Political divisions of Taiwan (1895–1945)

Taiwanese administrative divisions under Japanese rule

Taiwan was under Japanese rule after the First Sino-Japanese War, as per the Treaty of Shimonoseki of 1895. There were still several changes until the Japanese political system was adopted in 1920. This system was de facto abolished in 1945 and de jure in 1952.

## Introduction

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Administrative divisions of Taiwan by types and times. Like the administrative divisions in mainland Japan, most of them are translated to "prefectures" in English.

Number of divisions  Start date | End date | Timespan | Summary

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May 1895 | Aug 1895 | 3 | 3 Ken, 1 Chō
Aug 1895 | Mar 1896 | 7 | 1 Ken, 2 Minseishibu, 1 Chō
Apr 1896 | Jun 1897 | 15 | 3 Ken, 1 Chō
Jun 1897 | Jun 1898 | 12 | 6 Ken, 3 Chō
Jun 1898 | Apr 1901 | 34 | 3 Ken, 3 Chō
May 1901 | Nov 1901 | 7 | 3 Ken, 4 Chō
Nov 1901 | Oct 1909 | 95 | 20 Chō
Oct 1909 | Aug 1920 | 130 | 12 Chō
Sep 1920 | Jun 1926 | 70 | 5 Shū, 2 Chō
Jul 1926 | Apr 1952 | 239 | 5 Shū, 3 Chō

Types of the divisions  Name | Kanji | Kana

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Ken | 縣 | けん
Shū | 州 | しゅう
Chō | 廳 | ちょう
Minseishibu | 民政支部 | みんせいしぶ

## Early years (1895–1901)

[edit]

The political divisions changed frequently between 1895 and 1901.

Date | May. 1895 – Aug. 1895 |  | Aug. 1895 – Mar. 1896 |  | Mar. 1896 – Jun. 1897

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Names  | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん
Taiwan Ken | 臺灣縣 | たいわんけん | Taiwan Minseishibu | 臺灣民政支部 | たいわんみんせいしぶ | Taichū Ken | 臺中縣 | たいちゅうけん
Tainan Ken | 臺南縣 | たいなんけん | Tainan Minseishibu | 臺南民政支部 | たいなんみんせいしぶ | Tainan Ken | 臺南縣 | たいなんけん
Hōkotō Chō | 澎湖島廳 | ほうことうちょう | Hōkotō Chō | 澎湖島廳 | ほうことうちょう | Hōkotō Chō | 澎湖島廳 | ほうことうちょう
Div. No. | 3 Ken, 1 Chō | 1 Ken, 2 Minseishibu, 1 Chō | 3 Ken, 1 Chō
Date | Jun. 1897 – Jun. 1898 |  | Jun. 1898 – Apr. 1901 |  | May. 1901 – Nov. 1901

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Names  | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん | Taihoku Ken | 臺北縣 | たいほくけん
Shinchiku Ken | 新竹縣 | しんちくけん
Taichū Ken | 臺中縣 | たいちゅうけん | Taichū Ken | 臺中縣 | たいちゅうけん | Taichū Ken | 臺中縣 | たいちゅうけん
Kagi Ken | 嘉義縣 | かぎけん
Tainan Ken | 臺南縣 | たいなんけん | Tainan Ken | 臺南縣 | たいなんけん | Tainan Ken | 臺南縣 | たいなんけん
Hōzan Ken | 鳳山縣 | ほうざんけん | Kōshun Chō | 恆春廳 | こうしゅんちょう
Giran Chō | 宜蘭廳 | ぎらんちょう | Giran Chō | 宜蘭廳 | ぎらんちょう | Giran Chō | 宜蘭廳 | ぎらんちょう
Taitō Chō | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう | Taitō Chō | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう | Taitō Chō | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう
Hōko Chō | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう | Hōko Chō | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう | Hōko Chō | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう
Div. No. | 6 Ken, 3 Chō | 3 Ken, 3 Chō | 3 Ken, 4 Chō

## Chō (1901–1920)

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The former system was abolished 11 November 1901, and twenty local administrative offices (chō) were established.[1] Usage of Ken divisions was discontinued.

