Nantou City

Nantou City (Chinese: 南投市) is a county-controlled city located in the northwest of Nantou County, Taiwan. It lies between the Bagua Mountains and the Maoluo River and is the county seat of Nantou County. Freeway No. 3 serves Nantou City. Its name is a transliteration of the Hoanya word Ramtau with the characters 南投 chosen to complement 北投 (Beitou), a district in Taipei, even though there is no relation between the aboriginal words.

History

Qing Dynasty

The Han Chinese began arriving in the area during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor of Qing Dynasty. Members of the Zhang clan from Zhangzhou as well as the Jian (簡), Lin and Xiao clans from Nanjing County in Zhangzhou were among the early settlers. A yamen was established in 1759 near the present Nantou Elementary School. In 1898, Nantou Commandery was organized.

Empire of Japan

In 1901, during Japanese rule, Nanto Cho (南投廳) was one of twenty local administrative offices established. In 1909, part of Toroku Chō (斗六廳) was merged into Nanto Cho. In 1920, Nantō Town was governed under Nantō District, Taichū Prefecture.