Datong District, Taipei

Datong District, Taipei
Datong District, Taipei
Traditional Chinese	大同區
Literal meaning	Great Harmony District
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Dàtóng Qū
Wade–Giles	Ta-t'ung Chü
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ	Tāi-tông-khu
Twatutia (old name)
Traditional Chinese	大稻埕
Hokkien POJ
Transcriptions
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ	Tōa-tiū-tiâⁿ

Datong

大同區
Datong 大同區
District
	Datong District
	View of Eslite Spectrum Nanxi on Nanjing West Road
Country	Republic of China (Taiwan)
Region	Western Taipei
Divisions	List 25 villages; 522 neighborhoods;
Area
• Total	5.6815 km2 (2.1936 sq mi)
• Rank	Ranked 12th of 12
Population (January 2023)
• Total	119,123
• Rank	Ranked 11th of 12
Postal code	103
Website	dtdo.gov.taipei (in Chinese)

Datong District or Tatung is a district of Taipei City, Taiwan. It is located between the Taipei Metro Red Line and eastern shore of the Tamsui River, and between Civic Boulevard and the Sun Yat-sen Freeway. The southern part of this area used to be the site of Twatutia, one of the first settlements in what is now Taipei and for a time the area's commercial center.^[1] Taipei's commercial center has since shifted south east to Zhongzheng, Da'an and Xinyi, and Datong is far less important economically. One of the last vestiges of Twatutia's commercial importance disappeared with the closing of the Chien-Cheng Circle in 2006. The north was the site of the village of Daronpon.

The Taipei Confucius Temple is adorned with southern Fujian-style ceramic adornments.

History

During the Qing Dynasty, the district was named Daronpon (Chinese: 大浪泵; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tōa-lông-pōng), Paronpon, and other variants, but was renamed Toaliongtong (大隆同; Toā-liông-tông) in 1844. Following the Second Opium War, a port was opened in Twatutia for international trade. Foreign trade resulted in the economic development of the district.

In 1946, the district's name was changed to Tatung (大同), which means "Great Unity", the Confucian notion of utopia which is in the lyrics of the National Anthem of the Republic of China. In 1990, the district merged with neighboring Jiancheng and Yanping Districts to create today's enlarged Datong District.^[1] The spelling became "Datong" due to switching to the Pinyin Chinese romanization system.

Administrative divisions

The district consists of Bao'an, Dayou, Guangneng, Guoqing, Guoshun, Jiangong, Jianming, Jiantai, Jingxing, Laoshi, Linjiang, Longhe, Minquan, Nanfang, Penglai, Shuanglian, Siwen, Xingming, Yangya, Yanping, Yongle, Yuquan, Zhaoyang, Zhisheng and Zhongqing Village.

Government institutions

Ministry of Labor

Tourism

It is most notable for its Japanese period and Qing period architecture, especially along Dihua Street. It is also famous for the Dihua (Tihua) Street Market during the Lunar New Year holidays. The market sells dried fruits, nuts, dried meats, dried seafood, snacks, and health drinks.^[1]

Other attractions in Datong include Tianma Tea House, Taiwan New Cultural Movement Memorial Hall, Chen Tian-lai Residence, Ama Museum, Chiang Wei-shui Memorial Park, Chen Dexing Ancestral Hall, Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei, Customs Museum, Taipei Confucius Temple and Bao-an Temple in the Dalongdong area, the Xia Hai City God Temple and Cisheng Temple in Dadaocheng area.^[1] Datong also contains the Qsquare, Yongle Market (also on Dihua Street), Ningxia Night Market, Yansan Night Market and Dalong Night Market.