### Structural hierarchy

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Administrative divisions of Taiwan in 1901.[2] The red line marks the approximate boundary separating Aboriginal areas and territories under actual Japanese administration. Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4

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Prefecture
廳 chō | Subprefecture
支廳 shichō | District
區 ku | Town
街 gai
Village
庄 jō

### Prefectures

[edit]

Nov. 1901 – Oct. 1909 |  | Oct. 1909 – Aug. 1920

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Taihoku Chō | 臺北廳 | たいほくちょう | Taihoku Chō | 臺北廳 | たいほくちょう
Kīrun Chō | 基隆廳 | きいるんちょう
Shinkō Chō | 深坑廳 | しんこうちょう
Giran Chō | 宜蘭廳 | ぎらんちょう
Giran Chō | 宜蘭廳 | ぎらんちょう
Tōshien Chō | 桃仔園廳 | とうしえんちょう | Tōen Chō | 桃園廳 | とうえんちょう
Shinchiku Chō | 新竹廳 | しんちくちょう | Shinchiku Chō | 新竹廳 | しんちくちょう
Byōritsu Chō | 苗栗廳 | びょうりつちょう
Taichū Chō | 臺中廳 | たいちゅうちょう
Taichū Chō | 臺中廳 | たいちゅうちょう
Shōka Chō | 彰化廳 | しょうかちょう
Nantō Chō | 南投廳 | なんとうちょう | Nantō Chō | 南投廳 | なんとうちょう
Toroku Chō | 斗六廳 | とろくちょう
Kagi Chō | 嘉義廳 | かぎちょう
Kagi Chō | 嘉義廳 | かぎちょう
Ensuikō Chō | 鹽水港廳 | えんすいこうちょう
Tainan Chō | 臺南廳 | たいなんちょう
Tainan Chō | 臺南廳 | たいなんちょう
Hōzan Chō | 鳳山廳 | ほうざんちょう
Banshoryō Chō | 蕃薯寮廳 | ばんしょりょうちょう | Akō Chō | 阿緱廳 | あこうちょう
Akō Chō | 阿猴廳 | あこうちょう
Kōshun Chō | 恆春廳 | こうしゅんちょう
Taitō Chō | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう | Taitō Chō | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう
Karenkō Chō | 花蓮港廳 | かれんこうちょう
Hōko Chō | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう | Hōko Chō | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう
20 Chō | 12 Chō

* Shinkō, Byōritsu, Toroku, Ensuikō were split and merge with the two Chō in the right.

### Demographics

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Population of Formosa according to census taken 31 December 1904, arranged by district.[3]

Population of Formosa as of 1915  Prefecture | Kanji | Japanese | Taiwanese | Area (km²) | Population

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Taihoku | 臺北廳 | Taihoku-chō | Tâi-pak-thiaⁿ | 1,691.5284 | 523,502
Giran | 宜蘭廳 | Giran-chō | Gî-lân-thiaⁿ | 710.8631 | 143,912
Tōen | 桃園廳 | Tōen-chō | Thô-hn̂g-thiaⁿ | 984.5170 | 231,409
Shinchiku | 新竹廳 | Shinchiku-chō | Sin-tek-thiaⁿ | 1,705.1696 | 327,164
Taichū | 臺中廳 | Taichū-chō | Tâi-tiong-thiaⁿ | 2,271.4004 | 592,577
Nantō | 南投廳 | Nantō-chō | Lâm-tâu-thiaⁿ | 1,274.9484 | 126,223
Kagi | 嘉義廳 | Kagi-chō | Ka-gī-thiaⁿ | 3,249.8356 | 566,158
Tainan | 臺南廳 | Tainan-chō | Tâi-lâm-thiaⁿ | 2,345.5133 | 569,292
Akō | 阿緱廳 | Akō-chō | A-kâu-thiaⁿ | 2,201.6170 | 259,441
Taitō | 臺東廳 | Taitō-chō | Tâi-tang-thiaⁿ | 1,204.4906 | 36,997
Karenkō | 花蓮港廳 | Karenkō-chō | Hoa-liân-káng-thiaⁿ | 1,315.7236 | 45,521
Hōko | 澎湖廳 | Hōko-chō | Phêⁿ-ô͘-thiaⁿ | 126.8648 | 57,726

## Shū and Chō (1920–1945)

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Political division of Taiwan Second level political division of Taiwan

Cities / 市 (shi, chhī)

Districts / 郡 (gun, kūn)

Subprefectures / 支廳 (shichō, chi-thiaⁿ)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Prefectures of Taiwan.

Under a "Dōka policy" (同化) in which the Japanese considered the Taiwanese to be separate but equal, the political divisions in Taiwan became similar to the system used in mainland Japan in 1920.

