kinmen County Government Official Website
• Complete list of the villages in each township
• Maps of Kinmen
• Satellite image of Greater Kinmen and Lesser Kinmen by Google Maps

Administrative divisions of the Republic of China (Otherwise known as Taiwan). Central municipalities Taipei City · Kaohsiung City Taiwan Province Counties Changhua · Chiayi · Hsinchu · Hualien · Kaohsiung · Miaoli · Nantou · Penghu (Pescadores) · Pingtung · Taichung · Tainan · Taipei · Taitung · Taoyuan · Yilan · Yunlin Cities Chiayi · Hsinchu · Keelung · Taichung · Tainan Fujian Province Counties Kinmen · Lienchiang (Matsu Islands) Note: On December 25, 2010 the pink highlighted administrative divisions are scheduled in restructuring or merger into Central municipalities status. See Administrative divisions of the Republic of China.

Cities and townships in the Taiwan strait islands of the Republic of China County seats are in Bold Taiwan Penghu Cities Magong Rural townships Baisha · Cimei · Husi · Siyu · Wang'an Fujian Kinmen Urban townships Jincheng · Jinsha · Jinhu Rural townships Jinning · Lieyu · Wuciou Lienchiang Rural townships Nangan · Beigan · Juguang · Dongyin

Territorial disputes in East, South, and Southeast Asia
Type	Territory	Currently Administered by	Claimants
Land:	Aksai Chin
	Baekdu Mountain		2 2
	Heixiazi/Bolshoy Ussuriysky (Eastern part)2		2
	Indo-Bangladesh enclaves3
	Kashmir3		2
	Kachin State		2 1
	Kayin State		1
	Korean Peninsula and its adjacent islands3
	Mainland China		1
	Outer Mongolia		2
	Pamir Mountains3		2
	Pattani		1
	North Borneo (Sabah)2
	Shan State		1
	Sixty-Four Villages East of the River2		2
	South Tibet (now Arunachal Pradesh of India)		2
	Tannu Uriankhai (now Tuva Republic of Russia)2		2
	Tibet (TAR) and other Tibetan autonomous areas of PRC/Greater Tibet (excluding South Tibet)		2 1
	Trans-Karakoram Tract		2
	Wa State		1
Islands and Waters:	Diaoyutai/Senkaku Islands
	Kinmen
	Kori Creek2
	Liancourt Rocks		2
	Macclesfield Bank
	Matsu
	Paracel Islands
	South Ledge
	Pratas Islands
	Scarborough Shoal
	Socotra Rock		2 2
	Southern Kuril Islands
	Spratly Islands3
	Taiwan and Penghu2
Notes:	1Government in exile/exiled group. 2Inactive dispute. 3Divided among multiple claimants.

Coordinates: 24°26′N 118°20′E / 24.44°N 118.33°E / 24.44; 118.33

From Wikitravel

Kinmen 金門 (pronounced Jinmen, literal meaning "golden gate", formerly known as Quemoy) is an outlying island located near the People's Republic of China, but is controlled by the Republic of China on Taiwan.

Cities

KinCheng, meaning Golden City, is the main city in Kinmen, located on the greater Kinmen island. The secondary city is Shanwai. The ShangYi airport is between the two cities.

Understand

Kinmen means "Golden Gate"

Getting in

Access is by air from Taiwan or by boat from Xiamen to Shuitou on the main Kinmen island (this link is now open to foreigners). You can take a flight on 3 of Taiwan's 4 domestic carries from the three bigger cities on Taiwan several times a day. One way tickets cost a little over 2000 NT dollars. Boats are NT$700 from Shuitou to Xiamen and CNY 180 from Xiamen to Shuitou and run once an hour between 0830 and 1730 in each direction. The journey takes about an hour.

If you are arriving by ferry from Xiamen, the ferry terminal does have a tourist information desk that can help find you an inn. There are money exchange counters, however then only will exchange RMB to NT$. They will not exchange US$. Greenislandadventures.com has packages to Kinmen - includes scooter !

Getting around

There are taxis on the island, though you need pretty good Mandarin or Taiwanese skills to negotiate a flat rate with the driver. Otherwise there are a few buses that run around, but they are not frequent and bus stops aren't particularly convenient. It is easiest to just rent your own scooter. You can get a 150CC for about 550 NT dollars per 24 hours. Roads are all paved and there are good maps at every village and in every hotel. Road signs are written in both Chinese Characters and English / Hanyu Pinyin, so it is hard to get lost.

See

The late President of the Republic of China, Chiang Kai-shek, left a calligraphy inscription in Kinmen, urging the ROC troops to fight on and to one day re-take the Mainland from the Communist bandits.

Wind Lion Gods

The Wind Lion Gods of Kinmen are unique statues all over the island, you can either see the originals in the villages (this can take some patience and hunting skills) or just go to the new Wind Lion God Park near the ShangYi Airport.

• The 8-2-3 Artillery battle museum is small but excellent, and even has a large amount of English signage to help explain the exhibits. There is also a Virtual War room where you can experience war for 3 minutes.
• The Kinmen cultural village is a great little plae to poke around, with Kinmens 2 best antique stores being located within the walls. Its is only 50 NT dollars to get in and a beautiful and well maintained example of Fujian style traditional Chinese houses with swallow tail roofs and was built towards the end of the 1800's.

Do

If you can find all 63 "official" wind lion god statues, the ones that are represented in the park, and present proof to the park office, they will give you a special gift.

• Remember to pick up some cleavers from Kinmen. They are famous for making excellent quality cleavers. The steel is obtained from the hundred of thousands of bomb shells that the Communist forces fired at Kinmen, in a failed attempt to take the island away from the Nationalist troops. The most authenthic knives, and the best place for a factory tour is Maestro Wu's Knives.
  • It is claimed that a single shell casing can make approximately 60 pieces of blades. This is doubtful. Also doubtful is that there were so many shells that landed from Communist forces that will last the good Maestro the 35yrs that shelling stopped (in the late 1970s).
  • Finishing quality for it's cleavers have dropped a lot since the mid 90s. Even for Maestro Wu's Knife's top selling special-designed cleavers, the words "Made in Kinmen" are barely visible and/or badly engraved. Salepersons were taught to toe the line that "its because the steel's quality is so good that the engraving machine cannot carve the words properly". This is a bad sales tactic and a sorry excuse for a once famous knife brand that was built on quality.

Sleep

Da Jhai Men Homestay Actually a rather tumbledown hotel, not a homestay, the management is nevertheless very friendly and the location convenient. Double room NT$1200 regular days and NT$1500 weekends and holidays. Phone 082-320008. Location No. 84 Jhushan Village, Jincheng Township, Kinmen.

Drink

KinMen is the home of Taiwan's distinctive "Kaoliang" liquor, a tequila-like hard liquor popular all over Taiwan. The factory is located right in the middle of the island, not far from the airport and is hard to miss with it's distinctive smell and two two-story liquor bottles guarding the front gates.

Stay safe

Though formal hostilities with the PRC ended by the early 1980s, Kinmen is still very much a front line area. Visitors are strongly advised not to wander off paved roads when exploring the island due to the possibility of running across old unmarked minefields. It is also advisible to avoid traveling to certain sensitive areas after dark, such as coastal areas or areas near military installations. Visitors should also obey all orders given by military personnel and avoid entering or photographing sensitive areas.