### Structural hierarchy

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Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5

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Prefecture
州 shū (5)
廳 chō (3)  | City
市 shi (11)  | 町 chō | 丁目 chōme
大字 ōaza | 小字 koaza
District
郡 gun (51)

Subprefecture
支廳 shichō (2)  | Town
街 gai (68)
Village
庄 jō (197)
Aboriginal area
蕃地 banchi
社 sha (571)

* Chō (町) and chōme (丁目) are used in the city centers.
* Sha (社) is used to name the tribes of the indigenous peoples.

### Prefectures

[edit]

Name | Kanji | Kana | No. of Subdivisions | Wade–Giles

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City | Dist. | Subp.
Taihoku Prefecture | 臺北州 | たいほくしゅう | 3 | 9 |  | Taipei
Shinchiku Prefecture | 新竹州 | しんちくしゅう | 1 | 8 |  | Hsinchu
Taichū Prefecture | 臺中州 | たいちゅうしゅう | 2 | 11 |  | Taichung
Tainan Prefecture | 臺南州 | たいなんしゅう | 2 | 10 |  | Tainan
Takao Prefecture | 高雄州 | たかおしゅう | 2 | 7 |  | Kaohsiung
Karenkō Prefecture | 花蓮港廳 | かれんこうちょう | 1 | 3 |  | Hualien Port
Taitō Prefecture | 臺東廳 | たいとうちょう |  | 3 |  | Taitung
Hōko Prefecture | 澎湖廳 | ほうこちょう |  |  | 2 | Penghu

* Hōko Prefecture was divided from Takao Prefecture in 1926

### Cities

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There were 11 cities in Taiwan in 1945. Most of them are still the most populous municipalities in the country today. The ōaza (大字) in the city center may be named chō (町).

Prefecture | Name | Kanji | Kana | Wade–Giles

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Taihoku | Taihoku City | 臺北市 | たいほくし | Taipei
Kiirun City | 基隆市 | きいるんし | Keelung
Giran City | 宜蘭市 | ぎらんし | Yilan
Shinchiku | Shinchiku City | 新竹市 | しんちくし | Hsinchu
Taichū | Taichū City | 臺中市 | たいちゅうし | Taichung
Shōka City | 彰化市 | しょうかし | Changhua
Tainan | Tainan City | 臺南市 | たいなんし | Tainan
Kagi City | 嘉義市 | かぎし | Chiayi
Takao | Takao City | 高雄市 | たかおし | Kaohsiung
Heitō City | 屏東市 | へいとうし | Pingtung
Karenkō | Karenkō City | 花蓮港市 | かれんこうし | Hualien

### Demographics

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See also: Demographics of Taiwan § Population census

The 1941 (Showa 16) census of Taiwan was 6,249,468. 93.33% of the population were Taiwanese which consisted of both Han Taiwanese and "civilized" Taiwanese aborigines. Tainan had the largest population followed by Taichū and Taihoku. The largest concentration of ethnic Japanese were in Taihoku followed by Takao and Tainan.

Demographics of Taiwan as of 1942  Prefecture | Kanji | Japanese | Taiwanese | Area
(km²) | Population | Population
Density
(/km²) | Demographics

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Japanese national | Foreign national
Taiwanese | Japanese | Korean | Chinese | Other
Taihoku | 臺北州 | Taihoku-shū | Tâi-pak-chiu | 4,594.2371 | 1,266,924 | 276  | 1,078,316 | 161,306 | 1,161 | 26,138 | 53
Shinchiku | 新竹州 | Shinchiku-shū | Sin-tek-chiu | 4,570.0146 | 856,382 | 187  | 832,565 | 21,632 | 165 | 2,020 | 0
Taichū | 臺中州 | Taichū-shū | Tâi-tiong-chiu | 7,382.9426 | 1,411,846 | 191  | 1,359,865 | 47,688 | 284 | 4,001 | 8
Tainan | 臺南州 | Tainan-shū | Tâi-lâm-chiu | 5,421.4627 | 1,587,513 | 293  | 1,524,123 | 55,389 | 289 | 7,699 | 13
Takao | 高雄州 | Takao-shū | Ko-hiông-chiu | 5,721.8672 | 969,935 | 170  | 896,689 | 65,446 | 585 | 7,214 | 1
Karenkō | 花蓮港廳 | Karenkō-chō | Hoa-liân-káng-thiaⁿ | 4,628.5713 | 167,911 | 36  | 143,671 | 21,811 | 174 | 2,255 | 0
Taitō | 臺東廳 | Taitō-chō | Tâi-tang-thiaⁿ | 3,515.2528 | 97,059 | 28  | 88,317 | 7,687 | 31 | 1,023 | 1
Hōko | 澎湖廳 | Hōko-chō | Phêⁿ-ô͘-thiaⁿ | 126.8642 | 70,312 | 554  | 66,342 | 3,888 | 3 | 79 | 0

## Changes in 1945

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When the Republic of China began to rule Taiwan in 1945, the government simply changed the names of the divisions, and named the Aboriginal areas. Those changes were not recognized by the Allies after the surrender of Japan.

Before |  | After

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Level | Name | Character | Japanese
Hepburn | Taiwanese
Pe̍h-ōe-jī | Name | Character | Mandarin
Pinyin | Taiwanese
Pe̍h-ōe-jī | Level
1 | Prefecture | 州 | shū | chiu  | County | 縣 | xiàn | koān  | 1
廳 | chō | thiaⁿ
2 | City | 市 | shi | chhī  | Provincial city | 市 | shì | chhī
County-administered city | 縣轄市 | xiànxiáshì | koān-hat-chhī  | 2
District | 郡 | gun | kūn  | County-administered district | 縣轄區 | xiànxiáqū | koān-hat-khu
Subprefecture | 支廳 | shichō | chi-thiaⁿ
3 | Town | 街 | gai | ke  | Urban township | 鎮 | zhèn | tìn  | 3
Village | 庄 | jō | chng  | Rural township | 鄉 | xiāng | hiong
Aboriginal areas | 蕃地 | banchi | huan-tē  | Mountain indigenous township | 山地鄉 | shāndì xiāng | soaⁿ-tē hiong

* Most of the cities in Taiwan became provincial cities, but Yilan (宜蘭市 Giran) and Hualien (花蓮市 Karen) became the first two county-administered cities in the ROC.
* The more basic 大字 ōaza or 小字 koaza are merged to the districts in provincial cities, and/or reformed to villages (村 cūn or 里 lǐ).

## See also

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* Administrative divisions of Taiwan
* Administrative divisions of Japan
* Prefectures of Japan
* Governor-General of Taiwan

## References

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1. ^ Davidson (1903), pp. 597–8: "In place of the former system, which divided the island into 3 prefectures and 3 prefectures of second class, and which was abolished November 11th, 1901, local administrative offices known as "Cho" have been established at the following points: Taihoku, Kelung, Giran (Gilan), Shinko (Chim-hua), Toshien (Tao-hong), Shinchiku (Teck-cham), Bioritsu (Maoli), Taichu, Shoka (Chang-wha), Nanto (Nam-tau), Toroku (Tau-lak), Kagi, Yensuiko (Kiam-tsui kang), Tainan, Banshorio (Han-chu-liao), Hozan (Fang-shan), Ako (A-kau), Koshun (Heng-chun), Taito (Tai-tong), and Boko (Pang-hoo). The Administrative or District Offices (Cho) are in charge of chiefs of Sonin rank, who are assisted by clerks, police inspectors, assistant experts, interpreters, and assistant police, all of Hannin rank. These officers of Hannin rank number 1230 for the whole island. The administration of Formosa, under the direction and superintendence of the Governor General, is entrusted to these district offices."
2. ^ Davidson (1903), map.
3. ^ Takekoshi (1907), p. 199.

## Bibliography

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* Davidson, James W. (1903). "Chapter XXXI: Formosa of To-day". The Island of Formosa, Past and Present : history, people, resources, and commercial prospects : tea, camphor, sugar, gold, coal, sulphur, economical plants, and other productions. London and New York: Macmillan. OCLC 1887893. OL 6931635M.
* Takekoshi, Yosaburō (1907). "Chapter XIII: Population and future development of the island resources". Japanese rule in Formosa. London, New York, Bombay and Calcutta: Longmans, Green, and co. OCLC 753129. OL 6986981M.

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Former external territories (gaichi) of Japan

Karafuto (naichi after 1943)|

* Karafuto Civil Administration Office → Karafuto Prefecture: Toyohara Subprefecture | Ōtomari Subprefecture | Rūtaka Subprefecture | Shikuka Subprefecture | Motodomari Subprefecture | Maoka Subprefecture | Tomarioru Subprefecture | Honto Subprefecture | Esutoru Subprefecture | Ushiro Subprefecture

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Taiwan|

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Governor
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